Tour de France 2027: routes for the race start in UK revealed
Men’s race will see stages in England, Scotland, and Wales while the women’s race will head from Leeds to London
The Tour de France will hit all the capitals of Great Britain in 2027
Salvador Maniquiz / muratart / Mistervlad / Shutterstock
The UK-based stages of both the men’s and women’s 2027 Tour de France route have been revealed, with the races seeing three stages apiece in the UK before heading to France.
It is the first time both the men’s and women’s races will start outside of France in the same country.
The Grand Départ for the men’s race will take place in Edinburgh on July 2 seeing riders head across the border to Carlisle.
An English Keswick-Liverpool stage will follow on July 3, with a Welshpool-Cardiff stage crossing Wales from north-south on July 4 before the race heads to France.
It is the first time the race will go to Scotland and Wales, and Edinburgh is the most northerly start for the race in its history.
Race director Christian Prudhomme called Edinburgh “a magical city,” for the race to depart from during the route’s unveiling.
The women’s race will begin in Leeds on July 30, with the first stage seeing riders head to Manchester. A second stage through the Peak District to Sheffield will follow, with the final UK stage seeing riders head towards London.
Photos of the routes can be found below.
The full route for the race including its French stages are yet to be revealed, however the schedule for this year’s (2026) races have been announced.
While the Tour de France is known just as much for showing off the best of France’s idyllic landscapes alongside the race itself, it often begins abroad before heading into France.
Recent versions of the men’s race have begun in Italy (2024) and Denmark (2022), and the upcoming 2026 race will start in Barcelona.
The women’s version has also seen Grand Départs in the Netherlands (2024) and Switzerland (2026).
Foreign starting locations remain popular for race
It is the fifth time the men’s race has come to the UK, following English stages in 1974, 1994, 2007 and 2014.
The latter saw the race head to Yorkshire, where around five million people came out to cheer on riders, and the French media praised the enthusiasm of the UK crowds.
“What was most striking about the British Grand Départs was the popular success,” said Mr Prudhomme.
“In Liverpool, we're obviously expecting an extraordinarily large crowd…The Beatles don't know it, but their statues will be wearing four scarves in the colours of the Tour jerseys,” he added.
The men’s 2027 race benefits from starting on a Friday, allowing three back-to-back stages before a Monday rest day.
Such a model is only allowed once every four years under current rules, but allows for greater logistical flexibility and in this case, three UK-based stages.
The frequent foreign Grand Départs show no sign of letting up in the coming years.
“We have bids to host the Grand Départ… from Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, and Germany,” said Mr Prudhomme.
“We have meetings scheduled in the coming weeks at the Polish Embassy and the Estonian Embassy in Paris. The Netherlands is still in the running,” he added.
“They make the Tour more than ever the greatest cycling race in the world. Expanding the Tour's reach is something I don't mind,” he added.
However, “it's certainly not at odds with the fact, crucial for me, of going to our villages in France. I've always wanted us to have a 100% Corrèze equivalent, a 100% Dordogne equivalent, to go to the Cantal region.”
Although future bids do not require both the men’s and women’s race to leave from the same country, Mr Prudhomme said some applicants are now taking this into consideration and launching joint bids, as the women’s version becomes evermore popular.
