On 2 July 2027 the men’s Grand Départ of the 114th Tour de France will begin from the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
This is the first time that the Tour De France has come to Scotland in what is a truly historic moment for Edinburgh. In the first stage, the peloton will find themselves travelling down from Edinburgh to Carlisle. The second stage, from Keswick to Liverpool. Lastly, the final Grand Départ stage from Welshpool to Cardiff.
The views that the cyclists will encounter on their traverse through Scotland are sure to be a highlight of the race: up the Royal Mile, over North Bridge, and onto Princes Street before facing the mountainous Côte de Melrose in the Eildon hills and then on the Borders along Liddesdale.
On 30 June, the grand opening ceremony will take place at Edinburgh Castle, where the Royal Edinburgh Military tattoo will take centre stage, and while tickets are now sold out, there is the opportunity to watch the showcase of the presentation of the riders free of charge.
In 2014 in Yorkshire, and 2015 in London, the previous years that the United Kingdom has hosted the Grand Départ, there was significant tension surrounding the funding for the competition. As of present, morale is high surrounding funding, with the Scottish government planning to invest up to £9.25m in order to cover the cost of hosting the competition. It will be interesting to see what this will mean for Edinburgh, an already bustling cycling city. Perhaps an improvement on demoralising potholes that plague all road users but especially cyclists. The event is expected to attract more than 1.27m spectators, so in combination with the Fringe, it is an exciting summer for Edinburgh to look forward to.
“Tour de France” by malias is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
