The midway point of the race was marked by a transitional stage across the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, starting at the Cave del Predil around to the south of Tarvisio. After descending towards Tarvisio itself, the riders crested a small hill on the route at , before descending gradually for around . Having made their way through the feed zone at Ovaro - at the foot of the Monte Zoncolan, which featured in 2011 - the riders ascented the second-category Sella Ciampigotto, a rolling climb of around 4.5% in gradient. From there, the riders descended through the two intermediate sprint points - at Lozzo di Cadore and Pieve di Cadore - before the final kick up to the finish at Erto e Casso. The final climb was another rolling climb, with an average of around 5%, but the climb itself maxed out at 9% in places. The Vajont stage was held to commemorate victims of the Vajont Dam disaster in 1963, when a landslide caused major flooding in the Piave Valley, and the deaths of around 2,000 people.