Nice Route from Biarritz to Malaga?

[motoreiter]

A bit later this year I'll be riding my bike from Germany to Malaga, where I'll store it. I was thinking I'd ride from the Black Forest area to Biarritz, and maybe down to Bilbao or Santander in Northern Spain before cutting south toward Malaga.

I've never been in this area, can anyone recommend places to check out or avoid?

I'm looking to avoid cities and large highways, sticking to towns, small roads, nice scenery, the basics...any feedback appreciated.

 

[santrix]

Biaritz - Santander - Picos de Europa (1 day mix of minor and aotovia) - South (N502 i think) to west of Madrid (1 day minor roads) - Jean - Granada - Almunecar (1 day) (Coast minor roads) - Malaga (why you'd want to go to Malaga is a mystery lol).

 

[motoreiter]

santrix, thanks for the post. while I'm at it, I'm not really tied to Biarritz-Santander, although it would be nice to be on the coast. Is it better/more interesting running further south through the Pyrenees?

Don't tell me Malaga is a hole! I've never been, but am going there because I've found a place there that will store my bike over the winter. Any other suggestions?

 

[santrix]

It depends where your end destination is. If you are only going as far south as spain then that route would form the first part of a counterclockwise loop. From the south coast (malaga is west of granada coast wise) you would then head east (the coast road is ok but its more fun taking your time and heading inland thru places like Lorca) etc untill you hit the Murcia area and the costa Calida and the Mar Menor (massive coastal lake). Then head north through Valencia and Tortosa and run up thru the pyrenees from the south thru Lavorsii (if you're heading back through France) or chop a right and cross on the coastal end of the Pyrenees and towards Nice, Monaco etc.

Granada in my experience is an industrial town, with relatively tasteless hotels, although there will undoubtedly be nice villages just out of Malaga. Personally i wouldnt put Malaga on my list of places to go on a tour.

I hope your storage facility is cheep, as i'm sure a post on here would get some responses, as a few folks live out that way i think. if not you could try the boat storage places all along the coasts, just choose one that looks like your bike might be there when you return.

 

[Loiq]

there's heaps of ways to get down that way once down there each is good and bad in turn. once there head for Ronda and Aldogonales, El boske and the hills "El Campo" the countryside and the villa blanka the white villages stuck out in the sticks some are really nice loads to explore.


Malaga... well I leave you to explore the rich tappestry of life you can meet there....

 

[Corp.Clinger!]

Malaga... well I leave you to explore the rich tappestry of life you can meet there....

Yip...agreed...Brits Abroad.... better places to be....I'd scoot on down at least to the beaches at Tarifa ...Roman ruins there too...

 

[Fanum]

Malaga the town is undoubtedly a shyte hole, but as others have said, you only need to ride 15-20 mins up into the hills to be in great countryside, with a lot of tracks to go and explore

There are also a lot of resources close by BMW delaer, KTM dealer, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and a good few independents including several top class enduro shops and workshops)....English speaking help is never too far away so in some ways that can be good.

As above, within an hour or two of there you've got Ronda and the really superb roads that lead to it

Tarifa is nice if you want a really overpriced 'Sons of the desert' T shirt or you want to fly a kite

 

[Dakota XT]

Andalucia

Malaga is a city and like most cities, so if you ride straight through it, it is a hole. But the historic part of the city is beautiful. I put a few photos in an album of Malaga so you can decide for yourself - http://picasaweb.google.com/Smokin.Lizard/Malaga#. Apart from the Alcazaba (a Moorish fortification) and Gibralfaro Castle, there's the Cathedral, the Picasso Museum (Malaga is Picasso's birthplace), the Botanical Gardens, the Bullring and the Roman theater which dates from the 1st century BCE.

I couldn't even begin to tell you what a fantastic region this is to live in and what you should stop and see because the list is too long. My other web albums are where we ride - not that far from Malaga. As you can see not all Brits abroad live the same lifestyle . Give Fuengirola, Benalmadena, Marbella and most of the west coast of Malaga a miss because those are the tourist/ex-pat stops.

We get lots of visitors stopping by to see us and if it's a weekend (when we're not working), we take them out riding on some of the local trails. We're not a business and we don't charge anybody a penny because we like to share the beauty of this region with like-minded people. So stop by and see us when you're around - it's been 24 years since I visited Moscow and I'd love to hear what the place is like now.

 

[Kahuna]

Sorry to HiJack

KTM dealer, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and a good few independents including several top class enduro shops and workshops

Fanum - you got any address' for these dealers in the Malaga local?

I'm looking for some gold dust, a 'quality - sensibly priced' second hand 250/400 Enduro so scouring the area. Locals here seem to think a used Enduro is worth about £10 less than a used one - and then gota pay tax on top!!!!

Any contacts would be welcome!

 

[MartinB]

If your still looking for a route south, have a look the N111 from Logrono and then a mix of N234 and N330. We have riden north to Zaragoza on the N330 / N234 today (4th time using these roads) There just fantastic (bloody hot today, had the temp at 40.5 Deg.) however the hotel has air con for us to enjoy while we wait for the resturant to open

were making the run to Bilbao in the morning, so back to blighty on Tuesday, still all good things must come to an end. There are already a few ideas banging around for next year (if holiday pass is granted again)

If you need some more details on the route we have used 'PM' me

Martin

 

[marcopol]

Storage

Where did you find storage in Malaga?

 

[Greg Masters]

Where did you find storage in Malaga?

Maybe with these fellow tossers?

Greg

 

[motoreiter]

Yes, exactly, with David and Hana at motoadventours:
http://www.motoadventours.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=24&Itemid=25&lang=en

Have had my bike there for the last year or so with no problems. Actually in Estepona, about an hour West of Malaga, but they will pick up/drop off. Great place to leave a bike for a dash down to Morocco, and there is tons of great riding in the area as well (Ronda, Grenada, etc.).