Oviedo travel guide
Pre-Romanesque chapels, cider halls and the first road to Santiago
The capital of Asturias, with a walkable old town, UNESCO-listed ninth-century churches and a serious cider culture. June to September is warmest and driest; two or three days is enough. Spain follows Schengen rules, so many passports get 90 days without a visa.
Oviedo is the capital of Asturias, a green and rainy corner of northern Spain about 25 km inland from the Bay of Biscay. Visitors come for a compact medieval core around the cathedral of San Salvador, for the ninth-century pre-Romanesque churches on the slopes of Monte Naranco, and for cider poured from shoulder height in the bars of Calle Gascona.
Its story is unusual. The Moors never ruled this far north, and in the ninth century the small Christian kingdom of Asturias was governed from here. King Alfonso II made the first pilgrimage to the newly found tomb of St James, and the Camino Primitivo, the oldest route to Santiago, still starts at the cathedral door.
The old town is tidy and largely pedestrian. Cobbled plazas run south from the cathedral past the Fontán market, and bronze statues stand on street corners, including a life-size Woody Allen. Each October the Teatro Campoamor hosts the Princess of Asturias Awards ceremony.
Two days covers the city itself; add a third for a day on the coast or in the mountains. Summer highs barely pass 24C, which makes it a cool escape when the south of Spain is baking.
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Top things to do in Oviedo
A cathedral with royal relics, two UNESCO chapels on the hill above town, and a cider street to finish the day.
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Best time to visit Oviedo
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Highs of 21-24°C and the lowest rainfall, July averaging only 44 mm; ideal for Naranco and the coast.
Mild days of 16-19°C but frequent showers; the San Mateo fiestas end in late September and the awards follow in October.
Cool and damp, with November the wettest month at about 134 mm; good for cider houses and museums.
The Fiestas de San Mateo fill the old town with concerts and stalls in the week around 21 September; book rooms early for those dates.
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Getting there
ALSA airport bus and the Pajares line
Asturias Airport (OVD) is on the coast near Avilés, about 40 km north of Oviedo. ALSA runs a regular bus through the day that stops at Avilés, Oviedo and Gijón, ending at the Oviedo bus station on Calle Pepe Cosmen. Many travellers fly into Madrid instead, which has far more routes and a direct ALSA coach. Since the Pajares high-speed tunnels opened in late 2023, trains from Madrid Chamartín arrive in a little over three hours via Valladolid and León. The railway and bus stations are 300 m apart at the north-west end of Calle Uría, a ten-minute walk from the old town.
- ALSA airport bus
- Regular service to the Oviedo bus station
- Train from Madrid
- A little over 3 hours from Chamartín
- Coach from Madrid
- ALSA, about 6 hours via León
- Cercanías
- Every 30-60 minutes from Gijón, Avilés and the valleys
- If you need to leave bags, ask at the bus station 300 m from the railway station about luggage lockers.
Where to stay
Casco Antiguo, Uría and the stations
Oviedo is small enough that any central base works. The Casco Antiguo is the most atmospheric, while the streets around Calle Uría and the Campo de San Francisco are flatter and quieter. Hotels by the stations save time if you are arriving late or leaving early.
- Casco Antiguo
- Cobbles, cathedral views, bar noise on weekends
- Calle Uría and San Francisco
- Shopping street and park, quieter nights
- Station area
- Handy for trains and the airport bus, some traffic noise
- Pick a room near Gascona only if you plan to join the cider crowd.
Getting around
On foot and TUA buses up Naranco
The historic centre is traffic-restricted and best walked; most sights lie within 15 minutes of each other. For anything further, the city's TUA buses run around 30 lines, with real-time displays at stops and discounted multi-trip tickets. The pre-Romanesque churches on Monte Naranco are about 3 km uphill from the centre: a bus there and a walk back down saves effort.
- TUA buses
- About 30 lines, real-time info at stops
- Walking
- Cathedral to Fontán market in about five minutes
- Taxi
- Ranks at the bus station and central plazas
Know before you go
What makes Oviedo worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The Cámara Santa, the cathedral's ninth-century relic chapel tucked behind a plain Gothic nave.
- Santa María del Naranco, a royal hall from the 840s on the hillside above the city.
- Watching a cider pourer on Gascona hold the bottle high above the glass.
- The Fontán market and the arcaded square around it on a Saturday morning.
Good to know
- Bring a rain jacket in any month; October to March are the wettest.
- The cathedral may close at lunch; check its visiting hours before you go.
- Naranco is a climb; take the bus up and walk down.
- Real Oviedo home games fill the streets west of the centre.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Oviedo, month by month
Oviedo's August peaks at a mild 24°C, and January sits at 12°C by day. November brings the most rain, about 134 mm.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Oviedo, altitude (Agencia Estatal de Meteorología, via Wikipedia).
Cathedral morning, Naranco afternoon, Gascona night
Two days cover Oviedo. Day one is the cathedral of San Salvador and its Cámara Santa, the Museum of Fine Arts, the old town and a cider dinner on Calle Gascona; day two takes you up Monte Naranco to the ninth-century royal buildings and back to Santullano and the Archaeological Museum.
