Here we suggest our most successful trip in Catalonia, our self-guided Barcelona Girona cycling trip.
Putting together Barcelona, the great Mediterranean metropolis, and Girona through the best roads, is a nice challenge that will take you through the Catalan landscapes and culture.
You will be able to get to know the Catalan culture and our amazing Mediterranean diet, always tasty and healthy.
This is not just about cycling (even if the average distance is 80 km per day), but also about knowing some details of Catalonia and Spain.
In this Barcelona Girona selfguided cycling trip you will find amazing spots to ride through:
Costa Brava (with the best road in Catalonia from Tossa de Mar to Sant Feliu de Guixols),
Tiny medieval villages as the less known Peratallada, Monells or Palau Sator
Nice hills as Santa Pellaia, Els Angels, Santuari del Far
Beautiful hot springs destinations as Caldes de Malavella
Pretty nice coastal villages as L’Escala.
Not to mention one of our favorite destinations: Figueres, where the genius Salvador Dali was born, and you can visit his Museum, just a few meters from the hotel you will be staying at.
A self-guided trip is the best way to discover a region at your own pace. You can stop for lunch wherever you want, and your luggage will be at your destination when you arrive.
The hotel selection is very accurate, all of them are bike-friendly. Food is also very good in all of them (one of our requirements)
This trip won’t take you straight from Barcelona to Girona, but will send you to some beautiful climbs in the Pyrenees.
Let us mention just 3 stunning climbs that you will suffer but also enjoy, especially when you get to the top: Sant Pere de Rodes Monastery, Mare de Deu del Mont, and Santuari del Far. All 3 with some religious building at the top, and the views from the top of all 3 climbs is simply captivating.
Will you join us?
This route takes you to the best roads around Barcelona and Girona. We know every small road and we will keep you away from busy and dangerous roads.
We can adapt every stage to your needs making them longer or shorter (we might change some destination towns) and including more or less climbs.
Tour itself can be shortened if needed. 6 stages are the ideal number of stages to get to know the coastal roads, some climbing getting to the Pyrenees, and some of the best roads around Girona. But we can adapt the route to 4, 5, or 7 stages if you need it.
Our hotel selection is very accurate. We mix some of the best urban hotels (in Barcelona you will enjoy a fantastic 4 stars hotel with the best location) with other hotels at the seaside and even some rural cozy hotels. You will enjoy all of them.
Carbon road bike rental
6 nights in hotels including breakfast in, Barcelona, Calella, Caldes de Malavella, L’Escala, Figueres, and Olot.
Dinner at hotels except day 1 in Barcelona
Maps and tracks for all stages
Luggage transportation from hotel to hotel
Cycling guide first day to get out of Barcelona
Hotline you can call in case of any problem during the route
(ask for our recommendations)
Barcelona-Calella 83 km It is a stage to get closer the Costa Brava. Flat road beside the sea to get out of the city and then, instead of leading straight to Calella, get a small nice hilly road in Mataró towards Arenys de Munt and Sant Pol de Mar. After that, back to the main road NII leading to Calella.
One of the nicest roads you can cycle in whole Catalonia is the one from Tossa de Mar to Sant Feliu de Guixols. It is time to enjoy landscape, views, weather… cycling. Once in Sant Feliu de Guixols then you take direction Santa Cristina d’Aro and afterwards to Romanyà. Finally, a crossroad leading to Llagostera will put you in the right direction to Caldes de Malavella.
Few miles after the start begins the climb of the day, a beautiful, solitaire and not very steep climb named Santa Pellaia. After the descent towards La Bisbal we will cycle through not very crowded roads, and then a stop in Peretallada is worth. Medieval village, cars are not allowed and lots of restaurants and shops welcome the tourists. After Peretallada we will continue through Torroella de Montgrí and then to L’Escala..
There are several options for this stage. A possibility would be going from Roses to Alt de Perafita and stop in Cadaqués, where genious Salvador Dalí lived. Steep climb to the Monestry of San Pere de Rodes is also possible. Nice aerial views from there to Port de la Seva and Costa Brava. This area maybe windy, with the so named tramuntana wind, very strong if it blows. Figueres is a must, with the Museum dedicated to Salvador Dalí.
Going out from Figueres through N260 is a quick way out. Wide road leading Besalú that you will leave direction Esponellà and Banyoles. It is worth, the visit of Banyoles, the village beside the famous lake, where a lot of triathlon competitions take place. A good place to stop and enjoy lunch. Afterwards there are severals climbs, not very steep, to get some height reaching finally Olot at 440 meters. For the strong riders we can include the beautiful and very steep climb to Mare de Deu del Mont. Really worth, breathtaking views from the top to the Canigou peak in the Pyrenees!
One of the best spots for last day! The climb to Santuari del Far is one of the highlights of the whole trip. Climbing to Coll de Condreu and then taking the crossroad to the Sanctuary. Once you have enjoyed the views, then the rest of the stage is mainly downhill. This stage can be shortened to 55 km avoiding the climb if some of you had enough of climbing! When you get to Girona you realize why this town is becoming so popular for cyclists!
Road cycling in Barcelona and Catalonia is close to perfection. Smooth roads, good weather, polite drivers, and breathtaking scenery. Cycling in Barcelona hills, Costa Brava, Penedes wine region, or our medieval villages in Girona is just amazing. We know every little road without any traffic that will let you enjoy the best day on the bike. For a new experiences, our Barcelona cycling tours are waiting for you!
