Medieval Trail - Mountains to the Sea

Volcanoes, medieval lands and the Costa Brava

1.120 € pp
+ additional services

Overview

Short Tour Description

This relaxed e-bike tour brings you, without too much difficulty, through a great variety of landscapes: from the volcanoes of La Garrotxa to the wild Costa Brava coastline. The volcanic zone of La Garrotxa is a National Park and offers 40 volcanic cones and widespread volcanic flows. The tour provides the perfect blend of nature and culture, as you pedal your way through medieval villages and cities. Your journeys will be filled with monuments and historical landmarks and visits to Olot and Girona, two important cities within the county. The tour will give you the perfect opportunity to combine e-cycling with cultural sightseeing. In Olot, you must take a stroll around the beautiful church and its black stone walls. Girona, the capital of the province, has an astonishing cathedral and is full of secrets. You can lose yourself in the old quarter of the city!

During the second part of the journey, the tour follows a former train track that has been turned into a cycling lane for everyone to enjoy. It crosses rural landscapes and quaint villages and heads towards the Costa Brava coastline.

Duration

6 Days / 5 Nights / 4 Days of e-cycling

Total km: 120-150 km*
Total Ascent: 1400 - 1800 m*
*This will depend on the daily variations of the tour that are available

Participants

Self-Guided: 2 - 8

Scenery

Countryside & Coast
Mountains & Sea

Highlights & Facts

Cosy accommodation with views of the medieval bridge of Besalú
Swimming in gorgeous river pools
Magic beech tree forests on rocky black lava
Medieval cities of Girona and Olot
From the mountains to a dip in the Mediterranean Sea
Luggage transfer included – you just need to bring yourselves!

Cycling Level

3 wheels (Moderate)

Recommendation

Do not miss out on a pit-stop beside the volcanoes during this tour. You can discover the different strata of volcanic stone and the variety of colours and patterns that were created in historic eruptions.

Tour Route

Day
1 / 6
2 / 6
3 / 6
4 / 6
5 / 6
6 / 6

Day 1: Welcome to Besalú

You will arrive and spend your first night in this charming medieval town, a place that reflects the mood of this tour perfectly! Passing across the old stone bridge be careful not to look down! You will fall in love with this unique medieval gem!

Day 2: Take a dip in crisp river pools

After an introduction to the tour, region and your e-bike, the ride will start with a ascent into a forgotten valley with almost no inhabitants. Descending a very peculiar pathway, with a number of tight curves, you will enter into the volcanic landscape. After arriving in the valley and passing a quaint mountain village, the river pools offer the chance to refresh yourself with crisp volcanic water. Fresh and ready for the next leg, you arrive into Santa Pau, another quite beautiful medieval settlement.

Km: 24 km approx.
Ascent: 800 m approx.

Day 3: Full immersion in the volcanic landscape

Today you will e-cycle along peaceful and beautiful pathways made of lava, cross the scarred black and red ground and pass-by volcanoes and beech forests. On the way to Olot, you will cross through Fageda de’n Jordà, a magical beech forest that has enchanted everyone who dares to come here. It is really a unique and an unusual place for this type of forest to grow; the forest has spring up through a historic lava flow from the Croscat volcano. It almost feels like you are stepping into a movie!

Km: 22 km approx.
Ascent: 450 m approx.

Day 4: From city to city

You will follow a “green track”, an old train track that fell into disuse and has since been adapted for cycling and remains in very good condition. Leaving Olot, you will cross the mighty Vall de’n Bas, passing by valley towns, crops and cattle breeding grounds. There’s the possibility of a short detour to go for a quick dip in a river pool to refresh yourselves if you fancy a break! Following the green track, crossing a couple of rivers and some charming villages you will arrive at the city of Girona. Visiting the old quarter of the city is definitely worthwhile, as well as a walk across the Gustav Eiffel bridge and a stroll along La Rambla. On a hot summer night, a rooftop city terrace is the perfect spot to unwind and relax.

Km: 55 km approx.
Ascent: 300 m approx.

Day 5: The Mediterranean Sea

Today’s journey follows the same “green track” which joins Olot, Girona and the sea at Sant Feliu de Guíxols. This town was for many years called the beach of Girona, as many took the train to come for a day-out at the coast from the nearby city. You will enjoy a nice and chilled out e-bike ride today without many slopes, passing by farmland and villages on your journey. A well-deserved pleasure at the end of the ride is a salty dive into the Mediterranean when you arrive at the Costa Brava.

