Vuelta Red Jersey

Welcome to Spain! In the afternoon, we’ll be meeting in the lobby of the Leon train station. Located in the northern part of the country, our hotel is situated outside the city of Leon and is the perfect starting point for our adventure in Spain. Astorga is a key location for the Camino de Santiago Frances (the French way) and is known for its medieval, walled Old Town.

The cyclists will do a bike fitting and go on a short, warm up ride to shake the dust from traveling. The warm up ride will be approximately 20-30km. The spectators will enjoy a tour of the city which is home to many churches and cathedrals noted for their architecture and art. There are several sights in the city including the Episcopal Palace which was designed by Antonio Gaudí and the Los Caminos Museum, with religious artifacts.

Our guides will explain the plan for the coming week at our welcome dinner. We will receive a gift from Custom Getaways.

Good morning. Today’s ride for the cyclists will be approximately 35 kms due to the climb with an elevation gain of 1,200 meters. We will ride on the course up to the finish line…a very cool experience!

The spectators in the group will visit Las Medulas….ancient Roman gold mines. The landscape has been listed by UNESCO as a world heritage sight. There is a 3km guided stroll for those wishing to take part.

The group will meet at the venue of today’s stage. We will view the finish of this important mountain stage in the VIP venue located near the finish line. Today’s finish at the Alto de El Morredero, in Ponferrada, will be one of the race’s final deciders during the last week of the tour. The last climb of today’s stage will test the racers as the climb departs from Ponferrada with 1,200 m of elevation in a short 27 kilometers.

Our VIP venue offers food, drinks, seats and private restrooms. There are TV’s to watch the race before it passes in front of us on the way to the finish line.

Once the stages finishes, we head back to our hotel in Astorga. You’ll be on your own tonight to continue exploring the town and to sample the local cuisine for dinner. Don’t forget to get chocolate for dessert. Astorga boasts a rich chocolate tradition with numerous local chocolate makers.

This morning the cyclists will have a ride with more rolling terrain, so the distances will be longer, around 65 kilometers and a few hundred feet of elevation gain. The non-cyclists will transfer to the next city of Valladolid. This city blends medieval architecture with universities, modern museums, and vibrant nightlife. Along the way, we’ll stop for a winery tour.

Today’s stage is an individual time trial…a very cool experience. Valladolid hosted La Vuelta’s first ever finish-line on the 29th of April 1935. Valladolid has hosted another 35 La Vuelta finish-lines, 9 of those for time trials. It will now do so again, two years after the last time in 2023.

Upon arrival into Vallodolid, both cyclists and spectators in the group will be free to find a place to view the race either in the crowds or in a local bar if you prefer to see it on TV. This time trial will be very important to the outcome of the race since it is so close to the finish of the race.

The city will be bustling from the excitement of today’s events and tonight we will enjoy a group dinner at our hotel in Valladolid.

Today we visit the start village in Rueda. You can walk around the start village, where you can watch the riders sign in for the day and walk around the team bus area. With our VIP access, we will see the racers at the starting line as they depart. Today’s stage is known as the “gastronomic” stage of La Vuelta 25 as it will take off among the Rueda vineyards and will finish in the town of Guijuela, which is known for its special curation process for its hams.

The start village is always one of the favorite activities for our guests as you see the racers come out of the team buses and jump on their bikes. Some guests get autographs and pictures with the pros.

After the racers depart, we will find a place for a light lunch before transferring to the town of Segovia. The cyclists will have another rolling ride of 65 kms and a few hundred feet of elevation gain.

Tonight’s hotel in Segovia is a 5-star property. The original building consisted of a church, a convent and the founders’ residence. The church has been converted into a gourmet restaurant (where we’ll enjoy a group dinner), and the other two areas house the rooms and the hotel’s common area.

This morning the spectators will tour the Aqueduct of Segovia. This is one of the best-preserved Roman structures in Spain and is recognized from being featured on Euro banknotes. After the tour, the spectators will head to the finish of today’s stage.

The cyclists will have another day of climbing on the course to the finish line. This will be a shorter ride of 45 kms with over 1,000 meters of elevation gain.

The group will join up at our VIP area on the Navacerrada mountain top. We will cross the finish line and tour the podium before entering our venue near the finish line where we will experience the race in comfort with food, drinks, private restrooms and TVs to view the action until the racers pass directly in front of us.

The racers will have a challending day as the Navacerrada mountain pass will be the star of the day, first on its Segovian side with its ‘siete revueltas’ (or seven tight curves) and then the final climb from Becerril de la Sierra to Bola del Mundo climb.

After the finish, we will have a short transfer to Madrid. You will be able to explore the city and find a cool place for dinner with some of your new friends. This is another 5-star hotel with a great location in the center of Madrid. The Plaza del Sol and the Plaza Mayor are both a short walk and you will be on your own to find a place for dinner. We recommend the Mercado de San Miguel, which has one of the most amazing selection of foods you have ever seen!

Everyone will have the morning free to explore Madrid…the Prado Museum, Royal Palace, Plaza Mayor…the possibilities are endless! We will have our farewell meal at lunch since the VIP venue has such good food later in the evening for our dinner.

After lunch, we will head to the finish of this year’s La Vuelta a España. We will view this exciting final stage finish in the Neptuno VIP area. This venue is located very close to the finish line and has food, drinks, open bar, TVs, private restrooms and comfortable seating to enjoy this experience.

This venue is one of the best we have experienced in any of the grand tours. In addition to the great food and drinks, you can see the racers pass on 2 sides of the venue. The final podium is very close and our Vuelta contact will try and get us access to the podium area.

This morning we will be departing the hotel at 08:00am with an approximate arrival to the Madrid-Barajas Adolfo Suárez Airport (MAD) at 09:00am. If you’d rather, you can always extend your stay in Madrid.

Safe travels and we hope to see you again.