L'Étape La Paz

Putting on a race bib stamped with Tour de France without setting a foot in Europe? In La Paz, you pedal each year 🚴. Far from the Alpine cols, the “Étape La Paz by Tour de France” marks its start arch at the southern tip of La Paz, Mexico, facing the Sea of Cortez. Connected to the L'Étape by Tour de France global series, the cyclosportive lets enthusiasts live, for a day, the sensations of the planet's greatest cycling event 🚲. Start and finish on the famous Malecón, this seafront where the city of La Paz enjoys strolling 🌊.

Three routes await the calves, from gentlest to toughest. The "Ruta Sprint" opens the ball for beginners and families, a chance to soak up the atmosphere without wrecking the thighs 😅. The "Ruta Corta" raises the challenge for regular cyclists, while the "Ruta Larga" sends the fittest on the grand loop of the day, the one that separates fresh legs from heavy legs 🥵. Timers also join in with the Reto Cronometrado, a timed sector that rewards the fastest, not to mention team and duo standings to spice up the ride 🏁. All of it launches at dawn, when the sun is just barely up over the Malecón ☀️.

The scenery, meanwhile, plays in a different league 🌵. The roads leave the seafront to race through the golden deserts of the peninsula, between giant cacti and long, sun-polished straightaways. On the other side of the handlebars lies the Sea of Cortés, that stretch of water that the commander Cousteau dubbed "the aquarium of the world" 🐋. Whales, dolphins, sea lions and turtles make themselves at home there, and you sometimes glimpse them from the saddle 🐬. Between sand, ocean and vast sky, every pedal stroke pays off in panoramas.

Behind the event lies a clever concept 💡. Fueled by the organizers of the Tour de France, the L'Étape series spans the globe to offer enthusiasts a taste of cycling's grandest celebration. La Paz has joined the journey a few seasons ago and is already on its sixth edition, drawing more than 1,200 cyclists and thousands of visitors who boost the atmosphere on the North American continent 🎉. Held under the regulations of the Union Cycliste Internationale, the event blends serious sport with festive spirit, and even weighs in on the local tourism economy 💰. The Étape La Paz cultivates a special charm 🌟. The yellow jersey hovers on the shoulders of the most ambitious. Refreshment stops take on party vibes, and the team or duo categories turn the outing into a collective adventure. The early-morning start, before the sun fully hits, adds its magic by the water's edge 🌅.

Once the bike is hung up, La Paz reveals its treasures 🏖. In two spins of the wheels, the Balandra Beach, often cited among the most beautiful in the Mexico, invites you to swim, while the Isla Espíritu Santo draws snorkelers and playful sea lions. On the palate, fish tacos and the famed chocolata shells delight hungry bellies 🌮. Between pedal strokes and sunburn, the Étape La Paz by Tour de France has found the perfect recipe: French cycling enjoyed with feet in Mexican sand, a bottle in hand 💛.