Saturday, 18th May: Lucena
Arrival Day
Accommodation: Hotel Santo Domingo
Welcome to Andalusia and the start of an amazing tour!
Arrival at leisure in Lucena.
Your accommodation tonight is a repurposed 18th-century convent, full of local character and charm – the perfect place to begin your adventure!
Tonight’s dinner at the hotel is included in your tour package. Please advise reception of your preferred dinner time upon arrival.
Sunday, 19th May: Lucena – Zuheros
Route: 44.9 km/23.9 miles
Elevation: +773 m/2264 ft
Accommodation: Hotel Zuhayra
Next, it’s time to start cycling! Enjoy a beautiful route through classic Andalusian countryside, over rolling hills covered with endless olive trees and vineyards. Our destination for today is the charming medieval Moorish village of Zuheros, a striking example of beautiful Andalusian architecture, nestled in the Sierra Subbética mountain range.
From here, we will continue along a peaceful vía verde (greenway) biking path, a former railway line once used to transport trains full of olive oil from Andalusia to the rest of Spain.
Zuheros retains the traditional architectural style of white houses with ochre roofs, and is set at the foot of a historic Moorish castle.
Tonight’s dinner at the hotel is included in your tour package. Please advise reception of your preferred dinner time upon arrival.
Monday, 20th May: Zuheros – Priego de Córdoba
Route: 49.1 km/30.5 miles
Elevation: +863 m/2844 ft
Accommodation: Hotel Patria Chica
Today, you will enjoy a day of cycling through dramatic landscapes, passing by the traditional Andalusian white village of Carcabuey on your way to your next destination: Priego de Córdoba.
As you leave Zuheros, you can decide whether to take an optional extra loop up to the hilltop town of Baena, protected by a 9th-century Moorish fortress, and surrounded by a sea of olive groves. On the way back to Zuheros, you’ll climb up to the hilltop town of Doña Mencía, from where you can enjoy spectacular views of the surrounding area: olive groves, the Sierra Subbética and medieval foretresses.
In the afternoon, take some time to wander the streets of this romantic Andalusian white village, surrounded by the mountains of the Natural Park of Las Sierras Subbéticas. This is one of the key stops on the Route of the Caliphate between Córdoba and Granada, recognised as an official Cultural Route by the European Council.
Tonight, dinner is not included.
Tuesday, 21st May: Priego de Córdoba – Iznájar
Route: 31.7 km/19.7 miles
Elevation: +528 m/1792 ft
Accommodation: Hotel Caserío de Iznájar
Today you will enjoy a beautiful cycle route through the Natural Park of Sierra Subbética, riding through endless olive trees and along quiet roads that curve through the mountains as you bike south towards the valley of the river Genil. Your destination for today, Iznájar, is a gem of traditional Andalusian architecture: a maze of narrow streets and whitewashed buildings, winding their way up a hill overlooking the impressive reservoir of the same name. The Moors called the town Hins Ashar (stone castle), after the 8th century castle that keeps watch over the area from the top of the hill.
Our route takes us up into the town to explore the winding streets and enjoy the fabulous views, before heading back down to our hotel, located just outside town beside the reservoir.
Tonight’s dinner at the hotel is included in your tour package. Please advise reception of your preferred dinner time upon arrival.
Wednesday, 22nd May: Iznájar – Loja
Route: 47 km/29.4 miles or 22.6 km/14 miles
Elevation: +1100 m/3574 ft or +543 m/1782 ft
Accommodation: La Bobadilla, a Royal Hideaway Hotel
Today’s ride takes you through beautiful traditional villages, against a background of mountains and endless olive groves. Everywhere, the air is scented with aniseed, thanks to the numerous traditional aniseed distilleries that made the area famous.
Your destination for tonight is La Bobadilla, renowned as one of the best hotels in Spain! A luxurious 5* hotel set in beautiful grounds, La Bobadilla is a small pueblo blanco in itself. Spend the afternoon enjoying the hotel facilities: relax at the spa, take a dip in the outdoor pool (open April – October), or play a game of tennis, badminton or basketball.
Tonight, dinner is not included: you can choose between La Bobadilla’s three in-house restaurants, one of which – La Finca – has been awarded a Michelin star.
Thursday, 23rd May: Iznájar – Loja
Rest day
Accommodation: La Bobadilla, a Royal Hideaway Hotel
Tonight, dinner is not included: you can choose between La Bobadilla’s three in-house restaurants, one of which – La Finca – has been awarded a Michelin star.
Friday, 24th May: Loja – Antequera
Route: 43 km/26.7 miles
Elevation: +500 m/+1629 feet
Accommodation: Parador of Antequera
Your final cycle route takes you along quiet country roads through the foothills of the Sierra Subbética, passing through olive groves and meadows, and through the medieval frontier town of Archidona, a stage start line for this year’s La Vuelta a España. We recommend a quick stop here to visit the hilltop Moorish fortress. The route is largely downhill, allowing you to enjoy a relaxed ride into your final destination: Antequera. When you arrive at your accommodation, please leave your bike with reception for us to collect.
Dinner tonight is not included.
Saturday, 25th May: Antequera
Departure Day
After breakfast, our tour will come to an end.
We hope you had a great time discovering the traditional white villages of Andalusia.
If you need any help with your onward plans, please feel free to contact our Bike Spain Tours team!
Hotel Santo Domingo
Hotel Santo Domingo is set in the heart of the historic Andalusian town of Lucena.
The building was once a convent, and still has a beautiful 18th-Century cloister. Lucena has a famous Mudejar church and a Moorish castle.
Hotel Zuhayra
Small rural hotel with charm located in the town of Zuheros.
Zuheros is one of the most picturesque villages of Andalusia, whose sinuous route reveals its medieval origin, in the Natural Park and next to the Subbetic Greenway.
Hotel Patria Chica
Hotel Patria Chica wants to offer you that moment and provide you a unique experience, far from overcrowded places.
How about a journey through time? A stay at this hotel-museum allows you to discover unrepeatable cultural moment of this lovely town. It’s a journey through the history, culture and customs of rural Spain at the beginning of the 20th century. Relax, discover and recover are the key words for this unique overnight location.
Hotel Caserío de Iznájar
The Hotel Caserío de Iznájar rises impressively from the largest lake in Andalucía, the Iznájar reservoir.
Surrounded by nature, it offers visitors a unique experience, combining the tranquility of the lake and the beauty of the Sierras Subbéticas Natural Park.
La Bobadilla, a Royal Hideaway Hotel
The hotel boasts big luxurious rooms, 3 restaurants and a large outdoor pool.
Set in its own 350-hectare estate, the luxurious Barcelo La Bobadilla resembles a Moorish village of white-walled buildings with tile roofs and patios evoking the different cultures that have left their mark on Andalusia.
Parador de Antequera
If there is one Parador that breaks with the trend of historic buildings and acts as a symbol of modernity, it is the Parador de Antequera.
Enormous windows allow the light to flood every corner and offer views of the magnificent landscape of Andalusia, with gorgeous sunsets over the Antequera plain and rocky formations known as the Peña de los Enamorados.
