Spain's Costa Brava
Mediterranean Gravel Cycling Camp
$???? per person
Sept 13-17, 2026
4 Days / 4 Nights
With a reputation as one of Europe's premier cycling destinations, the city of Girona is where cycling camps in northeast Spain tend to gravitate. And while Girona is undoubtedly a great town, it's not on the beach. In our opinion, what makes northeast Spain so special is the incredibly scenic intersection of the Pyrenees Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea on Spain's Costa Brava - the Wild Coast. With this cycling camp, we've combined the best of both worlds, providing the same type of fantastic cycling you'll find in Girona from a stunning beachfront homebase in historic Tossa de Mar, perfect for post-ride seaside siestas. In addition to the idyllic setting and the epic views, we've formatted the camp to give you just the right balance of guidance and flexibility, along with a proper mix of time with the group and time on your own. Need an e-bike to help with all the climbing? We can help with that too!
Camp Overview
The rides are
goal with this camp is to provide you with some fantastic cycling while
putting this camp together, we've tried to find the right amount of flexibility, offering guidance and insight while at the time giving you the freedom to tackle these rides at your own pace. ... guided group rides & lunches 1 & 4, more options 2 & 3... dinners together... e-bike options
Tossa de Mar
Tossa has it all..
The Coastal Highway
Search for popular cycling routes out of Girona and you will inevitably find a coastal loop that takes you on the road between Tossa de Mar and Sant Feliu de Guixols. While there are multiple variations of this loop, they all feature the same beautiful 12-mile stretch of road that hugs the cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean. It's a staple of any cycling holiday in northeast Spain and it's even featured in the Volta a Catalunya (the one-week pro cycling race that takes place in the region every March). We'll take full advantage of this spectacular gem, incorporating it in parts and in its entirety on several of our routes.
Massís de Cadiretes
Part of what makes Tossa so charming is how neatly it's nestled between the sea and the mountains. To make this setting even more perfect, these mountains are actually a nature preserve known as the Massis de Cadiretes, offering endless miles of scenic hiking trails, fun & flowy singletrack, and an endless network of gravel roads, all with big climbs and even bigger views! This unspoiled nature park will be our playground for the week.
Sea Otter Europe
Want more cycling on your trip? We've intentionally scheduled this climbing camp to make it easy to combine with one of the world's biggest cycling festivals just down the road in Girona. Just a little over 20 miles from Tossa, Girona will be hosting Sea Otter Europe, featuring multiple rides & races for all levels, an expo with pretty much every cycling brand known to man, and tons of bikes for you to demo. We highly recommend kicking off your cycling vacation with this incredible event! For all the details, check out seaottereurope.com.
SUNDAY: Arrival
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Welcome to Tossa de Mar!
Your only job today is to simply make it to Tossa in time for dinner at 7:00 at the hotel. Check in starts at 3:00 p.m. If you arrive early, Tossa de Mar is loaded with things to do, from touring the Vila Vella (Tossa's old town with its 13th century walls) to exploring the many shops that line the streets of the central city to hitting the beach!
MONDAY: Welcome to the Mediterranean!
DISTANCE: 37 miles
CLIMBING: 4800 ft
Coastal Hwy - Sant Feliu beachfront - Sant Grau descent - Lunch on the beach at Cala Pola
After breakfast at the hotel (which is how we will start every day on the tour), we'll walk to the local bike shop, Tossa Cycling, to pick up our bike rentals for today's ride, which is a fun mountain bike loop that finishes with an amazing paved descent down to the coastal highway and on to a little cove for lunch on the beach! After the ride, you'll have time to play tourist, go kayaking, lay out on the beach or simply take a nap before regrouping for dinner in town.
TUESDAY: Into the Mountains!
DISTANCE: 42 miles
CLIMBING: 5000 ft
Roman baths in Caldes de Malavella - Views??? - 35 & 23 mile options
Today will start off much like yesterday, with a walk to the bike shop to pick up our bikes for a fun ride, except this time we'll bring our luggage with us as we prepare to head north from Tossa. Also unlike yesterday, today's ride is all paved, with 17 miles of beautiful costal riding on tap. After a lunch break at the beach, we'll trade in the bikes for our walking shoes and head out on foot, first through a couple of beach towns and then through a series of picture-perfect coves, eventually landing us at Hotel Park San Jorge, our lodging for the night. San Jorge is also our dinner destination.
WEDNESDAY: Sea to Sky - the Queen Stage!
DISTANCE: 47 miles
CLIMBING: 5600 ft
Sant Grau climb - Sant Grau descent (north side) - Panoramic views - 35 & 15 mile options
We'll kick off the longest and arguably most scenic day of the tour much like we ended the previous day, bouncing from one perfect little cove to the next along a well-marked and well-maintained path. After rounding the corner past the landmark tower Torre dels Perpinyà, the landscape will change and we'll find ourselves strolling along the flat beach promenade of Sant Antoni de Calonge and onto the streets of Palamos before stopping for lunch at Platja de Castell. After lunch the landscape will change dramatically with a series of climbs and descents that offer sweeping panoramic views and access to hidden coves. It's an incredible if challenging stretch of trail that will bring us to our destination for the evening, the Hotel Sant Roc in the charming town of Calella de Palafrugell. After cleaning up we'll head into town for a well-earned dinner!
THURSDAY: Mountain Biking!
DISTANCE: 17 miles
CLIMBING: 2300 ft
Fun Single Track! - Tossa Overlook
Celebrate the end of the camp with some fun easy single track mountain biking!
What's Included:
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4 guided bike rides (3 gravel and 1 mountain bike).
