After dreamy vanlife in the Pyrenees, we were really not sure if the North Coast of Spain could top it, but it sure has! Beautiful rugged coastlines, mountains protecting you from insane heat, and some of the most amazing park-ups which again were all free! We feel like we will be leaving our hearts in this part of the world because of how much we have loved it.

Initially we were planning a big adventure traveling all round the coast making it to Portugal but as you can see from the stats below, we didn’t make it very far because of the beauty of Asturias!

Nerdy stats:

• Start point/End point: Ribadesella, Asturias, Spain (out and back)
• Total kilometers: 511kms
• Total days: 24
• Nights at campsites: 0
• Nights at free spots: 24
• Money spent on day parking: 0 Euros
• Times asked to move on: 0 (woohoo!)

Things to do

Asturias has it all, from the quietest beaches perfect for surfing (bare in mind we went off season in September), to bustling cities, mountain hikes and spontaneous rally car road racing… You could never be bored here!

How much we spent

We did spend a little more than intended because there was an incredible vegan cafe in Gijon that we couldn’t help but go back to time and time again! But the food in the supermarkets is super super cheap and we managed yet again 0 euros spent on places to stay overnight. Everywhere was free!! It’s so unheard of in the UK so we are still in awe when we turn up at spots to confirm it is really free!

Driving a campervan or motorhome in Asturias

There is a motorway that runs the whole way across the coast of Asturias and it seemed each beach spot we went to was about 15 mins from the motorway. We only ever drove 30 mins per day to get from spot to spot so it was a dream to drive around! We only went to two spots in the mountain range but again they were absolutely fine to get to in a campervan or motorhome.

Would we go back?

Hell yes. The weather was dreamy, it is super affordable, and at times I felt like I was in Jurassic park because it gets a fair share of rain meaning everything is so luscious and green! The only downside I would say is that we didn’t find most people to be overly friendly. Bare in mind I am writing this a few days into our Ireland trip where the people are some of the friendliest I’ve ever met in my life so maybe my comparison point isn’t fair. But at times both me and George often felt a little invisible. (Apart from an amazing and welcoming dutch couple we met!)

Highlights

• The weather
• Amazing surf spots
• So many free park-ups
• Some of the cities had lots of vegan options

Lowlights

• Didn’t find the people overly friendly