Gibraltar to Madrid in January.....

[mmmmartin]

Flights booked. Not camping as may well be freezing at night. Staying in cheap hotels. Two blokes. Planning to lunch well and merely snack in the evenings as we think restaurants will start serving quite late and we'll tend to opt for an early night after a day on the road. Two weeks to do it so plenty of time to ride the 900k or thereabouts. Advice needed please, as to route (small roads preferred, obviously), and which maps and any decent cheap hotels you may know. Can speak apalling Spanish and hope to improve slightly.....Is this a reasonable idea? What does the team think?

 

[MarkF]

Buy food before lunch unless you know you'll be hitting a largish town, many places will be totally dead 12-14.
10 miles inland to Madrid, any road, apart from Autovias, will be very quiet compared to the UK, good "B" roads will practically deserted.
A bit of Spanish goes a long way, you'll be fine.
Can't advise on specific hotels but I have cycled all over Spain including a remote route through Extramadura, I've never not found a room. Roadhouses, hotels, hostals, rooms above bars, there has always been "something". 25 euros for a clean basic twin room, maybe 50 for a 3* hotel. But think about it, if the 3* hotel has a buffet breakfast, you can fuel up, and, squirrel away enough for lunch/afternoon too. Enjoying all the facilities of a good hotel can be no more expensive than a basic room. Buffet breakfast is all important!

 

[albal]

Is it 900kms ?? scenic route i guess. Good luck I'll look out for you, down that way a lot with work.

 

[steveindenmark]

Martin have a look at Airbnb. most people don`t know about it.
There is always, Couchsurfers, Warmshowers and Hostelworld.

What bikes are you riding?

Steve

 

[mmmmartin]

galaxies. both old. both secondhand. both as good as the day they left the shop.

 

[mmmmartin]

Is it 900kms ?? scenic route i guess.

Google maps set to walking gives 600k so we reckon in an extra 50 per cent for wiggles to avoid the more egregious hilly bits and a few bad weather days when we'll hunker down in a bar and and stare through the window at the torrential rain or snow. So aiming to ride for 11 days and doing an average of, say, 80k a day. Also planning to improve my Spanish, already I have learnt the word for bicycle and to say "we are not americans" and I bought the course only this afternoon. So all going well so far.

 

[suffolkcindy]

Somos Ingles y nos gustaria tomar una copa

That should get you through it

 

[MarkF]

Somos Ingles y nos gustaria tomar una copa

That should get you through it

You could swap Ingles for Irlandes and the service might well be better.

Ok, I'll ask, why did you book this trip in January?

 

[MarkF]

Somos Ingles y nos gustaria tomar una copa

That should get you through it

You could swap Ingles for Irlandes and the service might well be better.

Ok, I'll ask, why did you book this trip in January?

 

[bigjim]

You could swap Ingles for Irlandes and the service might well be better.

Thats probably true but I don't now why. When I proffer my Irish passport it always raises a smile and a story. I was once told that they regard the Irish as brothers in adversity. Re the tussle over Northern Ireland akin to the Gibralter thing but don't know if that is correct.

 

[mmmmartin]

why did you book this trip in January?

Because i can get away then, and
because we thought the weather would be tolerable at 10 degrees in the day which is a good riding temperature (albeit freezing at night which is why we're not camping), and
because my summer is already solidly booked with other bike stuff, and
because I can't get away in spring and autumn, and
because it doesn't really matter what time of year I go as I want to learn Spanish because I plan to go to Patagonia in a year or so.

 

[MarkF]

Thats probably true but I don't now why. When I proffer my Irish passport it always raises a smile and a story. I was once told that they regard the Irish as brothers in adversity. Re the tussle over Northern Ireland akin to the Gibralter thing but don't know if that is correct.

Not probably, definitely true. I've noticed it for years and in my trans Iberian summer trip, what was closed or not available to my cousin (British passport holder) was open or available to me, an Irish passport holder. They tolerated my cousin but opened up to me like I was a long lost pal, strangely, the difference was more pronounced in the North.

I love the heat, June in Extramadura and Andalucia was great, good luck mmmmartin!. ,