Produced by Virtuoso with Backroads

May 1, 2026

Northern Italy’s Amola Waterfall: A popular stop along alpine trekking routes.

These upcoming Backroads tours showcase Italy, Portugal, and Vermont in their fall finest.

Our take: The scenic route is always worth it – especially in the fall, when Alpine summits and pastoral valleys greet travelers with crisp temperatures and vibrant foliage. Backroads’ small-group and private hiking, cycling, and multi-adventure tours fully immerse travelers in the world’s most desirable locales, from the Canadian Rockies to Thailand’s tropical beaches.

“There’s truly no better way to connect with a place than exploring it by bike or on foot, stopping for a coffee mid-ride or chatting with a local along the trail,” says Virtuoso travel advisor Matt Farber, who used to lead trips with Backroads. “It turns sightseeing into genuine discovery.”

The tour operator’s guided itineraries pair daily steps and miles logged with luxe accommodations and plenty of downtime to soak up the scenery. En route between the cushy overnights, groups pull over for coffee breaks, beer flights and winetastings, artisan vistis, and plenty of photo ops. Backroads works closely with local chefs, winemakers, historians, and other experts, who bring each destination to life and give visitors access to experiences they wouldn’t typically find on their own.

Everyone can truly choose their own adventure: Whether it’s a weeklong cycling jaunt or a five-day trek, itineraries feature multiple daily route options of varying difficulty, elevation gain, and distance. Every tour has three group leaders, and on cycling tours, two support vans are always close by to provide mobile refreshments, on-the-go bike repairs, and lifts for anyone who needs a break. “You don’t have to plan your own routes, carry your own gear, figure out your meals, or fix your own problems,” says Virtuoso advisor Claire Saunders, who has traveled with Backroads on 13 trips. “Backroads takes care of everything. You just show up and go.” 

The Dolomites’ hiking trails, the Azores’ caldera lakes, and Vermont’s tree-lined country roads come alive in the fall – these three Backroads adventures showcase the best of each place.  

Hike among the Dolomites’ UNESCO‑recognized natural beauty.

The Dolomites Are Calling

Get ready to trek through northern Italy’s iconic Alpine landscapes on this five-day hiking tour from Trento to Verona. The Rendena Valley’s 88-room Lefay Resort & Spa Dolomiti serves as a serene home base for the adventure, with neutral-hued suites overlooking craggy peaks and green valleys and post-hike recovery options in one of the Italian Alps’ largest spas – encompassing five saunas, a salt cave, a heated saltwater pool, and a cold plunge.

Hikers cover three to six miles with up to 1,000 feet of elevation gain each day, hopping gondolas to Alpine trailheads, striding past Adamello Brenta Nature Park’s wildflower-filled meadows and bucolic pastures, home to grazing chestnut-colored Rendena cows. On day two, at 7,000 feet above sea level, visitors take on Adamello’s panoramic loop to the Upper and Lower Cornisello lakes, with the jagged Brenta Dolomites rising in the distance.

Halfway through each trail, groups visit rifugi (traditional mountain huts) for hearty regional dishes such as strangolapreti (spinach and bread dumplings) and casunziei (half-moon-shaped ravioli), and coffee or grappa (an Italian grape pomace brandy). On day four, for example, an express gondola lift from the resort town of Madonna di Campiglio delivers hikers to a 4.5-mile trail in Five Lakes, where Rifugio Malga Ritorto awaits with charcuterie, beef carpaccio, and venison ravioli.

After logging nearly 25 miles over the course of the week, trekkers wind down with one more hike through the lower Rendena Valley’s Sarca River towns of Carisolo and Pinzolo, past an ancient chestnut grove, a nineteenth-century glass factory, and preserved frescoed churches. Departures: Multiple dates, September 4 through September 21.

A countryside ride through Vermont’s fall foliage.

Peak Vermont Leaf Peeping (and Pedaling)

Vermont’s bucolic farmland, cozy culinary pastimes, and world-famous fall foliage starts on a six-day bike tour between Stowe and Woodstock. As on many of Backroads’ bicycle trips, flexibility is paramount: Riders choose from up to four route options each day – ranging from 12 to 58 miles – allowing them to take it easy or tackle challenging passes, such as Lincoln Gap. “You can bike with the group, then split off, with full support plus great meals and cultural activities along the way,” says Virtuoso advisor Jenn King.

After a picnic lunch at Elmore State Park on the tour’s first day, cyclists ride a segment of the 93-mile Lamoille Valley Rail Trail. The wide, crushed-stone path passes Holstein-cow-filled dairy farms, cuts through maple and birch forests, and offers views of the Lamoille River. The next day, they follow the Green Mountains’ rounded contours, climb Roxbury Gap and Granville Notch, and trace the Mad River to the small village of Warren. The postcard-perfect towns of Middlebury and Bristol deliver tree-lined streets and classic New England charm. After crossing the famed Appalachian Trail and a 90-foot-long covered bridge over the Ottauquechee River into Quechee, travelers dismount to watch glassblowing artisans at Simon Pearce studio.

Off-bike diversions make the most of fall in Vermont: Visitors can churn butter at Woodstock’s Billings Farm & Museum, order New England clam chowder at East Middlebury’s Waybury Inn (famously featured in the 1980s sitcom Newhart), and pick up souvenirs at one of Vermont’s oldest general stores in Barnard. Evenings bring farm-forward cuisine and restorative stays at cozy inns in Warren, Stowe, and Woodstock, offering a reset before the next day’s ride. Departures: Multiple dates, September 15 through October 11.

The Boca do Inferno viewpoint overlooks Sete Cidades, one of Portugal’s seven natural wonders.

An Adventure Trifecta in the Azores

Bike, hike, and paddle around São Miguel, the Azores archipelago’s largest island, during a six-day tour that starts and ends in the islands’ capital city, Ponta Delgada. The tour kicks things into high gear in Furnas, as travelers trek four miles to Furnas Lake’s steaming fumaroles, then pause to watch local chefs prepare their specialty, cozido das Furnas (a meat and vegetable stew slow-cooked in geothermal soil), before relaxing at a nearby wellness hotel.

From Furnas, shuttles deliver the group to Ribeira Funda on São Miguel’s north coast, where they hike down to the Atlantic Ocean along bluffs and hillsides dotted with pink lilies. Before heading back to Furnas for the night, they tour Chá Gorreana, Europe’s oldest still-operating tea plantation, established in 1883. During the next two days, travelers explore the island’s rugged north and south coasts on two wheels, pedaling between 17 and 25 miles, putting the kickstand down for stops at black-sand beaches and charming villages such as Agua Retorta and Maia.

Known as the “Green Island” for its lush, mountainous landscapes, São Miguel is a hiker’s paradise. Near the Canario Lagoon on the island’s westernmost corner, travelers lace up their boots for an eight-mile hike on Sete Cidades, an eight-square-mile volcanic caldera famous for its twin lakes, named Verde (green) and Azul (blue) for their vibrant hues. From the Boca do Inferno viewpoint, the full scale of the massive crater warrants a rightful gasp or two, before lunch and afternoon sea kayaking across the lakes. From coastal cliffside paths to quiet stretches of sand, Backroads’ São Miguel immersion makes the case for why the Azores top adventure-travel wish lists. Departures: Multiple dates, September 6 through November 1.