Routes and itineraries

With a great range of riding available, this is One Week Itinerary that would suit a reasonably fit cyclist who enjoys getting out and about in the hills. On the Saddle Skeddadle rating - it would probably rate around 4/challenging - depending on how you choose to tackle it, of course.

Day 1 - Mijas Mirador

I'm always super keen to head for the hills and start with a blast up to Mijas Mirador. The ride below works well if you're starting from the apartment, or if you're renting a bike from Terral. It has a gentle warm up along the beach which allows you to get into the holiday feel straight away! After 6kms of flat, you will swing left and start the climb, winding your way up through double digits to Benalmadena. From there, you're on the balcony road overlooking the whole coast until, 20kms in, you have a choice to carry on to Mijas Pueblo, or tackle the 5kms to the summit. The road to the top is not open to cars and is well-surfaced with lots of switchbacks, and the scent of pine. After a fun descent, stop in Mijas Pueblo for something to eat. There's a bit of climbing to do after the break, but there's also some stunning balcony riding to come, and lots of sweeping descents down to the main roundabout, and then back to the apartment - albeit with a few kickers dotted in for good measure! Some of these roads look large, and they are, but traffic is very light and you should certainly enjoy the ride.

• Ride distance 57k (from the apartment.) Elevation gain 1300m.

Day 2 - All the Alhaurins

Day two heads inland, turning right at the bottom of the road and heading up a lumpy and, at times, steep road you came down yesterday. This is taking you to the twin towns of Alhaurin el Grande and Alhaurin de la Torre. Both of these have plenty of places to stop and get a coffee but the roads in between are much flatter, once you're on them, that is! But this is a day to strike out, get some kms under your belt and spend some time in the real Spanish countryside full of orange groves and goats. Your first 10kms or so of climbing will be rewarded with around 20 going down hill. And, whilst the next 30, looping around as you head back to Mijas Pueblo from the other side are generally also uphill, the reward is some fantastic descending on the 16kms back to the coast. This ride finishes along the coast of Fuengirola, allowing you to refuel on ice cream and beer before the pootle back to the apartment.

• Ride distance 91k. Elevation gain 1200m.

Day 3 - Taming the Lion

For your third day, it's worth heading to Puerto del Leon, a majestic climb on the back side of Malaga itself. There's two routes up and I can't decide which I prefer most! The one I include below is 16kms from the harbour at Malaga and averages about 5.5%. Tackling it from the eastern side, you can still start at the harbour, and the climb via Olias is just over 20kms at an average of 4.5%. Both sides are really, really quiet and return you to the same place. The climb up through Malaga is a bit busier at the start as you head up through the city itself. Getting to the start is the tricky bit! My favoured option is to cycle the 35km along the coast and along some pretty major roads into Malaga harbour, before stopping for a drink before the climb. I also stop in the harbour once more for cake when the climbing is done (there are some great outdoor cafes there - and nothing at the top of the climb!) But you could easily take your bike on the train and miss the traffic-heavy roads through Torremolinos and past the motorway. If you're nervous about traffic, I'd advise you do that. The bonus is that it gives you even more time to explore the roads to the East of Malaga. If you have a car, as I did last time, the drive to the harbour is around 30mins, so definitely start there. Finally, if you want more climbing, throw in the Benalmadena climb en route and you'll be closer to 1900m for the day, as well as seeing if you beat your time from Day 1.

• Ride distance 116km. Elevation gain 1550m.

Day 4 - Rest day

I'm not saying you have to have a rest today - just that, if you want to, now would seem like a good time to catch up on your reading, or head to the beach.

Day 5 - El Chorro

One of my favourite days is a long one, so set out early and head inland to make the most of it. you'll be familiar with the start, heading up to Alhaurin el Grande to wake up the legs but now you'll head north to Pizarra which, at 36kms, is a good place to stop for a cafe con leche. From there, another 25kms will bring you into the gorge that is at the heart of this ride, El Chorro. There's a cafe on your left at around 59kms looking over a lake and in full view of the Via Ferrata. Even if you don't stop, you can ride for a couple of kilometers along the lake, looking up and marvelling at those braving the ironwork on the other side! It's a spectacular place. And it brings you to a fork in the road, and a decision. My recommended route swings left at the 62kms mark to tackle an additional 7km climb to a beautiful lake and vista. With an average of 5.6%, this is well worth the detour (it's an up and back) if you have time though the bar at the top has never been open when I've climbed it in November. As you descend, from 75 to 79kms you'll sweep alongside another majestic lake and I'd advise you stopping, oddly, at the BP garage marked as a detour at 80.6km! That's because it does awesome sandwiches in the attached cafe, and because the next 3kms are real leg sappers if you're underfuelled. Once over them, you have 24kms of pure descent where you probably don't even need to pedal... before the climbing returns on the run in to Alhaurin el Grande, and the descent home. It's a big day out, and the kickers in the last 5kms are mean, but you've got to do them if you want to get back.

• Ride distance 135km. Elevation gain 2450m.

Day 6 - La Cala

To end the week, I normally head over to La Cala as a bit of a warm-down ride, depending on the legs. This finishing circuit still throws in nearly 800m of climbing in 37kms, with the chance to look out over the coast from Elviria, and reflect on a great week of cycling. Of course, even that is optional as this route takes you the back way into La Cala, via some beautiful wooded roads and sweeping descents alongside some of the nicest golf courses I've ever seen. As a warm down, it's not without its challenges, such as a section of nearly 1km that rarely dips below 14%. If that's really not for you, use this route to head to La Cala, have a drink on the boardwalk, and don't take the left turn at 11.5kms in - the loop without that is still perfectly pleasant after a hard week! And if you still want more than the 8km climb here that averages about 6%, you can always add on something more challenging by heading up to Mijas via the main A-387 road, finding a brute of a road up there via Valtocado (fun, if you like that sort of thing!) or ignoring this route entirely in favour of heading back to Puerto del Leon to take on the other side.

Whatever you decide, I hope you enjoy it! This would be my preferred one week plan - and all the komoot links are available below for you to follow or tailor. I've ridden all of these, and enjoyed the rides - so they are all good for road bikes and there's places to top up water and get food on all of them. One word, though, on the longer rides, do stop in villages like Pizarra when you see somewhere open, as it could be a while before you get another chance.

Happy riding and, any questions, ask away.

Mijas Intro ride:

All the Alhaurins:

Taming the Lion:

El Chorro - big day out:

La Cala finishing circuit:

Bonus ride: in case you want to replace one of the above, another good ride is around Coin to the north. This loop doesnt have so much by way of noticeable climbs, except, perhaps, the climb out of Guaro. But it's got a good amount of meters in it anyway, and over a decent 90+kms. After the initial coastal start, tt's nice a rural and gets you away from it all.