Granada and Murcia
The bottom corner of Spain has a perfect combination of coast and mountains
Where does the south of Spain begin? At the border between Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia? We’ve included some of La Mancha in our 'south' as there’s a laid-back attitude, a dry heat and a rugged, dusty beauty that transcends the political boundaries of the Spanish provinces. This is a land once ruled by the Moors, the Romans… the Carthaginians. History and geography make it perfect for touring.
WHERE TO STAY
CARBONERAS
Nestled on the south-east corner of Spain is this seaside resort. Plenty of restaurants for the evening, sandy beach for off the bike… and amazing riding. Routes 71 & 72 Hotel tip El Trebol Hotel, http://hoteleltrebol.es
GRANADA
So much to see in Granada. It’s a huge city but the old town and the Alhambra are the key attractions. For riding it’s better to stay on the edge; for sightseeing, you need a central hotel (or some taxis). Routes 64 & 65 Hotel tip Hotel Macia Real de la Alhambra, www.maciarealalhambra.com
RIÓPAR
This sleepy town on the edge of the Sierra de Segura is surrounded by some truly astonishing roads. Routes 68, 69 & 70 Hotel tip El Cortijo Puente Faco, www.cortijopuentefaco.es
ROQUETAS DE MAR
Rather than the big city of Almería, why not stay in a proper holiday resort? Roquetas is acharming seaside town with an amazing beach. Routes 66 & 67 Hotel tip Don Angel
OFF THE BIKE
THE ALCAZABA OF ALMERIA
Never mind the Alhambra, Almería’s Moorish castle is every bit as impressive and half as busy. Lots of walking though: don’t try it in bike boots…
THE ALHAMBRA
Alhambra is not to be done on a whim, or in bike kit. Book ahead, for a morning or afternoon visit, which includes a time slot for entering the Navacelles Palace. It’s worth taking a day off the bike for this.
BEACHES
Southern Spain and beaches go together like ice-cream and flakes. For a quality day off, head to Cabo de Gata – an unspoilt coast of beautiful beaches.
CAVERNS
In the hills above Alicante is the huge Canelobre Cave, filled with spectacular rock formations. Smaller but no less impressive are the caves of Sorbas.
COWBOYS
In the heyday of the spaghetti westerns, the Tabernas desert stood in for the American West. Two film sets are now theme parks Fort Bravo and Oasys Mini Hollywood. Not suitable for doing in kit and expensive, but memorable. http://fortbravooficial.com
ROMANS
It may be named after Rome’s enemy Carthage, but there’s more trace of the conquering Italians in Cartagena today, with a spectacular amphitheatre.
OUR MOTORCYCLE ROUTES IN GRANADA AND MURCIA
64 GRANDA AND THE SIERRA NEVADA
Start/finish Granada
Distance 190 miles
Riding time 6 hours
This route really builds up – from the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, over the Ragua Pass, then finally climbing the spectacular roads to the summit (or as close as you can go). A stunning day’s ride.
Route map, Download the GPX file
65 WILD SIERRA
Start/finish Granada
Distance 205 miles
Riding time 6.5 hours
As well as sharing some of the broad, smooth, fast roads with the main Sierra Nevada route, this longer and morechallenging ride mixes in some stretches of tighter, narrower (and bumpier) roads through a very wild landscape. Suits adventure bikes.
Route map, Download the GPX file
66 ROQUETAS ROUTE 1
Start/finish Roquetas de Mar
Distance 160 miles
Riding time 6.5 hours
From the seaside resort to Roquetas, this route swoops inland over some of the craziest, twistiest roads we know: absolutely staggering. NB: don’t panic if the Garmin maps haven’t caught up with which roads are paved and which ones aren’t…
Route map, Download the GPX file
67 ROQUETAS ROUTE 2
Start/finish Roquetas de Mar
Distance 165 miles
Riding time 6.5 hours
While it shares some of the roads with the main Roquetas route, this variation uses more of the single-track roads that criss-cross the wild, isolated hills. Brilliant riding but a fair bit more demanding than the alternative route.
Route map, Download the GPX file
68 RIÓPAR ROUTE 1 – DEVILISHLY GOOD
Start/finish Riópar
Distance 160 miles
Riding time 4.5 hours
This route through the isolated hills of Castille takes its name from two viewpoints (Miradors) it passes: del Diablo and del Infierno. But rather than being hell on wheels, this devilishly fun ride is definitely our idea of heaven.
Route map, Download the GPX file
69 RIÓPAR ROUTE 2
Start/finish Riópar
Distance 190 miles
Riding time 6 hours Our first Guide to Spain had a route based at Villanueva del Arzobispo, purely to let us ride the highlight road of this route: the A-317. Recommendations from RiDE readers have fine-tuned it to produce this mind-blowing ride.
Route map, Download the GPX file
70 RIÓPAR ROUTE 3 – WARREN'S GAME
Start/finish Riópar
Distance 170 miles
Riding time 5.5 hours The core of this route was shared with us by reader Warren Edwards. Combining his route with ours and some other recommended roads prompted us to shift our base of operations from Villaneuva to Riópar. This route combines his favourite road with the others from our original route. Nice work, Warren.
Route map, Download the GPX file
71 SEA TO SKY
Start/finish Carboneras
Distance 190 miles
Riding time 6.5 hours From the coastal resort of Carboneras, to the hairpinheaven of Alto de Velefique (think Stelvio Pass without the traffic), this route features a lot of roads that have been used for bike launches. Broad and fast, narrow and challenging.
Route map, Download the GPX file
72 ALTER VELEFIQUE
Start/finish Carboneras
Distance 170 miles
Riding time 5.5 hours
This shorter alternative route runs in the opposite direction to the original, with alternative roads, tackling Alto de Velefique as a descent rather than a climb. Just as thrilling. Must-ride road AL-3102 Tabernas to Tíjola, Alto de Velefique Makes many 'great' Alpine passes look a bit tame. Imagine Stelvio with a better surface, better bends, better views and none of the traffic.
Route map, Download the GPX file
Please note: This page contains the route files for The RiDE Guide to motorcycle touring in Spain and Portugal which came free with RiDE magazine in July 2018. These website page are not regularly updated, so please check all critical information before you travel. All route files are in .gpx format. Garmin and BMW users can download the main file, which contains all the routes and our recommended hotels as separate waypoints. TomTom users can download the individual routes and use the Tyre software to convert them. For many routes we also have Google Map links. However, as Google Maps will not plot routes over seasonally closed high Alpine passes (such as those in the Pyrenees) when they’re shut, these may not work for every route all year round.