MTB Tour Spain - 'Discover the Sierras'

Self-Guided MTB Tour Spain

MTB Tour in Andalucia

Enjoy a self-guided MTB tour through Andalucia's loveliest rural countryside. Over a week's riding on varied tracks and trails, you will enjoy a stunning variety of mountain, valley, river and forest landscapes.

Ride at your own pace each day, visiting some of western Andalucia’s most charming white villages. Try out delicious local produce - olives, wines, chorizos - and experience warm hospitality during overnight stays in hand-picked hotels and guesthouses. You will ride through 3 Andalucian provinces – Malaga, Sevilla and Cadiz - and pass through the heart of the protected area of the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park.

Stunning views, quiet trails and characterful “pueblos blancos” offer something special on every day of this week-long self-guided mountain bike tour in Spain. 

Award Winning Tours & Service

Summary

START:  Ronda     FINISH:  Ronda

(This tour can be started in Malaga, adding 2 extra days of riding, Malaga to el Chorro and el Chorro to Ronda) +€375 p.p.

Duration*	8 days	7 nights	5 mountain biking days (+ optional 6th day)
Distance	224 km total	45 km daily avg  ( max 50 km /  min 41 km )
Grading	Moderate to Challenging - route includes hills each day (792 metres on average daily ascent). Riding is mainly on unsurfaced tracks with some sections of quiet roads and single track.
Availability**	All year round. Choose the dates which suit you. Start any day of the week. N.B. Supplements may apply during Easter week due to inflated accommodation prices.
Price***	€935  per person based on 2 people sharing a double or twin room

* Tour duration can be extended by adding rest days along the tour; let us know your preferences when you enquire.

** Check out the local annual weather conditions here. 

*** Solo traveller and single occupancy prices are available upon request.

WHAT IS INCLUDED IN THE PRICE OF THIS MTB TOUR? 7 nights of accommodation on a B&B basis  Luggage transfers Quality Hardtail MTB Helmet & water bottle (or bring your own) Route GPS (phone App with daily routes, profiles and maps, no Data-usage required) or GPX files Annotated route maps  Briefing Pack, incl day-by-day route notes Briefing meeting on arrival   We operate locally to Ronda so support is always close at hand if needed See our suggested KIT LIST for MTB touring in Spain.

WHERE WILL I BE STAYING? Your tour goes through a mix of large and small towns and more rural areas, so the accommodation style and standard will vary greatly. In the larger towns, we usually book 4**** or 3*** hotels; outside of these, you will stay in countryside haciendas, boutique B&Bs or traditional-style village hotels. All rooms have en-suite facilities. Our selections are based on clean and comfortable accommodation (if sometimes quite simple), friendly owners and staff, a warm welcome, bike storage and sometimes a swimming pool too.

Day-by-Day Itinerary

Arrival in Ronda

Welcome to Ronda! 

Check in to your hotel and enjoy the sights and sounds of the beautiful clifftop town of Ronda. Briefing and bike set-up for your MTB tour of Andalucia will take place on your first evening

 

MTB Tour Spain Day 1 - Ronda to Olvera

45km + 555m

From Ronda, you are quickly riding on small MTB trails past olive groves and holm oak forest, with a long descent down into the village of Setenil de las Bodegas. Take a coffee break or have lunch under huge overhanging limestone cliffs, where ancient "cave houses" built into the rock form the basis of many village houses, shops and cafes. Ascend back into the hills above Setenil via a dramatic limestone gorge, where we catch great views of Olvera's striking skyline of Arab fortress and twin-towered Renaissance church in the distance. Ride through farmland and via Torre Alhaquime village - lots of ups and downs - and a final climb through the olives to your overnight accommodation in the centre of the town. 

MTB Tour Spain Day 2 - Olvera to Montellano

44km +808m

Today you leave Olvera and are immediately back in the olive groves which abound in this area. Miles of rolling hills give a sense of remoteness and freedom, as the trails undulate through the countryside. Optional lunch stop in Coripe village and a final hilly section before heading to your hotel in the village of Montellano. 

MTB Tour Spain Day 3 - Montellano to El Bosque

50km +601m

Ride through easy farmland, passing through olive, sunflower and cotton fields. A steepish climb up to lunch in the small village of Prado del Rey - lots of little tapas bars and cafes close to the picturesque village square. Then a nice descent down to an area of natural inland salt deposits, Las Salinas de Iptuci, managed as salt flats since Roman times and where 300 tonnes of salt are still produced every year. Overnight in El Bosque in a traditional village hotel; an old mill wheel and fountain on the village square provide a lovely spot for dinner.

