3 days of riding in southern spain

[Krimesf4i]

I'm planning a very last minute trip. Will be leaving for England for work, and decided (very last minute) to go with my girlfriend to Malaga, Spain for a week afterwards.

We've got the hotels booked and have left a 3 day (2 night) gap in between for renting a bike.

If anyone has ridden in this area, it would be great to get your opinion. My plan so far is as follows:

Day 1: Malaga to Ronda, then to Sevilla for the night.
Day 2: Sevilla to Granada
Day 3: Granada back to Malaga.

Thoughts, advice? We're looking for bike friendly hotels to stay at along the way.

Thanks.

[Brian P]

Only that I'm envious Have a good time!

[rick123]

I've been there last year (Malaga). Never had a chance to ride a bike. You will have fun for sure. (you allowed to split a line and move in front of cars on the intersection)

[Akrapovic]

I went to Spain last September to see the Motogp at Aragon. After the race I went down to Granada,Malaga,Seville and other places. Theres so many nice roads it's hard to say which ones to ride on. Here's a link to best biking roads Spain. Pick and choose your route. The roads are super smooth. Have Fun. Don't forget they have Photo radar.
http://www.bestbikingroads.com/motor...in-__1474.html

[Rotten_Ronnie]

Only that I'm envious Have a good time!

+1

I hope to see some pics in this thread when you get back.

[FitzR6]

Nice! I can't wait to see some pic of the amazing time I did not have lol

[Ash]

The place is fantastic. I was there last year in a rental car, but I'm still thinking of going back for a dedicated motorcycle tour. More or less at random one day we chose a road to the south of the Sierra Nevada (south east of Granada) and it was unbelievably nice. We went through Lanjaron, so it must have been the A348 which is a fairly major road. There are literally hundreds of smaller roads in the area which I was itching to explore on a bike. Watch for donkeys on the road. Seriously.

A GPS would be a good idea, especially if you're planning to go into Granada. That place was a maze and half of it was under construction while we were there. Spanish drivers were unexpectedly polite though

[Ninjitsu]

This. Sounds. Amazing.

How difficult/easy is it to rent bikes in Europe?

[Krimesf4i]

Thanks for all the helpful advice! Please keep them coming.

I'll be sure to take plenty of pictures to share, also will be bringing my contour hd helmet cam.

Fz8 is booked for the 3 days. can't wait!

[Krimesf4i]

This. Sounds. Amazing.

How difficult/easy is it to rent bikes in Europe?

Very Easy. Just book a date, you pay on pickup and they hold your credit card info as a deposit (around 1000 euro) in case you wreck it or it gets stolen. It usually comes with third party insurance but need to make sure you have your own health insurance coverage.

[Brian P]

What rental agency did you use?

[Ninjitsu]

Very Easy. Just book a date, you pay on pickup and they hold your credit card info as a deposit (around 1000 euro) in case you wreck it or it gets stolen. It usually comes with third party insurance but need to make sure you have your own health insurance coverage.

That sounds easy enough. I asked because renting bikes here is harder than buying one.

I really look forward to the pics and your take on riding those winding roads.

[fearlessbob]

I have been to southern Spain a number of times and I can suggest an alternate route.

Depending on your objective for the motorcycle riding part (seeing the sights versus enjoying the scenery and twisties), from Sevilla (while there, check out the cathedral, the Barrio and be sure to eat at the Las Teresas restaurant in the Barrio, you'll pig out on the finest Serrano ham and Manchego cheese) you could go down to Jerez de la Frontera (try a genuine arabic hammam on a side street next to the cathedral, you'll find it on Google, reservations recommended for the scrubbing and massage, quite an experience!). You could also visit the Sherry (jerez) wineries located there. Then you go on to Cadiz (endless fine sand beach on the Atlantic). From there, follow E-5/N-340 to Tarifa (windsurfing capital!), then on to Gibraltar (the Rock is worth the stop) and finally on your way back to Malaga.

The stretch of coastal road between Cadiz and Gibraltar by way of Tarifa is fairly twisty and very scenic.

The only part you'd be missing is Granada (where the Alhambra is). Your schedule permitting, from Malaga, Granada is an easy day trip there and back (approx 2.5 hrs one way). If you do make it there, visit the Alhambra in the morning (cooler) and make sure to grab lunch on the outside patio at the Parador hotel (right next to the Alhambra) for an amazing view.

