'Toughest Vuelta a España in ten years' set to include up to nine summit finishes in 2026

The 2026 Vuelta a España may not be heading for the Canary Islands, but with a week to go before the route is finally revealed on December 17, the latest rumours point to the inclusion of up to nine major summit finishes and an ultra-difficult route.

According to a report on Wednesday in AS, the Vuelta's official newspaper, Wednesday evening's route publication in Monaco will unveil what it said would be "the toughest Vuelta a España in 10 years" with up to nine summit finishes, all of them in stages with around 4,000 metres of vertical climbing each.

Few details have emerged regarding the overall route, which has necessarily suffered a radical overhaul after the Canary Islands opted to withdraw their offer to host the last four stages.

For now, all that is known is that it will start in Monaco on August 22 with a 9.6km individual time trial, the first opening solo effort since Primož Roglič took the opening stage of the Vuelta in the city of Burgos back in 2021.

The finale is widely predicted to be in the southern city of Granada, with a mountainous stage through the Sierra Nevada on the Saturday of the final weekend.

This will be followed by a city centre, largely ceremonial, stage on the race's last Sunday, likely concluding in the environs of one of Spain's biggest tourist attractions, the Alhambra palace and fortress. September 13 will also mark the first time the Vuelta has ended outside Madrid – by far the most usual endpoint, with 79 finishes to date – since a concluding time trial in Santiago de Compostela back in 2021.

After the Monaco start, the latest series of rumours points to several first-week stages in France, bringing the Vuelta back within striking distance of the Spanish border before a first major summit finish, for the second year running, in Andorra.

The following two weeks will most likely include a large number of stages in the south of Spain, an area completely bypassed by the 2025 route.

Opting to head for the regions of Valencia and then Andalucia will mean that – just as in the heat-blasted first part of 2024 – high summer temperatures will be an important factor. So, too, will be the series of summit finishes, with between seven and nine set to feature, according to AS.

Little is known which climbs will be used, but the dauntingly long ascent of Alto de Aitana near Alicante – last used in 2016 and where Nairo Quintana sealed his overall victory against Chris Froome – is expected to feature as a finale.

So too is the almost equally drawn-out ascent to Peñas Blancas on the south coast, on the last Friday of the race, with rumours of a return to the ultra-steep Alto de la Pandera, north of Granada, also on the cards.

The time triallists will have a second opportunity to shine as well, thanks to a long time trial in the Andalucian city of Jerez de la Frontera, likely ending on its racing circuit some time in the second week. But overall, the climbers look set to have almost everything in their favour in the 2026 Vuelta a España.

The full 2026 Vuelta a España route will be revealed at 1900 CET on Thursday, 17 December, in Monaco.