Km: 40 km approx.
Ascent: 200 m approx.

Day 6: Farewell to Sant Feliu de Guíxols

With sea views and the salt still stuck to your cheeks, we say our goodbyes. We hope to see you soon for another one of our tours.

> Important notices to all customers!

Information & Services

Character

The Medieval Trail - Mountains to the sea is a wonderful tour and you are guaranteed to enjoy discovering the region of Girona! You will marvel at the immense volcanic zone and Natural Park of La Garrotxa and its medieval villages. On the trails that take you towards the coast, you will discover the wonderful cities of Olot and Girona.

The first day of this tour determines the moderate tour level, this is due to the mountain tracks which are a little strenuous. During several parts of the tour, you will find uphill and downhill slopes on uneven dirt roads which will require a certain level of skill on a bike. The other days of the tour are much easier to cycle, especially the ones on the railway route, which is specially adapted for bikes. Please notice that those days are slightly longer, but definitely leisurely.

For this reason, this e-bike touring holiday provides a perfect start for those wanting to cycle in mountain terrain, with the electric bike engine providing a great help for the climbs.

Included services

e-cycling programme as described
4 cycling days with 5 nights’ accommodation, including breakfast. Stay in a double room with shower and toilet facilities (approximately 1-2 nights of which will be with shared shower and toilet facilities)
GPS with detailed route
Taxes on stays in tourist establishments
Transportation of luggage

Excluded services

Flight or public transport (on arrival and on departure) including taxis
Transfer to / from the start / end-point of the tour
e-bike rental and accessories
4 lunches and 5 dinners (a packed-lunch style picnic for you to take with you in your bike bag for 10,- Euro or a restaurant for 25,- Euro depending on your choice)
Drinks / food in bars
Entrance fees to museums, monuments and any associated guided tours
Tips for the team and other services

Transfer fees here

e-bike hire

Your hired e-bike is equipped with a rack - bike bags, basic e-bike tools and a battery charger are all included.

Fee per e-MTB touring bike

160,- Euro

Fee per helmet

9,- Euro

Accommodation

Double room

Single room supplement – extra 30,- Euro per night

Please note

Arrival day: at 7:00 p.m. with a tour briefing and introduction to the e-bikes (typically last about 2 hours). Dinner at 9:00 p.m.
Departure day: Breakfast (approximately 9:00 a.m.) – departure with transfer to the train station / airport (Girona).
The tour operator reserves the right to substitute the described accommodation with an equivalent alternative if necessary.
Due to local conditions, a route change or amendment may be necessary.

Arrival / Departure

Self-guided tour:

For a private taxi (1-4 persons) the costs are approximately:

Arrival:
80,- Euro from Girona Airport (GRO) / train station
255,- Euro from Barcelona Airport (BCN)

Departure:
80,- Euro to Girona Airport (GRO) / train station
220,- Euro to Barcelona Airport (BCN)

We would be happy to organise your personalised arrival / departure to the respective start/end points. If needed, we can book a taxi transfer or reserve train tickets in advance for you. Please contact us!

Important notices

Important notices to all customers!

All tour itineraries are general guidelines and in order to offer our customers the best e-cycling holiday experience we make occasional changes. The number of daily kilometres and metres of ascent are approximate as we offer different options on most of the days of the tour. For example, sometimes you can choose between a longer or a shorter route and sometimes between easy and more challenging paths to suit your preferences.

Depending on the number of simultaneous tours, the season, the weather and national holidays, we may make alterations to the itineraries at short-notice, which could affect the number of hours of e-cycling per day, the route we take to any given destination or the use of alternative accommodation. Tours can also be cycled in both directions. All changes are at our discretion, but when changes are made, we endeavour to ensure that our high quality standards are maintained and reflected in the alternatives that we choose.

Presentation, organisation, photos and information are provided by Anaïs Roca and Rudi Stolz.

Booking

Available Months

For self-guided tours

Book now!

You can choose your own travel dates (upon request).

1.120 € *

* Prices without not included services

Guest opinions

Medieval Trail - Mountains to the Sea
March 2019

The perfect blend of land and sea, villages and nature in a relax cycling tour. My first time on an e-bike. So much easier than regular MTB, it takes all the effort out on the uphill climbs so that you can just enjoy yourself. Every day was a different landscape and I loved the city of Girona. Thanks for a perfect holiday!

Petra