Calp's skyline is dominated by the Peñón de Ifach, a 332-metre limestone rock rising straight out of the Mediterranean and declared a natural park in 1987 — the fixed point every ride out of town eventually circles back to.
The town has become one of the Costa Blanca's principal winter bases for professional cycling. Mild temperatures, smooth roads, and quick access to climbs like the Coll de Rates and Cumbre del Sol have drawn WorldTour teams to Calp's seafront hotels for pre-season training since the early 2000s.
Riders based here have included squads from Astana, Quick-Step, and FDJ in past seasons, with current stars such as Remco Evenepoel and Mathieu van der Poel among those regularly spotted training on the surrounding roads each winter.
Between flat coastal spins past the Peñón and the harder inland cols shared with Benidorm and Altea, Calp offers the same terrain the professional peloton uses to build its early-season form.