Day one. Start at the cathedral of San Salvador as soon as it opens; check the morning hours on its website. Continue to the cloister and the Cámara Santa, the relic chapel built under Alfonso II. Next door, the free Museum of Fine Arts fills an hour before lunch. In the afternoon wander south through the Casco Antiguo to Plaza de la Constitución and the Fontán market, then cut across to the Campo de San Francisco park.
Day two. Take a bus up Monte Naranco to Santa María del Naranco and San Miguel de Lillo, two ninth-century royal buildings. Walk back down, then visit San Julián de los Prados (Santullano), the largest surviving pre-Romanesque church. Finish at the Archaeological Museum of Asturias on San Vicente, then catch a performance at Teatro Campoamor if one is on.
Fabada, Cachopo and Escanciada Cider on Calle Gascona
Order fabada asturiana, the bean stew with chorizo, morcilla and pork, and a bottle of sidra poured from height in a sidrería on Calle Gascona. Asturian cooking is hearty mountain food: share a cachopo, try cabrales and gamoneu cheeses, and finish with arroz con leche.
Fabada uses large white beans. Cachopo, two veal fillets stuffed with ham and cheese, breaded and fried, is sized for sharing. The region also makes strong cheeses; try sharp blue cabrales, smoky gamoneu and the cone-shaped afuega'l pitu.
Drink sidra. Natural Asturian cider is flat and sharp, and waiters pour it from above their heads into a wide glass to aerate it (the escanciado). You get a small splash, drink it at once and leave the dregs. Bars signed Sidrería or Chigre specialise in it; Gascona runs north from the cathedral.
From Oviedo to the Picos, Gijón and the Camino Primitivo
Use Oviedo as a hub for central Asturias. Gijón's beach is 30 minutes away by Cercanías, Avilés has an arcaded old town, Cangas de Onís and Covadonga lead into the Picos de Europa, and the Camino Primitivo starts at the cathedral. Plan coastal days for July to September.
Gijón, on the coast, is about 30 minutes by Cercanías and has a long town beach and the Cimadevilla fishing quarter.
East of the city lie the Picos de Europa. Cangas de Onís, with its humpbacked Roman-style bridge, and the shrine of Covadonga in its mountain gorge are the usual targets; buses run from Oviedo, but a car lets you continue to the Lakes of Covadonga in summer.
Walkers can follow the Camino Primitivo west from the cathedral towards Lugo and Santiago de Compostela; for a sample, the first stage to Grado is a full day. Longer rail trips take you south over the Pajares pass to León, or east towards Santander and Bilbao.
Plan coastal days for July to September, when highs reach 23-24°C and rain falls to its lowest; the mountains are often in cloud from November.
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How we research our Oviedo travel guide
Oviedo's pre-Romanesque churches and transport are verified with the official Oviedo website, Spain.info and Renfe.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Oviedo.
Getting there
A regular ALSA bus runs from the terminal to the Oviedo bus station; check the current timetable on the ALSA website. The airport is about 40 km away near Avilés; taxis wait outside.
It is about 3 km uphill from the centre on Monte Naranco. Take a city bus up and walk back down, visiting San Miguel de Lillo nearby.
Easily. Cercanías trains and frequent buses take about half an hour to reach the coast at Gijón.
Timing & weather
A little over three hours from Madrid Chamartín, via Valladolid and León, since the Pajares tunnels opened in 2023.
In the week around 21 September, with concerts, stalls and events in the old town.
July, with about 44 mm on average. November is the wettest at about 134 mm.
The best time to visit Oviedo is Jun to Sep. Highs of 21-24°C and the year's lowest rainfall, at 44-66 mm a month.
- Summer: June - September (Highs of 21-24°C and the lowest rainfall, July averaging only 44 mm; ideal for Naranco and the coast)
- Shoulder: April - May, October (Mild days of 16-19°C but frequent showers; the San Mateo fiestas end in late September and the awards follow in October)
- Winter: November - March (Cool and damp, with November the wettest month at about 134 mm; good for cider houses and museums)
August is the warmest month in Oviedo, with average highs of 24°C, and January the coolest, with lows of 5°C. November is the wettest month, at about 134 mm of rain; July is the driest. Oviedo's August peaks at a mild 24°C, and January sits at 12°C by day.
General
A ninth-century chapel holding relics and treasures linked to the Asturian kings. It is reached through the cathedral; check its visiting days and hours before you go.
Calle Gascona, running north from the cathedral, is lined with sidrerías where waiters pour natural cider from above their heads.
Yes. The oldest pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela begins at the cathedral of San Salvador and heads west through the Asturian mountains towards Lugo.
On Calle Milicias Nacionales, near the corner of the Campo de San Francisco park.
The historic centre is traffic-restricted and best walked; most sights lie within 15 minutes of each other. For anything further, the city's TUA buses run around 30 lines, with real-time displays at stops and discounted multi-trip tickets. The pre-Romanesque churches on Monte Naranco are about 3 km uphill from the centre: a bus there and a walk back down saves effort.
Visa & documents
Spain follows Schengen entry rules. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Pickpocketing in the big cities is Spain's main crime risk for visitors. Pickpocketing is common in Barcelona and Madrid, especially on the metro and in tourist areas. Heatwaves and wildfires occur in summer.
