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This tour covers the best vineyards
of Southern Spain, starting
off in La Mancha, home region
of Don Quijote and one of the
world’s biggest yet relatively
unknown wine regions. Nowadays,
several bodegas – one
of which we will visit - start
to stand out. We’ll continue
our trip to two purely Andalusian
wine regions, surrounded by
mountains, beaches, flamenco,
bulls and horses. Southern Europe
meets the Mediterranean and
the Atlantic in an abundantly
rich cultural melting pot. The
trip ends in Jerez, where you
could either travel to Tarifa
to cross to Africa and Morocco
or to Seville and Granada to
continue your trip in Andalusia.
Our bicycling routes include
smaller country roads with perfect
asphalt. We will stay in outstanding
accommodation: four-star hotels
in the bigger cities and smaller
hotels with their own special
charm in a few picturesque Andalusian
villages. This is a perfect
opportunity to experience traditional
Andalusian cuisine with excellent
wines. We will be using our
minibus during half of the journey
to arrive at the starting points
of each one of our stages. We’ll
ride the most interesting parts
of our journey and for those
looking forward to a bit more
of a challenge, each day’s
stages may be lengthened or
shortened (depending on the
group’s bicycling skills.)
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Itinerary |
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Day
1: Madrid
Arrival to Madrid at your
own. This is a great opportunity
to visit the city (by bicycle,
if you wish) and the nearby
Prado Museum on your own.
Accommodation at down town. |
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Day
2: La Mancha
In
the morning you will meet
your guide at your hotel.
We will leave Madrid early
in the morning by van and
stop in Toledo to visit
the spectacular walled city.
Our next stop will be in
the land of Don Quijote
(La Mancha) to watch the
ancient windmills made famous
by Cervantes’ novel.
We’ll hop on our bikes
for a first try-out and
pass by the vineyards. On
our way we’ll visit
a bodega and an olive oil
factory. We’ll have
dinner and spend the night
in a typical “bodega
cortijo” – a
winery-country-estate.
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Day
3: Montilla (CORDOBA)
We’ll
make the most of the morning
during a biking tour in
the La Mancha-region.
After lunch we’ll
take you to Cordoba by
van. In the afternoon,
you’ll have the
chance to visit the unusual
mosque and the Jewish
and Arab “barrio”
(neighborhood).
Ten centuries ago,
Cordoba was one of the
greatest cities in the
world and the capital
of Muslim Spain. Today
Cordoba is well-known
for its mosque but there
are many other artistic
and architectural treasures.
The old Arab and Jewish
quarters with their narrow
streets offer the visitor
a unique experience.
We’ll
continue our trip by van
to Montilla – focal
point of the Montilla-Moriles
wine region – to
get to our accommodation:
another estate with bodega.
That night, we’ll
immerse ourselves in Spanish
culture with a wine tasting
and special dinner.
http://www.rutadelvinomontillamoriles.com/en/
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Day
4: Grazalema (CADIZ)
After breakfast, we’ll
bike the “Via Verde
del Aceite” (literally
“greenways”)
rail trail – a disused
railway line that has been
converted into a recreational
trail for walkers, hikers
and horseback riders. We’ll
stop and have lunch at the
transformed train station
in the town of Cabra (now
an interpretation centre).
After lunch, we go by van
to Ronda, the most dramatically
sited of all the “pueblos
blancos” (=white villages).
After the visit we go to
Grazalema to stay in a marvelous
place into the mountains
and have dinner at the hotel.
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Day
5: Jerez de la Frontera
(CADIZ)
We start cycling from
the hotel with a spectacular
view of the mountains
riding a descent to Ubrique.
Crossing a cork tree forest
we continue to the Atlantic
coast. After our lunch
break, we take the van
to go to the coastal fishing
town of Barbate to enjoy
one of the most spectacular
beaches in Spain: time
to take some sun on the
beach! We’ll transfer
you to your hotel in Jerez
de la Frontera, considered
to be one of the most
important coastal towns,
right in the heart of
the most Andalusian area
of Jerez and Seville.
In fact, Jerez is a city
with all the ingredients
to immerse ourselves in
the Spanish and Andalusian
classics, such as flamenco,
Sherry wines and the most
delicious gastronomy.
http://www.turismojerez.com
http://www.rutadeljerezybrandy.es
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Day
6: Jerez de la Frontera
(CADIZ)
Today we cycle around the
wine region of Jerez (Sherry),
passing by the vineyards
and along the coast. We
will see the historic monuments
of Jerez and the famous
winery of Tio Pepe and come
back to the hotel in Jerez.
Tonight, we will enjoy a
farewell dinner with flamenco
in a splendid setting. |
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Day
7: End of the tour
After
breakfast, you can head
back to Madrid by van
with us or we can either
drop you in the city of
Cadiz or Seville or fly
from Jerez. We recommend
you to continue your journey
in Andalusia, visiting
the cities of Seville
and Granada stopping over
at Tarifa, from where
you could even spend a
day or two in Tanger (Morocco). |
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PRICE
2012 (EURO):
1590
€ in hotels 4*-3*
Single
suppl.: 190 €
DAYS/NIGHTS:
7
days / 6 nights
LEVEL:
Medium/advanced
2012
DATES (Sunday):
March:
4
April: 29
May: 13
June: 17
Sept: 23
Oct: 14
Nov: 4 and 18
What's
INCLUDED?:
-
Accomodation with buffet
breakfast.
- Transfers during the
tour.
- 4 lunches, 4 dinners
+ 1 dinner featuring tapas.
- Winery and olive oil
tastings.
- Travel insurance.
- Quality touring bicycle.
NOT
INCLUDED:
OPTIONS:
-
Extra nights: Ask for
price.
- Arab baths.
-Carbon Road Bike: 70
euros
SUPPORTED TOUR
MINIMUM GROUP 4 PERSONS
Please
NOTE: Although
this tour has been designed
for a week’s worth
of travel, it can easily
be expanded to include
towns and areas around
Seville and Málaga.
If your group would like
to explore Andalusia in
more depth, please contact
us: we’d be delighted
to specially design a
tour that introduces you
to the region’s
historical and cultural
treasures.
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- Discover two of Spain's
off the beaten track wine
regions, like La Mancha
and Andalusia.
- Stay in rural estates
and bodegas, tucked away
in the profound Spanish
countryside.
- Find out all you've
ever wanted to know about
wine and sherry preparation.
- Follow the green trails
("Vias Verdes")
of ancient railways to
get away from it all.
- Take a well-deserved
break on the beach after
cycling through Jerez'
vineyards.
- Magic nights of flamenco
music and sangria drink. |
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