A genuine long-haul EV trip — free overnights at a friend's in Belfort both ways, then Switzerland's Gotthard route down to the clearest, warmest big lake in the Alps: swimming, the Ponale cliff-cycling path, and Malcesine's rotating cable car up Monte Baldo.
Lake Garda is the biggest lake in Italy and, at its northern end, the most dramatic — the Alps drop almost straight into deep, clean, glacially-fed water. Riva del Garda and Malcesine, facing each other across the narrow northern basin, are the best base pair for this trip's mix: Riva has the swimming beaches and the old town; Malcesine has the famous rotating cable car up Monte Baldo. Both sit at the start of the Ponale cycle path, a former cliffside road converted to bikes and pedestrians, widely rated one of the most spectacular short rides in the Alps. The lake is also one of Europe's top windsurfing/sailing venues (Riva, Torbole, Malcesine all have active clubs) thanks to the reliable Ora/Peler thermal winds. (Lake Garda, Malcesine, Torbole — Wikipedia)
The real routing math settled the "Belfort or Besançon" question decisively. Using free OSRM routing data: Meudon-la-Forêt → Belfort is 493 km (~5h), and from there Belfort → Riva del Garda is 576 km (~7h09) via Basel–Lucerne–Gotthard–Bellinzona–Chiasso–Brescia. The same second leg from Besançon is 672 km (~8h13) — almost 100 km and over an hour longer, because Besançon sits further from the Basel/Gotthard corridor. Belfort wins clearly for this destination.
The fastest, most direct route from Belfort to Lake Garda runs the length of Switzerland: Basel → Lucerne → the Gotthard road tunnel → Bellinzona → Chiasso → Como → Brescia → Affi. That means Swiss motorways, which require a vignette — Switzerland only sells an annual sticker (or now e-vignette), no short-term option, priced at CHF 40 (≈ €43) and technically valid for 14 months (December of the prior year through January of the following year), so one purchase covers both the outbound and return legs of this trip. (Wikipedia — Vignette (road tax): "Switzerland only offers a vignette valid for a year... at CHF 40 (around EUR 43)")
Once through the Gotthard and into Italy, the final approach uses a short paid stretch of the A22 Brennero autostrada (Rovereto–Affi exit), a normal Italian toll section, not the vignette-based Alpine crossing.
The Tesla Supercharger at Affi, right off the A22 motorway's "Affi–Lago di Garda sud" exit (confirmed as a real interchange on the A22 Modena–Brennero, per the exit table on Wikipedia's Lake Garda article), is the standard charging stop for EVs arriving at the lake's southern/eastern shore — about 15–20 minutes' drive from Malcesine and Riva. Plan one Supercharger stop in Switzerland (e.g. around Lucerne or Bellinzona) on the long Belfort–Garda leg, then top up at Affi on arrival if needed.
Leave after work, arrive Belfort around 11pm–midnight. Free night at your friend's.
Full remote workday. Belfort is a genuinely pleasant small city (Vauban citadel, the famous Lion of Belfort) if you get an evening walk in. Free night again.
Early start (aim for 6–6:30am) via Basel, Lucerne, the Gotthard tunnel, Bellinzona and Chiasso — this is one of the most scenic long-distance drives in Europe in its own right. One Supercharger stop in Switzerland. Arrive at the lake early-to-mid afternoon. First swim of the trip at Riva del Garda: head for Spiaggia dei Sabbioni or Spiaggia degli Olivi, both real public lakefront beaches on Riva's northern shore with the clear, cold, deep water Garda is known for.
Morning ride on the Strada del Ponale (Ponale cycle path) — a spectacular former carriage road built in 1848–51 along the cliffs above Riva, closed to cars since a 1998 tunnel bypass and 2004 landslide closure, now a dedicated cycling/pedestrian route with tunnels carved into the rock and sheer drops to the lake below. One of the best short rides in the Alps. (Wikipedia — Ponale road)
Afternoon: cross to Malcesine (ferry or a short drive around the northern tip) for the Funivia Malcesine–Monte Baldo, the famous cable car with rotating cabins on its second section, climbing from lake level to 1,760m in about 20 minutes with a full 360° view the whole way up. Real fares: €30 round trip at the ticket office (€28 booked online), or €22/€20 one-way. (funiviedelbaldo.it — official fares page) Walk or picnic at the top, then descend for a swim back at the lake.
Early swim at Riva before checkout, then the long drive back over the Gotthard. Splurge dinner tonight if you didn't already: a Trentino lake-fish plate — grilled lavarello or persico (whitefish/perch) with local olive oil, a genuine Garda specialty since the lake's microclimate supports Mediterranean-style olive groves this far north — typically €18–24 at a lakeside trattoria. Arrive Belfort late evening. Free night at your friend's.
Remote-work morning from Belfort, then drive home in the afternoon. Back in Meudon by late evening, ready for Wednesday.
Bike travels inside the car, front wheel off, per the Car Camping, Food & Bike Guide — no roof or hitch rack, no meaningful range penalty even across this much highway driving. The Ponale path is paved and gentle enough for a hybrid/gravel setup; road tires are fine.
Lake Garda's water is genuinely clear and swimmable — spring-fed and glacial in origin, cold even in summer by Mediterranean standards but very clean. Riva's public beaches (Sabbioni, Olivi) are free and unsupervised; bring your own gear as this isn't a resort-lounger beach.
| Category | How it's calculated | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| French tolls | Meudon↔Belfort round trip, A5/A36-type autoroute, ~€38/leg | ≈ €76 |
| Swiss vignette | One CHF 40 sticker/e-vignette, valid whole trip (both directions) | ≈ €43 |
| Italian tolls | Short A22 stretch near Affi, both directions | ≈ €9 |
| Charging | ~2,138 km × 0.17 kWh/km ≈ 363 kWh × ~€0.40/kWh blended EU rate | ≈ €145 |
| Lodging | 3 free nights at Belfort friend's + 2 paid campsite nights at Garda (~€38/night) | ≈ €76 |
| Cable car | Malcesine–Monte Baldo round trip, online price | ≈ €28 |
| Food | ~5 self-cooked days (~€11/day) + 1 lake-fish splurge dinner (~€22) | ≈ €77 |
| Misc | Ferry Riva↔Malcesine, parking, incidentals | ≈ €20 |
| Total | ≈ €474 | |