Car rental in Gijon for the Asturian coast, the Picos de Europa foothills and the pre-Romanesque churches around Oviedo (30 min).
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Sample prices for a 7-day rental. Final price, deposit and terms are confirmed on Localrent.
No-deposit options
About a third of cars in Spain come with no deposit hold at pickup - look for the "No deposit" badge.
Full insurance
Zero-excess cover available on most cars - nothing taken from the deposit if something happens.
Airport & city pickup
Desks at the airport and in the city centre.
Free cancellation
Cancel free on most bookings, often up to 48 hours before pickup.
Driving here mixes flat coast roads with twisty mountain runs inland. Pick by group size and how far you plan to go, not by looks.
Economy
Cheap to run and easy to park near San Lorenzo beach. Fine for two people staying in town.
Automatic
Easier on the climbs up to Covadonga and the Picos. Automatics are limited in Spain, so book early.
7-seater & van
For families or two couples sharing, with room for luggage on the longer drives west and east.
Luxury
A comfortable pick for the coast road. Deposits run higher on premium groups.
Gijon is the largest city on the Asturias coast, and you can manage the city itself without a car - the old centre of Cimadevilla, San Lorenzo beach and the seafront promenade are all walkable, and EMTUSA buses cover the rest. Walking is the best way to explore Cimadevilla, and its streets are traffic-restricted and camera-enforced.
The real value of car rental in Gijon is everything outside the city. One pickup puts the coast road and the mountain valleys on your own schedule instead of an ALSA bus timetable.
Payment and deposit
When you book you pay only a small upfront amount - usually 15-20% of the hire cost. The rest is settled at the desk on pickup. The deposit in most cases is fully refundable, and about a third of cars in Spain are handed over with no deposit at all - those are marked in the results. If you only have a debit card, pick a no-deposit rate or a cash-deposit option: nothing gets frozen on your card.
Most drives from Gijon are short and toll-free, since the A-8 runs east-west along the coast. From Gijon it is about 28 km to Oviedo, 62 km to Ribadesella, 80 km to Arriondas, 85 km to Cangas de Onis and 176 km to Santander.
Oviedo, the regional capital, is about 30 minutes away and buses between the two run every 15 minutes - so the car earns its keep more on the coast and in the mountains than on that hop. Read the Oviedo page before you go.
For the Picos de Europa, the drive takes roughly two hours from Gijon, on the A-8 then the N-625 or AS-114, with Cangas de Onis as the usual gateway. Closer to home, Candas is a small fishing town about 19 km from Gijon, and the dinosaur-coast beaches around Ribadesella sit along the same A-8 east. Santander and Cantabria are within reach for a longer day.
Quick checks at pickup
You do not need a car for Cimadevilla, and the old streets there are restricted and camera-controlled. Park in one of the nearby underground public car parks and walk in. Gijon is one Spanish city where the low-emission picture is less strict than most: in 2023 the city overturned the mandatory use of DGT environmental labels following a court ruling and a change of local government. A hire car picked up in Spain carries the DGT sticker anyway, so this is not something you need to act on - just be aware the rules here have moved around and may change again, so check current local signage.
The weather here is milder and wetter than the Mediterranean coast. Asturias gets plenty of rain and little sunshine by Spanish standards, with moderate seasons averaging in the low 20s Celsius, rare heatwaves and very mild winters. Summer (July and August) is the peak for the beaches and the busiest stretch for prices and for automatics and 7-seaters, so book a few weeks ahead. Spring and autumn are quieter and still good for driving. Winter is cheapest, and a car still works for the inland trips even when the beach season is over.
About two hours, taking the A-8 along the coast then the N-625 or AS-114 inland, with Cangas de Onis as the usual gateway.
An automatic makes the mountain climbs easier if you are not used to a manual on steep roads.
A credit card is not always required - it is needed to hold the security deposit. At pickup the supplier freezes the deposit amount on the card: the money is not charged and is released when you return the car undamaged.
Without a credit card you still have options: choose a cash-payment rate (the «Cash» filter option) or a no-deposit rate, and nothing is held.
The deposit is an amount the rental company holds as a guarantee for the car. Road fines or damage can be deducted from it.
If the car comes back without problems, the deposit is released in full. It is a temporary hold on your card, not a charge.
It depends on the car class and the supplier - you can see the exact amount on each car's card.
You can set a maximum deposit in the filter and the catalogue shows only matching offers. The lower you set it, the fewer cars remain.
Yes. To see cars with no deposit, use the «No deposit» filter option. There are also cars with a small deposit or cash payment.
Note that "no deposit" means no hold at pickup, not no booking payment - a small upfront amount is still taken when you book. If nothing suits, contact our support team.
The deposit is the amount frozen on your card at pickup and released when you return the car undamaged.
The excess is the part of any damage you pay yourself even with insurance - anything above it is covered by the insurer.
In practice, damage is taken from the deposit up to the excess, so the deposit is often set to match it. A full, zero-excess policy removes both: you do not pay for damage and the hold is usually waived.
Cover comes in levels:
You see the available rates on each car's card when booking.
If you would rather not depend on the deposit and excess, choose the full rate.
Yes, some cars can be paid in cash - use the «Cash» filter option.
You pay a small upfront amount by debit or credit card when booking (usually 15-20% of the total), and the rest in cash at pickup.
Yes, paying for the car with cryptocurrency is possible - contact our support team to arrange it.
The French border is a long way east across northern Spain, so a cross-border trip is a full day's drive. It must be agreed with the supplier in advance, with a possible small service fee and extra insurance.
To see cars allowed across the border, use the filter option or contact our support team. Do not cross the border undeclared.
Yes. In the search, set a pick-up and a drop-off point - for example collect in Gijon and return in Oviedo, Aviles or at the airport.
By default the car is returned to the same place you collected it.
Most are manual, as across Spain. Automatics cost more and sell out first, especially in summer, so book one early if you need it - it makes the drive up to Covadonga and the Picos easier.
You need a passport, a driving licence and the rental voucher - the voucher can be shown on your phone or tablet.
It states the final price with your chosen options and insurance, so the amount due at the desk will not change.
To hire through our rental companies you need at least 2 years of driving experience.
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