Barcelona to Biarritz - route advice please

[mben]

Hi I am planning to cycle back to the UK from Barcelona next year and figured on using the Eurovelo 'Route Atlantique' for the French section but would welcome advice on which might be the best route to take from Barcelona to Biarritz, should I go up the coast to France and skirt the Pyrenees to Pau or take the cross country route in Spain to San Sebastian and cross into France on the Atlantic coast?
I am planning on glamping (i.e. Pensions / B&B) rather than camping so suggestions on places to stay for the entire trip would be most welcome.

Thanks

[mnichols]

I did Barcelona to Bordeaux a couple of years ago (2014) following the Raid Pyrenees route which is obviously very mountainous. If you Google Raid Pyrenees gpx tcx you can find routes, if not message me and I'll share, but be warned this was a challenge with multiple cols per day

[mben]

Thanks for the reply, very helpful and certainly an option if I'm feeling fit, however with luggage it seems a little daunting! I would like know if anyone has found a less challenging route, perhaps I'm a wimp. Reply much appreciated.

[whoof]

I've done Bilbao to Toulouse and then the following year Toulouse to Barcelona. The 1st year route was inland (after one night at Mundaka) from Bilbao then to St Jean Pied de Port and along the Pyrenees to Bagneres de Luchon then North to Toulouse. The next year South from Toulouse into the Pyrenees along to border at Cerbere and down the coast to Barcelona. This was with fully loaded camping gear.
In the Pyrenee I found accommodation especially camping plentiful. In Northern Spain we found one campsite on our first night at Mundaka.
With appropriate gearing the mountain route should be within most people's ability and the riding is spectacular.
The coast to Barcelona got busier and more unpleasant the closer we got to Barcelona.

[mben]

Thanks, very helpful, especially interesting about the roads being busy the closer you get to Barcelona, thankfully we'll be cycling away from this!

[pq]

It's difficult to recommend a route because you don't say what sort of riding you want to do. I'd stay in the Pyrenees, but that might not suit you. If you want fairly flat, then the French side going through Carcassonne might suit. I know less about the Spanish side.

However something I can suggest is that you don't start in Barcelona. It's notorious for being an awful place to cycle out of. You'd need to research this - Spanish trains often aren't bike friendly, but I'd take a train to somewhere smaller and start from there. Girona would work for example.

[mben]

Thanks for this, I've actually just visited Barcelona and have returned with the same opinion. I think we are beginning to form a plan; fly to Girona, head for the coast and cycle North to Roses / Figueres for a bit of tourist stuff and then head over the border before heading NW towards Lourdes / Pau, i.e. lower slopes of the Pyrennes, not as far north as Carcassonne. This route to Biarritz still has 40k ft of climbing, with luggage this still sounds like a lot?
Any recommendations for routes / places to stay (B&B) are warmly received, thanks for your responses

[ANTONISH]

I rode the D117 a few years ago which goes between Perpignan and St Girons via Foix. It's a fairly busy road but not too bad - between Axat and Quillan the road runs through a narrow gorge which is netted but there is always a risk of stones on the road to watch for.
Not flat but no killer climbs.

[mben]

Thanks, one of the routes I'm looking at follows the D117 to Axat and then curves south to end up in St Girons, a minor excursion into the foothills of the Pyrennes. Do you recall where you stayed on the route?

Thanks for your response

[Bonroute]

For what it is worth I cycled up the coast from Barcelona to Saint Feleiu de Guixols at the beginning of October. I had plenty of time and intended to do an adaption of the tourist Raid Pyrenee I had done ten years ago but only got to Ax les Thermes before a crisis at home forced my return.f


I simply followed the cycle route along the sea. This is not a particularly fast route due to the surface and I am happy to give way to other people. On certain sections I noticed a large amount of club riders who chose to ride the busy main road which runs alongside. The route is not always in good condition and you have to use frontage roads in places.

From Tossa del Mare to Saint Feliu de Guixols I rode the road which is classic coastal cliffs riding but the turns are sharp. A German motorcyclist I talked to said it was a dangerous route and several cars appeared to be driving extremely fast.

From Saint Feliu de Guixols I followed a bike path to Girona. The route is an old railway(http://www.viesverdes.cat/ca/54/ruta-de ... et-ii.html)which is well sign posted and the surface is a grit but sometimes becomes gravelly. Its a pleasant way to ride but not a must cycle before you die. The route carries onto Olot. From Olot I took the minor roads whiich were extremely hard in places before joining Col d'Arres and riding into France.

If you can get hold of a second hand Lonely Planet Cycling in France it has an excellent tourist Raid Pyrenee which can be used for planning and I even used as my route map once in France! I was camping so can't advise on accomodation.

[ANTONISH]

Thanks, one of the routes I'm looking at follows the D117 to Axat and then curves south to end up in St Girons, a minor excursion into the foothills of the Pyrennes. Do you recall where you stayed on the route?

Thanks for your response

On the occasion I mentioned I rode from Foix to Perpignan in one day - had a vey strong tailwind.
The route you are describing is I presume going over the Col de Port from Tarascon? - coincidentally I rode this in 2014.
I was going in the opposite direction but I stayed at a hotel in Axat - very nice, A sort of budget hotel in Tarascon - on the west side of the river - quite cheap and they gave me a voucher for a restaurant meal - restaurant was ok - not high cuisine.
also A hotel in Oust which is a couple of km out of your way.
Massat is a popular stop for the "raid" but I've never stopped there.
I stopped at the "Flamme Rouge" in St Girons some years back.
If you want to go over the "Portet d'Aspet" you can get to Luchon - lots of places there.