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4 nights lodging at first-class hotels (+$300 for single occupancy).
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4 dinners, 4 breakfasts, 2 lunches.
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SAG support, snacks & drinks during the three gravel rides.
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MTB bike rental. While you are responsible for your own bike for the first three rides, we're covering the mountain bike rental for the last day.
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T-shirts compliments of Tossa Cycling!
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Pictures! As always, I will be taking as many photos as possible!
What's Not Included:
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Transportation to and from Tossa de Mar before and after the tour.
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Single occupancy. Pricing is based on double occupancy. Add $300 if you'd like to have a room to yourself.
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Gravel bike rental. While the rental mountain bike for the last day is included, you are responsible to bring or rent your own gravel bike for the other three rides. If you are visiting Girona first and plan to bring a rental bike from there to our camp in Tossa, you have multiple rental options in the city. We recommend Eat Sleep Cycle. If you are coming directly to Tossa, check out the rental options at Tossa Cycling. Tossa Cycling is also available to receive shipped bikes and to help with building bikes brought on the plane as luggage.
HOME BASE: Golden Mar Menuda
Tossa de Mar
Located right on Tossa de Mar's secondary beach (i.e. the less crowded one) but still within an easy walk to the city center and the historic walled district, the Golden Mar Menuda is the ideal home base for our cycling camp, with private balconies overlooking the beach along with a beautiful dining terrace. HOTEL WEBSITE
How to Get to Tossa:
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FROM THE BARCELONA AIRPORT: Moventis runs multiple bus trips daily from the Barcelona airport to Tossa de Mar. The trip takes about 2 hours without any transfers and costs around $18 per person.
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FROM CENTRAL BARCELONA: Moventis runs multiple bus trips daily from central Barcelona to Tossa de Mar. The trip is only an hour and 20 minutes to Tossa de Mar and costs around $16 per person.
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FROM GIRONA: Moventis runs multiple bus trips daily from Girona airport to Tossa de Mar. The trip is less than an hour and costs around $14 per person.
Pre and Post Tour Travel:
Girona is hosting Sea Otter Europe the weekend before our cycling camp, and we highly recommend incorporating that event into your trip. Even if you opt out of Sea Otter, Girona is an incredible city well worth exploring. And of course Barcelona should be on everyone's bucket list! As listed above, there is regular bus service to both Girona and Barcelona. The bus rides are inexpensive and relatively short.
Is Celeste going to be on the tour?
YES! (This is always the first question I get asked.) She will be riding an e-bike.
How many people will be on the tour?
The group will be limited to 8 guests plus me and Celeste. First 8 people to sign up are in! (We will also set up a waitlist in case there are cancellations.)
How hard are the rides?
As noted in the itinerary section, the ride distances are not long, but there is a lot of climbing, some of which is fairly steep. The full distance gravel rides will take four to five hours. If you're concerned about the amount of climbing, please note that there are shorter options on the second and third day. E-bike rentals are also available.
Are there other dates available besides September?
At this point, we are only offering the one week in September. However, I'm open to running private tours for groups of friends as long as the dates work out and as long as we have enough time to secure lodging. Email me if you'd like to talk about this option.
What's the weather like in September?
Late September is typically warm and sunny, with highs in the mid to upper 70s and lows in the low 60s. On average, September only has four rain days.
Do you have a recommended packing list?
While we won't attempt to tell you everything to bring, there are certain essentials that you should pack for the trip: ...
Where is the registration page?
Because this tour is invitation only, we do not have a visible registration page. Just email me when you're ready to sign up and I'll provide you with the link for registration.
How much is the deposit?
The deposit is $250 and will be charged when you register. The balance will be due 30 days from the start of the tour. I'll send an invoice for the balance roughly 6 weeks prior to the tour start.
What's the cancellation policy?
Deposits will be refunded in full for cancellation 6 months prior to the tour start. Cancellations between 6 months and 30 days will forfeit the full deposit. Cancellations within 30 days of the tour start will forfeit the full tour fee.
Have more questions? Ready to sign up? Email me at shannon@tennesseegravel.com
BACKGROUND: Why is Tennessee Gravel in Spain???
In the early 2000s, I did a lot of traveling in Europe. I wasn't a cyclist then, but I really enjoyed hiking and swimming - and history. The Costa Brava has all of these things in spades, with the crystal clear Mediterranean, an incredible coastal trail system, medieval castles, and ruins that date back to the Romans and Greeks. So when I first visited the region in 2002, I was hooked! In fact, I loved it so much that I spent several weeks in 2003 hiking the entire length of the Costa Brava, from just north of Barcelona all the way to the French border. The plan was to write a guide book on how to reach the tourist-free hidden coves along the coast. (Even back then I was mapping routes!) Sadly that plan was shelved due to some seismic life changes. A few years later I met Celeste and dove headfirst into cycling, eventually quitting my job as a city planner and starting Velo View Bike Tours in 2012, which led to extensive exploration in the U.S. but left no time for Europe. Interestingly, while I was becoming obsessed with cycling, so was the Costa Brava. Over the 20+ years since I did my hike, the Costa Brava has grown into one of the most sought-after cycling destinations on the planet. This amazing confluence of my current passion for cycling with my past love of this coastline made a return to Spain seem like fate! So in 2025 Celeste and I traveled to the Costa Brava with an eye to run tours there on an annual basis. In 2026 we returned with a few friends and did a test run of the tour to fine-tune the routes and smooth out the logistics. And now I'm finally ready to run a proper tour in one of my favorite places in the world - a tour 25 years in the making!
