cycling in Italy/SPain

seanin4711

which is the best place in either to hire a bike etc.

Wouldn't mind a crack at a few hills in the spring.
cheapish flights and accomodation plus bike hire.

looking at bormio in italy as a base.
also which of the spanish islands are best for this(mallorca?).
thanks
J

Trekker09

I was in Casares near Estapona in the summer and it was cycling heaven. Plenty of hills and the scenery was amazing.

I brought the bike with me as hiring a bike was fairly expensive and it turned out to be a good choice.

benneca1

Google bike iberia i dont know how to post a link. Ive used em worked fine. In fact if your going on your own Malaga is not a bad base search strava and youll find millions of routes Montes de malaga will give you plenty of ups and downs. Grenada nice too but you would need to rent a car

nilhg

seanin4711 wrote: »

which is the best place in either to hire a bike etc.

Wouldn't mind a crack at a few hills in the spring.
cheapish flights and accomodation plus bike hire.

looking at bormio in italy as a base.
also which of the spanish islands are best for this(mallorca?).
thanks
J

Bormio is in a ski area I think so I don't think spring cycling is going to be an option there, at least not till late spring if you want to get up any of the higher roads.

I think if you combine availability of direct flights from Ireland with the possibility of decent weather then your best options for spring are going to be the Canaries or the south of Spain, with mallorca coming into the picture a bit later.

Personally I've cycled in Tenerife, Lanzarote and around the Malaga/Torremolinos areas, all are great areas with good bike hire and plenty of hills.

selwyn froggitt

A couple of options you may want to consider for the Spring

Fly into Malaga and base yourself in the city, rent from Bike2Malaga, used them loads of times and offer a great service. The cycling in the area is superb.

Fly into Malaga and head East to Velez de Benaudalla or Granada and cycle the Sierra Nevada, amazing place to ride a bike, unbelievable quiet roads in a brilliant condition and monster climbs of 2000+ Metres. Rent from Cormac Keeney at cycle Sierra Nevada in Velez or Bicicletas la Estacion in Granada, used them both and first class.

Fly to Faro in Portugal and head East to Tavira, rent from Luis at Abilio Bikes. The cycling to the North of the town in the interior is absolutely fantastic and a hidden gem IMO, dirt cheap and really friendly.

Daroxtar

Read this http://forum.cyclingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=21779
Fly to Santander, drive over the coast towards Gijon/Oviedo. Stay in Ribadasella or Llanes or Lastres on the coast or Cangas Di Onis, Potes or Pola De Lena inland.
Take your pick, Covadonga, Angliru, Jitu Escarandi, La Farrapona, Fuente Dé, Puerto San Glorio, La Corbertoria, El Cordal, Ciutu Negru, La Camperona, Mirador Del Fito, La Cubilla, Gamonitero, San Lorenzo, Piedrasluengas.... All HC or Cat1 climbs and that's only the better known ones.
My flights cost €87 return, brought my own bike€120 with Ryanair, car for the week was €90, accommodation €150.

fat bloke

Yeah Bormio is at the foot of Stelvio pass and even in May /June if the Giro does Stelvio it can be freezing and snow covered so Spring there would be out. Would be awful to be at the foot of such an epic pass and not be able to go up it.

Type 17

I've been at the top of Stelvio in July (sorry, I drove up), and there were still large chunks of snow in sheltered areas.

Here's a handy way of checking current conditions: http://www.stelvio.net/english/webcam/

Veloce150

seanin4711 wrote: »

also which of the spanish islands are best for this(mallorca?).

Mallorca is very cycle friendly, especially around Port Pollencia or Port Alcudia. There are a number of good quality bike hire options and a great range of accomodation. Roads are very good and traffic is light. Climate in spring is pleasant.

Most of the island is no more difficult riding than North Dublin but with better coffee/cakes. I you want climbs, the North-West corner (Transmuntana) is where you will find them.

There are a number of companies offering half-board accomodation/bike hire/coaching/leadership deals. Stephen Roche is one, SportActive, another.

greenspurs

I stayed in Cambrils, flew into Reus airport and used Mediterrania cycle tours to hire a carbon Massa with 105 and a GpS for a week.
I had a guided tour, which was excellent! Roger was a good cyclist and informed me about the route, and helped me get my bearings for me own solo trips later in my week.
It was €150 for the bike+pedals+helmet + €30 for insurance. I think they charge for the gps, but I got mine for free.
Also, because my flight was in late in the day, and as a result they couldn't drop me the bike until the next day, I got the guided tour for free!
Its run by a guy from Dublin , and they are very very good!
I was there in June, and the roads , which are as smooth as glass , were very quiet once you got out of the town, and less than a dozen cars passed us in a 90km spin ! It was heaven !!!
The route he brought me on was a good mix, there was 4 climbs on it. The longest being the 10km climb to La Mussara at just under 1000m and up to the town of Prades ! Stunning.
I went on solo spins later on in the week, and while a little more stressful on your own until you trust your gps , it was an amazing place to cycle.
I have 2 videos on the Biscuit Club Waterford youtube channel , if you would like to see more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZH9z1QZNq_A