Best road bike routes in Madrid 2026: 10 free GPX loops

Looking for the best road rides around Madrid? Start with the curated loops in the Tailwind GPS Madrid route library — free to browse, free to download as GPX, and scored hour by hour for wind so you can pick a departure time that feels good.

Below are the top 10 routes from the library leaderboard (ranked by rating × popularity), with verified distance and elevation from the manifest.

Leaderboard: top road bike routes in Madrid

The routes

1. Madrid green ring loop — 63.7 km / 481 m

Ranked #1 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 145.19). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Madrid green ring loop →

2. Canencia and Rascafría passes loop — 64.3 km / 1283 m

Ranked #2 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 92.45). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Canencia and Rascafría passes loop →

3. Lozoya and Rascafría loop — 63.4 km / 1268 m

Ranked #3 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 91.66). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Lozoya and Rascafría loop →

4. Cerceda and Colmenar Viejo loop — 67 km / 784 m

Ranked #4 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 62.71). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Cerceda and Colmenar Viejo loop →

5. Hoyo de Manzanares loop — 55 km / 595 m

Ranked #5 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 51.46). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Hoyo de Manzanares loop →

6. Sierra de la Puebla loop — 72.5 km / 1475 m

Ranked #6 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 49.22). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Sierra de la Puebla loop →

7. El Escorial and Galapagar loop — 69.3 km / 817 m

Ranked #7 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 44.01). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View El Escorial and Galapagar loop →

8. Santillana reservoir loop — 66.3 km / 681 m

Ranked #8 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 38.3). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Santillana reservoir loop →

9. Southeast park loop — 70.8 km / 389 m

Ranked #9 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 33.78). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Southeast park loop →

10. Valmojado and Navalcarnero loop — 78.6 km / 659 m

Ranked #10 in the Tailwind GPS Madrid library leaderboard (popularity score 26.99). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Valmojado and Navalcarnero loop →

How to choose the right route for the day

1. Distance and time window. Match kilometres to the hours you actually have.
2. Elevation. Climbing metres matter more than distance alone on punchy loops.
3. Near vs day-trip. Some library loops stay close to Madrid; others are longer classics worth a train or longer start.
4. Wind. A city-centre forecast will not tell you whether the outbound leg is a headwind.

Tailwind GPS gives every saved route a Tailwind Score (0–100) for each departure hour. Scores of 80+ mean favourable tailwinds for most of the ride; below 40 expect a tough one. Free accounts get a 3-day forecast and up to 3 saved routes.

How to get the GPX and score your departure hour

1. Open the Madrid hub
2. Filter by distance or elevation if needed
3. Preview a loop on the map
4. Download the GPX (free)
5. Save the route and compare Tailwind Scores on the map

You can also draw your own cycling route, upload a GPX, or connect Strava.

Get the GPX and score your departure hour

All of these routes are free to browse and download at the Tailwind GPS Madrid cycling routes hub. Filter, preview, download, then compare departure hours before you roll out.