You might not expect it, but the Costa Brava provides mountain bikers with plenty of options to escape the sunbathing beach bums. There are several mountain bike spots near the Mediterranean that are worth exploring during your holiday. In this article we will have a look at the best mountain bike locations near Roses, Lloret de Mar, l’Estartit, l’Escala, Malgrat de Mar, Blanes and Platja d’Aro. You’ll see that there are plenty of good mountain bike options in the Costa Brava!
Disclaimer: during the summer (July / August) the trails near the coast will become really dry, loose and crowded with tourist hikers. I would advise to go a little bit futher inland for better trails. It’s only a short 20 to 30-minute drive to better trails…
- Mountain biking l’Estartit and l’Escala
- Mountain biking Platja d’Aro
- Mountain biking Lloret de Mar and Blanes
Mountain biking around l’Estartit and l’Escala
Between l’Estartit and l’Escala you’ll find the Parc Natural del Montgrí. In this natural park in the heart of the Costa Brava you will find several short but interesting trails. The area is most suited for a few hours of exploring and enjoying views over the Mediterranean and the hinterland. You can either start from l’Escala or ‘Estartit. It’s quite easy to combine the various pistas (fire roads) and trails until you feel like hitting the beach again. If you plan your route a bit, you can easily stretch it to 40km and 1000 altitude meters. A fair amount of riding! Some nice viewpoints are Torre de Montgó near l’Escala and the Rocamaura viewpoint near l’Estartit.
Another option would be visiting the magnificent area of Cap de Creus. You will need to take a short ride and park at one of the parking areas in Roses. But it’s certainly worth it. Cap de Creus is a beautiful peninsula hosting all kind of trails with views of small coves and rough coastlines. In my dedicated post about Cap de Creus you can read all about this area. You can easily spend multiple days on your saddle exploring the trails here. Planning your trip here is important, as it’s a harsh environment and you need to know where you’re going (but the astonishing views make it worthwhile!).
Mountain biking around Platja d’Aro
There are no direct mountain bike trails near Platja d’Aro, so a short car ride will be needed (10 to 30 minutes). The nearest trails are around the Massís de les Cadiretes. The better routes can be found in the nearby natural park Les Gavarres. The closest route in Les Gavarres starts in Cassa de la Selva: La Bicyle Enduro ride. A bit further down the road you will find the enduro trail park of Santa Coloma de Farners, where you can easily spent multiple days riding trails.
Mountain biking around Lloret de Mar and Blanes
There are some trails in the forest between Lloret de Mar and Blanes and north of Lloret de Mar but I would advice against biking there. Yes, you’re on a bike and get some exercise, but if you want to really enjoy yourself I would recommend going elsewhere. The best options from these 2 cities are the enduro trail park of Santa Coloma de Farners and the trails in the natural park of Montseny. Especially in the summer months the Montseny area is your safest bet to get good trails. It’s a nice forest with more loamy trails than Santa Coloma de Farners, which is too dry in the summer months.
