According to Basque paper Diario Vasco, the Clasica San Sebastian will feature a 15km loop encompassing the city’s landmarks at the end of the race.

 Race organisers, Organizaciones Ciclistas Euskadi have added the ride through the streets to give the city more air-time on television and bring in tourists, but say that it will only come if the race is exciting.

"If a race is boring by many city you want to sell do not sell anything. You have to get it colorful, attractive and spectacular. From there I can sell and I can focus on the sights of San Sebastian," said local broadcaster Fernando Lopetegi.

The rest of the route remains the same as last year, with the riders heading to the west of San Sebastian. From there the will go on a loop that encompasses the Jaizkibel and Arkale climbs, with the first big selection being made with the tough Jaizkibel at 40km from the line. After the Arkale, the riders head back to San Sebastian to tackle the new loop.

This new finishing loop will bring the riders down the sea-front and, as they leave the beach, they will be taken up towards the Hotel San Sebastián. After the wider roads along the promenade, it will be a tight squeeze up here making it easier for a small group of riders to maintain a gap on the main peloton.

The climb along the Paseo del Faro starts of relatively easily, but there are four hairpin bends to negotiate before the riders tackle the almost 20 percent gradients at the top. There will be little time to admire the view over the bay as they come back off the headland and back into the city. There are still some tight turns to catch out the riders before they finish on the east side of the beach as before.

As said before, the Jaizkibel is the traditional crunch point but the Faro completely changes the complexion of the race as it adds in a later, tougher launchpad for attack.

The race takes place on August 2.