David Olle has most recently covered this race as a cycling journalist and is keen to get more aussies to see this magnificent event and experience the spanish culture. With contacts maintained since his first visit to Madrid for a World Cup in 1994, you’ll live and breathe the Vuelta like a local.
We visit the starts and sign-ons, ride parts of the route, stop for roadside picnics and enjoy the local tappas and lifestyle. Spain is great on it’s own, but with the Vuelta it’s magnificent.

Vuelta a España Itinerary:
Friday Sept 12: Rest Day
Friday morning 10.00 am, meet at Madrid Barajas airport, transport up to Cudillero, (520k, 5.5hrs) enjoying a stop for lunch en route, before assembling bikes, and going out for a ride in the environs of our fishing village.  Post ride we’ll head out for some terrific local Tapas along the waterfront.  We’ll stay in Cudillero for 3 nights, while the race comes towards us, stops, waits a moment before heading away.  
Cudillero (asturian Cuideiru) is a small village and municipality in the Principality of Asturias.  Cudillero's main economic activities are today related to tourism but it is also known for its fishing ships. A legend says that it was founded by the Vikings. People from Cudillero speak Spanish and a dialect of the Asturian language called Pixueto.

Saturday Sept 13: Stage 13, San Vicente de la B. - Alto de L’Angliru 199k
At 70k from our hotel, today’s stage finish location is becoming infamous, although it has only been used in recent times in La Vuelta.  We’ll ride (or drive) out to the base of Alto de L’Angliru and enjoy a classic mountain top finish in crazy spanish style today.  Return to Cudillero for dinner.
The organizers of the Vuelta a España searched for a long time for a mountain that could rival the Alpe d'Huez or the Mont Ventoux in the Tour de France. The El Angliru was first included in the Vuelta in 1999. Since then it has been ascended only three more times, but it is nonetheless one of the most feared climbs in professional cycle racing.
Angliru was first ascended in stage 8 of the 1999 Vuelta a España, which started in León. José Maria Jiménez emerged as the stage winner after catching Pavel Tonkov one kilometer from the finish line. He dedicated the win to Marco Pantani, who was disqualified from that year’s Giro d'Italia, by saying: "I dedicate it to Pantani by everything that he has suffered in this time".

Sunday Sept 14: Stage 14 - Oviedo - E. E. Fuentes de Invierno , 158 k
We’ll pop over to today’s stage start, ride part of the stage and stop on one of the first Category climbs of the day.  In spite of the six mountain passes along the route, the stage is only 158 km long.  This favours breakaway attempts from the first kilometre and makes this stage one of the more breathtaking ones of this edition.

Monday Sept 15: Stage 15, Cudillero - Ponferrada, 198k
Today’s stage starts in our town, and we’ll ride out in front of the peloton, enjoying the first 70k of the stage, before driving onto today’s KOM, where we’ll enjoy a picnic in the hills and catch up with the race, face to face, as they struggle over the PUERTO DE SOMIEDO, that delineates the exit from Asturias.  After they pass we’ll catch the stage finish in a bar, on the way to our next 2 night stop in Zamora. 

Tuesday Sept 16: Stage 16, Ponferrada - Zamora, 185 k
Today is an ideal opportunity to have a bit of a sleep in, and generally just take it easy, as the stage finishes in our town.  There’ll be a ride, mid-morning, to keep our legs ticking over.  For the Tour riders, this stage runs over the fist category mountain pass, ALTO DEL ACEBO, which places heavy demands just a few kilometres from Ponferrada.  Once riders top this mountain pass, the route runs down to Zamora and only side-winds may challenge the rider. Zamora will be a stage end for the sixth time in Spain’s Vuelta. This time, a mass arrival sprint is likely to decide today’s winner.

Wednesday Sept 17: Stage 17, Zamora - Valladolid, 160 km
Zamora is a city in Castile-Leon, Spain, the capital of the province of Zamora. It lies on a rocky hill in the northwest, near the frontier with Portugal and crossed by the Duero river, which is some 50km downstream as it reaches the Portuguese frontier. With its 24 Romanesque churches of the 12th and 13th centuries it has been called a "museum of Romanesque art". Zamora is the city with the most Romanesque churches in all Europe. It has a unique Romanesque monument, with peculiar characteristics that are very difficult to find in other places. 
We’ll have plenty to entertain us here, before the circus cranks up, the team buses arrive, the riders complete the sign on, the press crush and we’ll witness it all at a very close range.  It will be an age before the crack of the starting gun sends the riders on their way to Valladolid. After the riders depart we’ll make our way to Segovia for 3 nights.

Thursday Sept 18: Stage 18, Valladolid – Las Rozas, 179 k
The Aqueduct of Segovia (or more precisely, the aqueduct bridge) is one of the most significant and best-preserved monuments left by the Romans on the Iberian Peninsula. It is among the most important symbols of Segovia, as is evidenced by its presence on the city's coat of arms.
While there is plenty to see in Segovia, the race passes just 30k away, so we’ll saddle up and head out to a bar en route, enjoy some tapas or a picnic while the teams wind on by.

Friday Sept 19:  Stage 19, Las Rozas – Segovia 161k
While it’s getting near the end of the riders 3 week effort, the race director has decided to be generous to the fans today.  Today’s stage finale will include 3 passes by the finish line as the peloton rides through town, completes a 15k loop twice before heading to the final sprint.  We’ll complete the 15k loop ourselves a couple of times in the morning, before strategically picking an observation point where we can keep an eye on the tele and an eye on the street, to enjoy the benefits of a street circuit finish, shoulder to shoulder with the locals.  

Saturday Sept 20: Stage 20, La Granja de S. I. - Alto de Navacerrada (ITT) 16k
Uphill time trials are a terrific way to sort out a field, and as the start is just 15k from our hotel, we’ll ride out and complete the full 16k of the ITT.  Once on top of the mountain we can relax and take it easy while one by one all the riders come and join us.  Post stage we’ll roll down into Madrid (by van) and visit a local restaurant for dinner. 

Sunday Sept 21: Stage 21, S. Sebastián de los Reyes - Madrid, 110 km
We’ll have an early morning ride around Madrid, remembering that the sun doesn’t rise until 8.00am this time of the year, combine this with the fact that nothing happens in all of Spain before 10.00 and we’ll have two unique quiet hours to enjoy the city.  We’ll have plenty of time to return for a shower and walk the few metres down to the stage finish, where this year the grand finale will be a procession into town, before the sprinter’s teams take control, trying to get their man to the line, completing laps of a 6k circuit.

Monday September 22: 
Time for packing up, farewells, and making our way to our next travel connections, unless you have chosen to stay on for a couple of days to explore Madrid in a bit more depth.

Included in your tour is all transport from Madrid to Madrid for you, your bike and one bag.  Accommodation, all breakfasts and welcome dinner on arrival.  Your experienced and knowledgeable guides, maps, training tips, coaching (if required) and mechanical back-up for your bike. Please pack your bike in a collapsible bag or disposable cardboard box.  Please also see our recommended list of things to bring.

NB:  The itinerary above is to be used as a guide only, as Topbike Tours are well known for making use of all (and creating some extra) opportunities, expect that variations from the above can happen at any time.      

13 places only @ (AUD) $5,490.00pp twin share.