Race Village opening: 11 October 2017
MAPFRE In-Port Race Alicante: 14 October 2017, 12:00 UTC (14:00 Alicante)
Leg Start: 22 October 2017, 12:00 UTC (14:00 Alicante)
More information can be found on the Alicante host city website: www.volvooceanracealicante.com
Download 3D Maps:
- Alicante Race Village (PDF 2.5MB)
- MAPFRE In-Port Race Alicante (JPG 1.5MB)
- Leg 1 Start Course Map (JPG 1.3 MB)
Find out all the cool things to see and do in our Race Village here.
This is the fourth time the Volvo Ocean Race will start from Alicante
Alicante will welcome the world for the start of the Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18 when the Race Village opens on October 11. Home to just short of half a million people, it’s the fourth time Alicante has opened the action, and the third since the race set up its permanent HQ in the port.
The start of the longest professional sporting event in the world brings people from far and wide to explore the Alicante Race Village, see the iconic Volvo Ocean 65 boats first hand and even, if you’re lucky, bump into the sailors are they prepare themselves for battle.
Alicante is a vibrant city
Alicante is located on Spain’s southeastern Costa Blanca and the capital of Alicante province. There are a number of gorgeous city beaches and just out of town there’s a seven-kilometre stretch of sand and blue water at Playa San Juan. There’s great nightlife as well – particularly in the old town. You can basically choose any of the old streets in the Barrio as a starting point and you’ll soon find a host of restaurants, tapas places and cocktail bars to choose from. Perched on top of Mount Benacantil stands one of Spain’s largest medieval fortresses, the Castle of Santa Bàrbara, providing a great view of Alicante including the Race Village.
Alicante averages 3,000 hours of sunshine a year
While October is one of the wetter months for Alicante, that’s still not very wet, and it rarely rains for long here. The average daytime temperature is 24C in October, but bring a jacket for the evening Race Village stroll as it cools off to 15C at night.
Over and above anything else the start of the 2017-18 edition of the race is not to be missed as it marks the beginning of nine months of storms, speed, life-changing stories, stunning imagery and nail-biting finishes in an epic journey around the world.
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