Santiago de Compostela start confirmed for 2027 Vuelta a España

The Vuelta a España will start in Santiago de Compostela in 2027, ending a sequence of three successive starts on foreign roads.

The start in Galicia had been reported in Spanish media in recent and it was confirmed by the Vuelta organisation ahead of the final stage of this year’s race in Granada on Sunday. 

“Galicia will host the Official Start of La Vuelta 27 with a road stage in Santiago de Compostela,” read a statement from the Vuelta organisation.

It marks the ninth time that Galicia has hosted the start of the Vuelta, with the last occasion coming in 2013. 

Santiago de Compostela has hosted the final stage of the Vuelta on two occasions in the intervening period, in 2014 and 2021.

The city is the end point of the Camino de Santiago, the 2027 Vuelta start coincides with a so-called Ano Xacobeo or Jacobean Holy Year, which will see an increase in pilgrims arriving in Santiago.

The white jersey at this year’s Vuelta is sponsored by the Galician local government as part of its promotion of the Xacobeo 2027 season of pilgrimage.

Speaking in Granada on Sunday, Vuelta director Javier Guillén indicated that the opening stage of the 2027 race would be “inspired by the Camino di Santiago,” while he confirmed that the opening four stages of the Vuelta would take place in Galicia.

“There will be at least four stages, and the aim is to cover all four Galician provinces,” Guillén, according to AS.

The 2027 Vuelta will start on the later date of September 4 in order to avoid a clash with the ‘super’ World Championships in Haute-Savoie in August. The race will finish in Madrid on September 26. “Afterwards, it will go back to its usual dates, which are better for the Vuelta,” said Guillén said.