MTB Tour Spain Day 4 - El Bosque to Montecorto

41km +827

Cycle out of the village on a wide track beside a small stream and then into the oak forests of the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park. Fantastic scenery with dramatic limestone mountains all around. Continue on off-road trails, with a short sharp climb up into the village of Zahara de la Sierra. Lunch up in the village centre or stay down by the beautiful blue lake with views across to the village and its Moorish tower. Continue along an undulating path beside the lake's edge and finish with an undulating section of scenic road along the lake edge and up to your spa cortijo accommodation overlooking the lake. A table will be reserved for you for dinner in the hotel restaurant. Spa treatments can be pre-booked for you on request.

MTB Tour Spain Day 5 - Montecorto to Ronda

45km +1171m

A short sharp road climb to begin the day, quickly gaining height into the hills directly behind the hotel, then follow a beautiful section of quiet road which twists and turns through cork oak forests. Turn off the road to head directly into the forests and valleys of the Grazalema Natural Park. Remote singletrack and doubletrack trails cross remote areas of the park, with a great section through deep forest along a stream towards the village of Montejaque - a good coffee or lunch stop. Exit the village via a steep switchback path then cross a high mountain plateau, eventually gaining views of Ronda in the distance.

A fast descent into the Guadiaro river valley, ready for a final, scenic climb up through pine forest on narrow trails back to the town for the night. 

Day 6 - Sightseeing in Ronda or a ride to the Coast

Enjoy a day in Ronda - see the famous bridge ("Puente Nuevo") which spans the 120m limestone gorge which divides the town in two. Walk the city wall, visit the oldest bullring in Spain and the Casa del Rey Moro (Moorish king's house) or simply sit at a cafe with some tapas and a chilled beer or glass of a local wine and watch the local life go by.

If you prefer instead to have another day's mountain biking, a popular choice is a guided MTB ride down to the Costa del Sol through the mountains of the Sierra de las Nieves Natural Park (more ride details) Supplement of €85 p.p. with choice of the final night back in Ronda or staying on the coast. Let us know your preference at the time of booking.

Day 7 - Depart Ronda or Coast (see above)

Check out from your hotel and have a safe trip home or to your next destination.

We can provide transfers to your next destination or airports of Sevilla or Malaga. POA

We hope to see you again in the future.

 

FAQ's

 

WHERE WILL I BE RIDING ON THIS MTB TOUR OF SPAIN? This MTB tour in southern Spain takes you into the heart of western Andalucia and you will see different landscapes every day. Miles of open country with olive groves, rolling hills, mountains and many small Andalucian towns and villages.  The riding is not particularly technical but in some places, confidence on a mountain bike is required.  Roads are kept to a minimum. WILL I BE FIT ENOUGH? Our self-guided tours are designed for enthusiasts rather than Mountain bike experts. There are hills throughout the region which will need to be tackled but we keep daily distances manageable, particularly on days with more hills. On the longest days, take things steadily and ensure you take plenty of refreshment/snack stops and drink lots of water.

WILL MY LUGGAGE BE TRANSFERRED? No need for panniers or trying to pack light and risk leaving important items behind. We transfer your main luggage for you so you just take a few items for each day – water, snacks, sunscreen. We provide an 8-litre capacity rear trunk bag. CAN I DO THIS MTB TOUR WITH A GUIDE? We can offer a guided version of this tour with qualified guides and support vehicles or a semi-supported version with a support vehicle and driver who is a qualified guide.  There is a minimum person requirement of 4 to be able to provide this service.  Please do not hesitate to enquire about price and availability.

HOW WILL I NAVIGATE THE TOUR? We have 3 options available: Ride with a GPS application on your mobile phone.  We give free access to the application which can be used in offline mode for each day's ride.  The application shows maps and the route in great detail.  We also supply quality phone holders on the bike to keep your phone safe. Garmin GPS Device supplied by Hike and Bike.  This is a simple device which shows a breadcrumb trail for each day's ride.  Very reliable and simple to use. Upload route files to your own GPS device.  We will forward files for each day of riding in the format needed for your device. We also provide a large-scale, annotated map, designed specifically for your tour by Hike and Bike, giving you a perspective of where you are at all times.

Route Map