The 2027 Vuelta a España will feature a queen stage running from Jaca to Val Louron-Azet through France's Hautes-Pyrénées region, paying tribute to the stage where Miguel Indurain claimed his first Tour de France yellow jersey in 1991.
The announcement comes just as the 2026 Vuelta prepares to start on Saturday, August 22, in Monaco. After a prologue in the principality, the race's first stage will run from Monaco to Manosque, followed by a second stage in France's Occitanie region from Gruissan to Font-Romeu, with the first summit finish coming as early as stage three. A loop through Andorra will follow before the race heads to Spain's western coast and southern regions.
Return to the Hautes-Pyrénées
The Hautes-Pyrénées last featured on the Vuelta route in 2023, when a summit finish atop the Tourmalet, starting from Formigal, saw Danish rider Jonas Vingegaard beat his American teammate Sepp Kuss. Kuss ultimately edged out Vingegaard by 17 seconds in that year's overall general classification.
The region's return to the Vuelta route could only happen with another summit finish, and the Jaca to Val Louron-Azet stage is already shaping up to be the queen stage of the 2027 Tour of Spain. The route echoes a stage from the 1991 Tour de France that remains etched in cycling memory, the day Miguel Indurain broke Greg LeMond before pulling on his first-ever yellow jersey, even though Italian rider Claudio Chiapucci won the stage into Val Louron. It was the first of what would become five consecutive Tour de France titles for the Spanish rider, won between 1991 and 1995.
The 2027 route details
The Vuelta stage, scheduled for Sunday, September 19, 2027, is expected to follow the same course as that 1991 Tour de France stage, starting in Jaca and crossing the Col du Pourtalet, the Aubisque and the Soulor, then the Tourmalet linked with the Aspin, before the final climb to the Val Louron-Azet ski station, covering 188 kilometers in total. Michel Pélieu, president of the Hautes-Pyrénées departmental council, said it would be the queen stage of the Vuelta, with an impressive sequence of climbs.
Pyrenees return for 2026 Tour de France
Before the 2027 Vuelta arrives, the Hautes-Pyrénées will also feature in the 2026 Tour de France, for which the department is a near-obligatory stop on the route. While the exact course and Pyrenean stages have not yet been announced, the Hautes-Pyrénées will return to prominence in the race's final week, after the Alps, following several editions where the region appeared in the first week instead.
At least one stage finish, likely atop a mountain pass, is expected in the Hautes-Pyrénées. A visit to the region in the coming days by Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme should help clarify the details.