In Sevilla, I stayed at the Novotel, with underground garage, 1 km from the Barrio and cathedral, you walk there. In Jerez de la Frontera I stayed at the Hipotels Hotel Sherry Park, very nice and well located near the wineries and the Royal School of Equestrian Arts (also worth a visit if you like horses). In Gibraltar (because Gibraltar proper is a zoo), I stayed just across the bay in Algeciras at the AC Hotel Algeciras, recommended.

Finally, instead of staying in Malaga, big city with a harbour, may I suggest Nerja, 45 minutes east of Malaga, a true typical Andalucian town. There is also a Parador hotel here, perched on the cliff by the sea with amazing views.

Hope this helps. Enjoy!

[Ninjitsu]

Will Spain be like this?

[Brian P]

^ Not quite ... that's in the Alps (specifically, the Dolomites) - you would be hard pressed to find a substitute for that.

That particular pass looks gnarlier than the pass-roads that I've seen there. Good find.

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Passo+M...+Pass&t=m&z=14

[Ninjitsu]

I just can't get over how narrow it is. There is no shoulder. What becomes your 'Exit Strategy' in this situation? If a car comes around a corner and doesn't give you any road, it's over. Hopefully Spain will be twisty but wider.

When my GF got back from Italy she said the scooters and motorcycles ripped through the narrow city streets. She said she'd be very uncomfortable being on the back of a bike there. How do you guys find riding in European cities?

[Brian P]

I just can't get over how narrow it is. There is no shoulder. What becomes your 'Exit Strategy' in this situation? If a car comes around a corner and doesn't give you any road, it's over. Hopefully Spain will be twisty but wider.

Your "exit strategy" is to ride in accordance with the conditions so that you can stop or maneuver within the distance that you can see ahead.

From my experience, European drivers are more heads-up in conditions like this towards motorcyclists (a good many of them ride, there are lots of bikes on the roads there) BUT they also expect you to operate YOUR vehicle in an appropriate manner. In North America, we're taught to ride "blocking position" to prevent cars from passing by and sharing your lane and that usually means being away from the shoulder. In Europe, you are expected to take up as little space as possible (ride right next to the shoulder). The other drivers will give you the space that you need to use ... but no more. They know how wide a motorcycle is. If two oncoming cars meet on a one-lane road like this, they'll almost stop and work out how to get past each other. If an oncoming car meets a motorcycle, the car will move over but not slow down ... You are expected to signal EVERYthing and they, in general, will signal everything. There is more co-operation, too. If you are on a bike and you come up behind a slow truck crawling up a steep hill on a one-and-a-bit lane road, and you see the truck move a little to the right and the right indicator comes on, that indicator means GO FOR IT, the way is clear to pass! You'd never see that in North America. Never!

When my GF got back from Italy she said the scooters and motorcycles ripped through the narrow city streets. She said she'd be very uncomfortable being on the back of a bike there. How do you guys find riding in European cities?

Different from here but generally more enjoyable. There are more bikes (by a lot), and the car drivers mostly know about bikes. Fewer traffic lights, fewer stop signs, lots more roundabouts. Having said that, downtown in many larger European cities has a lot of walking streets and very good public transit access, so there's little point riding or driving downtown, just take transit like everyone else.

[Krimesf4i]

Hey everyone. Been back for almost two weeks but just swamped with work! Riding Spain was the best adventure (nevermind ride) of my life. I'm sorting and editing pictures and almost done - will post a link soon for those interested.

fearlessbob, thanks for the tip - unfortunately didn't get it till now, but wouldn't have changed a thing! In Sevilla we stayed at the Novotel as well, found it as a safe place to park the bike overnight in the Underground. Can't wait to go back and try your routes. We ended up doing Ronda - Sevilla - Cordoba - Granada - Malaga... all in 3 days! Could have spend 3 weeks on a bike in Spain really.

Brian, we rented from Moto Merecado - an unbelievable experience, the people were just amazing.

More details to come...

[Krimesf4i]

Finally got around to uploading the pictures. If you're interested they're available here:

http://www.gtamotorcycle.com/vbforum...pain-Andalucia