This +1. Though I haven’t finalized my dates yet. Cheap direct flight from Columbus, OH to LAX for the win!
SoCal Riding is unreal.
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Yeah, that’s one of the big rides I have planned, basically this:
The serpentines, pristine roads, long 10% climb, green cliffs, and lighthouse… that’s about as good of a ride as I can imagine.
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Could you elaborate on why its your favourite? We used to go to Girona late spring, then discovered the joy of Mallorca in early spring - 
!
Now we’re keen to find somewhere new to ride, while also reminding ourselves what climbing feels like.
How do the grades and typical loop distances in GC compare to typical rides around Alcudia/Tramuntana mtns?
Thanks!
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I would appreciate your thoughts on Girona. We are planning a trip there in May of next year - our first cycling vacation anywhere. I have friends about 30 minutes outside of Girona, hence our choice. Any pointers/suggestions would be most appreciated!
Gran Canaria has mostly lenient gradients, just like Mallorca. Pico de las Nieves has several ascents that are around 5 to 6.9% on average, with not a ton of it dipping into double digits.
Valley of the Tears is the big exception here which is a 10% climb for most of it.
I’d say where the two differ most is the length of the climbs and the strength of wind. The climbs are often 15 to 30km long, much longer than Puig Major and Sa Calobra.
The canaries are more exposed to the wind than the Baleares.
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We did Majorca end March either '18 or '19 and the weather was beyond bad. Lot’s of heavy rain, 8 degree max for a few days and a few incredible wind storms, never again at that time of year. Only have one week a year at the moment so rather go somewhere with better winter/spring climate.
There aren’t as many different roads in GC compared to Calpe or Majorca but for a one week trip there’s enough.
We always stay at the Mogan Playa hotel (superb) in Puerto Mogan, south GC. Been many times now and have very rarely felt more than a steady breeze, it’s not like other places in the Canaries.
Serenity climb at the head of the Mogan valley is stunning. Must have climbed it 30+ times now and I can’t wait to go back next year. I’ve introduced a few people to the hotel/area and without fail it becomes their favourite too!
As mentioned above, the VOTT is amazing and brutal, you’d never believe you were in GC! Not to be attempted without planning and preparation.
Trust me, if you try it, you will know what climbing feels like!
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I’ll be there in March, planning on Mt Lemmon as well. There’s a good online list of rides in the Tuscon area, which at my age I’ll probably do solo.
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Pedreguer, close to the East coast of Spain.
A certain Tadej Pogacar spent some time at the beginning of the year in a hotel there, and Remco Evenepoel’s training routes often go through the village. This is only to say, the cycling there is absolutely phenomenal.
Is this constructive to the discussion? We could all be taking our canoes or hiking to our destination
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Flying for leisure is destructive. In the context of the OP asking about geting “away from the winter cold, rain, dark and wind.” is hiking or canoeing through that cold, dark rain and wind south to a lower latitude with a “nicer” winter climate realistic?
If anyone is travelling by public transport, I’d love to hear some ideas.
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Can y‘all discuss this somewhere else?
No one is arguing flying on an airplane isn’t bad.
It’s just not the topic at hand.
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I will shamelessly plug my vacation rental I put together in Floyd, VA. Mild winters/beautiful spring, unbeatable gravel routes straight from the driveway, plus plenty of road and mtn bike options
https://velowaychalet.com/
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Things aren’t looking great. Lava is threatening Saddle road and seems poised to hit the road at the Mauna Kea Access road, which would likely leave Mauna Kea inaccessible from either Hilo or Kona 
Congrats! May is a lovely time to go. Since I haven’t been to Girona since 2016, I’m now fuzzy on details.
Things I do remember:
- The roads are sublime. Smooth and e m p t y. When you do encounter a driver, they are incredibly courteous to cyclists. The pic below is quite typical:
Note woman with young children are on the road in pic below, it’s so quiet!
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Check if you’ll be there during Girona’s flower festival - it’s cooler than it sounds. You can admire the clever displays in peace during weekdays, but beware weekend hordes - ideal for a nice looong day in the saddle.
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Fab coffee at La Fabrica, run by an ex-pro. Big pre-ride meeting point. Used to look like a giant ad for Rapha in 2015/16.
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A great coffee/beer/casual lunch stop is at Banys Vells, literally right on Banyoles lake, only 20 gently rolling km from Girona. Hillier routes from there if you head towards Olot, including the infamous Rocacorba climb too.
For better, more recent details, this site (mentioned earlier by @Aeroiseverything), has very comprehensive info:
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I hear you about the weather being dodgy in Mallorca. I think you’re referring to 2018 as we would have been there just after you, and it was probably the poorest of the 3 years we’ve been (still better than Paris region, lemme tell ya).
Thanks for the details - I’m intrigued by GC after looking at pics, but more for 2024. I’m still returning to fitness after hip surgery so the gentler grades and shorter loops in Mallorca or Girona would probably be better for me in early 2023.
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Planning my third cycling trip to Gran Canaria this February for a week. In my opinion it is the only option at that time of year as would only be gambling on weather with Calpe or any other location in Europe.
I love the variety of route options and roads there. It’s a climbers paradise and I’ve never been disappointed with the weather. VOTT is definitely the hardest climb I have ridden, do I want to put myself through that again 
Maybe you should consider La Palma. Valley of tears will feel like a false flat after that 
Well I did have a few drinks the night before and on a 39 / 28 so that’s my excuse. Where is La Palma?
If you want to do the good rides/loops on GC, they are usually a bit longer. You start climbing earlier, and have more continuous descending (and climbing) on GC. Whereas Mallorca is more of short 20min climbs, except Sa Calobra and Puig Major. Most people also stay in the same place when on GC, bottom south part of the island, and most loops are the same from there.
When it comes to Mallorca, I at least feel that hotel location is way, way more important in terms of being close to the quality loops. I would steer mighty clear of Alcudia - it’s just a bunch of burnt British people being obnoxious everywhere (no offence).
Better to stay in Caimari/Soller/Valldemossa if you want to both enjoy the nature and cycling. Also you don’t have 2 hours of transportation to and from Alcudia. You can reach the best parts of the island within a 6 hour loop from Caimari for example.
If you stay in Alcudia you’ll miss out on the really good stuff that is close to Andratx.
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