The Tour de France boasts three Catalan stages in 2026.
The French race presents the detailed route that will start in Barcelona, before crossing Catalonia from south to north
BarcelonaThe 2026 Tour de France has unveiled its route in a special edition in Paris, as Catalonia will host the first three stages. Barcelona has never before hosted the start of the prestigious French race, which for 2026 is opting for a fast route that will include two ascents of Alpe d'Huez. The 2026 Tour will go "from the Sagrada Familia to the Eiffel Tower," as race director Christian Prudhomme said, referring to the fact that the team presentation ceremony will take place at the foot of the temple designed by Antoni Gaudí.
"We aspire to organize the most spectacular start of the Tour de France in history," said the mayor of the city, Jaume Collboni, who was at the event accompanied by the Minister of Sports of the Generalitat, Berni Álvarez, and spoke of a "beautiful love story between the Tour and Barcelona": "The nine want the bike not only as an element of sport, but also as an element of transport in the city of Barcelona. We will make a spectacular start that will highlight the architecture of Barcelona; Jaume Collboni concluded his speech by stating: "We want to leave a page in the history of the Grand Départ of the Tour and, also, the Grand Départ of the Tour will leave a page in the history of our city."
Berni Álvarez, for his part, explained that Catalonia is a "reference territory in the organization of high-level sporting events" with the Grand Departure as "a new milestone", as it is seen as a major competition that several Catalan towns will be able to enjoy: "For Catalonia as a territory it is something very important, because we continue to be one of the leading countries in sporting events, due to the strength of the Tour and because it is in line with the commitment we have in Catalonia to major events, which are not just sporting, but which have an economic, social and environmental return.
The three stages of the 2026 Tour in Catalonia
Main points of interest and distance of the stages
A time trial in Barcelona
The most famous cycling event will start on July 4th in Barcelona, with a 19.7 km team time trial finishing on Montjuïc. This race will start along the seafront and pass through iconic points of the city such as the Sagrada Família, Passeig de Gràcia, and Barceloneta beach.
From Tarragona to Montjuïc
The second stage will be on Sunday, July 5, starting in Tarragona and finishing in Barcelona after 178 km that will pass through Torredembarra, Sitges, Garraf, a challenging climb to Begues, and three short but explosive climbs at Montjuïc Castle.
From the Vallés to the Pyrenees
The third stage, on Monday, July 6, will start in Granollers and climb through Centelles, Vic, Ripoll, and then reach the Pyrenees with the Toses pass as its highlight, before seeing the riders head off toward French territory, their destination on arrival at Les Angles.
A demanding route
Following the trend of recent editions, the Tour has relegated the time trial to its most minimal form: 19 kilometers for teams on the first day through the streets of Barcelona, and 26 individual kilometers to open the final week in the Alps.
Instead, the mountains take center stage with shorter stages and two versions of the legendary Alpe d'Huez. For the second year running, the Tour is focusing on the three climbs of Montmartre, which were a popular success last year.
The organizers, incidentally, do not believe the anti-Israel protests that affected the Vuelta a España will be repeated in Barcelona in 2026, due to the improving situation in the Middle East and the departure of the team's sponsor, Israel. "The situation has changed since the Vuelta; it's something that doesn't depend on us, but there has been a change in the situation. The hostages have been released, and there's a peace plan. Things are going well," explained Tour director Christian Prudhomme, speaking to EFE.