Circuito de Almería

Circuit guide by Chris Pollitt · dates updated 2 November 2026

The Circuito de Almería sits beside the N-340a in the Tabernas desert, about half an hour inland from Almería city. Former rally driver Nono García started building it on his own farmland in 1998 and it opened in 2000. It's still privately owned, run by the García family, and since 2021 it has also carried the 'Costa de Almería' name. The original track is 4.2 km long with a straight of nearly a kilometre.

The reason everyone comes is the weather. This is the driest corner of Spain, so in January and February, when UK circuits are shut or soaking, you can ride or drive here in sunshine. MotoGP, World Superbike and touring car teams test here, Tito Rabat famously trained here almost daily, and a long list of UK and European organisers run bike-heavy winter days. There's plenty of run-off, which makes it a good first trip abroad for track day regulars.

A lap of Circuito de Almería

Layout: Circuito de Almería, 4.200 km (2.61 miles)

Almería runs clockwise, and the original layout has 14 corners: eight rights, five lefts and a chicane. It's described by people who know it as old-school, with a bit over 50 metres of elevation change and a lot of sweeping, open bends rather than stop-start hairpins. Several of the corners have two or even three apexes, which is where a first-timer loses most of their time.

The big feature is the straight of around 900 to 970 metres, the longest part of the lap and the place where a litre bike will find top gear. The braking zone at the end comes up quicker than you expect after the run of fast sweepers, so pick a board on your sighting laps and work in from there rather than chasing someone else's markers.

The multi-apex corners reward patience. Turn in, hold a tight line to the first apex and let the bike or car run out naturally to the second, instead of opening the throttle early and running out of road. The track rises and falls through the middle of the lap, so you'll go over crests where the bike goes light and into dips that load the suspension. Keep inputs smooth over the brows.

The chicane needs a clean, tidy entry rather than a heroic one, as a good exit matters more than the few metres you gain on the brakes. The surface is grippy in the dry, and with plenty of run-off you can learn the place without big consequences, but the dust blowing off the desert can leave the edges of the track sandy early in the day. Stay on the racing line for the first laps of the morning.

Track day tips

• Winter mornings in the desert can be properly cold even when the afternoons are warm. Plan for cool tyres in the first session.
• Desert dust can gather off line, especially after a windy night. Keep to the rubbered-in line until it's cleaned up.
• The road through the last village before the circuit has a low speed limit and police are known to watch hire cars heading to the track.
• Bring a European plug adaptor and an extension lead for tyre warmers.
• Dry weather is the norm, so most riders don't bother with wets, though a cover for the bike when it's unloaded is a sensible extra.
• Check the noise limit with your organiser before you go. Rules are set per event.

Getting there

Almería airport has direct UK flights and is about 35 minutes from the circuit, with Almería city a little under half an hour away. Murcia is the other option, at around an hour and a half's drive. The track is on the N-340a at kilometre 483, just outside Tabernas. Most UK bike riders don't drive down: organisers such as Focused Events and TrackSense run winter days here with bike transport from the UK, so you fly out, hire a car and stay in Almería, Tabernas or the coast.