Welcome to Hooked on Cycling and our cycling holiday in Andalusia. This biking vacation in Andalucia is available as a self guided cycle tour which we have graded as a level 2-3 cycling tour. This really is a cycling adventure through Andalusia’s past and culture, a journey of discovery that evokes the natural beauty and cultural heritage of the Route of the Caliphate, that ancient Muslim route which joins the cities of Cordova and Granada, which are two of the most emblematic cities of ancient al-Andalus.
Cordova, home to the ruling Caliphs, to philosophers, astronomers, mathematicians and doctors who illuminated the middle ages with knowledge, centuries ahead of the European Renaissance. Granada, whose mighty kingdom cultivated the sciences above all and where formal refinement and architectural decoration reached levels unmatched in any society of its time.
Come and see these two cities, then, on a journey through time and across the unique, natural territories that feature along the way. You will enjoy the unsuspected beauty of landscapes that unfold in fan like fashion before your eyes and the prospect of the villages, castles, churches and towns that stretch before you just waiting to be discovered. You can recover your strength in the company of hospitable locals and enjoying their feasts, restoring lost energy with the best food and wines this region has to offer.

Available any day March to November
Not Available 31/3-9/4
Level 2-3 self guided tour

Day 1 Arrival Cordova
Arrive in good time so as to visit the famous "Mezquita" (Grand Mosque) closes at 19 o’clock (if your flight is late, then better book an extra night!).

Day 2 – Luque-Priego 22 miles 35 km
From Cordova you go to Baena by bus where you will pick up your bikes. The first route starts just from the bus station in Baena, and it will take you more or less an hour to come to the village Luque, where you might have lunch before continuing to Priego de Córdoba. This route leads you over quiet country lanes through the Sierra Subbéticas Nature Park and you will encounter some nice ascents. In Priego de Córdoba you will stay in the beautiful “La Villa” neighbourhood with its twisting cobble-stoned streets full of flowers.
In the afternoon you might have a stroll to the mirador in the Calle del Adarve that offers a panoramic view of the huge gorge at its foot, and continue to the grandiose Fuente del Rey (“King’s Fountain”), a huge fountain comprising three circular pools, terraced on different levels, and 139 water jets.

Day 3  Priego-Cabra-Zuheros 34 miles 54 km
Today you start heading towards Carcabuey on an old disused road and continue on a little country road to the village of Algar, from where you climb to the Gaena mountain pass. Now you follow a long descent to the splendid town of Cabra, where you can visit an old olive mill museum. You take the "Vía Verde" (bicycle/foot path, it’s an old reconditioned railway line, until 1985 it was in use to transport the olive oil between Cabra and Jaén) and continue in a gentle ascent to the hotel in the romantic village of Zuheros.
Zuheros is one of the most picturesque towns of Andalucia with its whitewashed houses nestling at the foot of a Moorish castle which, perched high on a rugged rock and next to the deep gorge of the Bailón River, is set against the sheer cliff background of its Sierra. 

Day 4 Zuheros-Luque-Alcaudete-Castillo de Locubín-Alcalá la Real 30 miles 50 km
Today you bid farewell to the Subbetica mountains, to immerse yourselves in the countryside of Jaén, riding along the comfortable "Vía Verde" (old railway line). After passing the station in Alcaudete, you continue uphill, and more bumpy trails. See imposing watch towers above which remind you that you are entering Nasrid territory.

Day 5 Alcalá la Real-Santa Ana-Tózar 22 miles 35 km
After visiting the La Mota fortress, with its thick castle walls, imposing towers and the old cathedral built by the reconquering Christians within its confines, you head out of Alcalá la Real over its fertile plain, (and adjacent villages of Fuente del Rey and Santa Ana), riding between fields of cereal crops which are full of poppies in springtime. After Casillas de Mures, the landscape changes and you head towards Tózar, just before the final bastion of the Nazrid kingdom. This village awaits you in the distance beneath the watchful eye of its imposing castle.

Day 6 Tózar-Granada 38 miles 60km
After climbing to Moclín, the final bastion of the Nazrid kingdom, you will enjoy the great views of the Sierra Nevada during the large descent to Olivares. Soon the beautiful plain comes into sight, its arrival announced by the last watch tower you will see. Sierra Nevada forms an impressive backdrop. You now approach Granada, and have the option of entering the city from the North, or taking a longer route through the foothills of the Alfaguara mountains and its villages, and passing by the spot where the famous poet García Lorca probably was killed. Cycling between the Pine trees of the Nature Park “Sierra de Huétor” you climb to an altitude of more than 1100 meters, from where a fantastic descend brings you to the Abbey of the gipsy neighbourhood Sacromonte. Enjoy the magnificent view of the Alhambra while you cycle to the centre of Granada, passing through the authentic Moorish quarter “Albayzin”. From the terrace of your hotel in the historic centre of Granada you can see the Cathedral and even the Alhambra!

Day 7 Granada
Today you’ll explore the city and the amazing Alhambra (your ticket is already booked). It will take you more or less half a day to visit this enormous Palace/Fortress and residence of the Nasrid Sultans with its beautiful gardens!
Later, you can go for a stroll and find delightful little corners, palaces and gardens abound in its old neighbourhoods, along with a multitude of tapas bars, restaurants and wine houses. All this will bring you to love a city that is as full of life as it is of history and poetry.

Day 8 – Granada Departure after breakfast

2012 Prices

How to get there:
By plane to Granada, Malaga or Seville and then transfer by train or coach to Cordoba.
To choose another Spanish tour check on your chosen tour: White Villages of Andalusia ,Majorca , Cycle and Culture , Sweet Catalonia , Castles of Andalusia, Asturias, Andalusia Sport, Baix Emporda, St James Way, El Cid, Rioja Wine Trails, Santander 12

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Walking Holidays in Spain

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