driving 2 days from Baiona to Madrid

Unless you want to spend the entire 2 days driving, skip the northern route in favor of the Ourense route. There's a nice castle in Sanabria. With only 2 days, if you plan to see Salamanca and Segovia you need to take the most direct route possible. There's a nice parador (government run hotels) in Zamora. www.parador.es/en

For driving in Spain, I believe an International Driver's Permit is compulsory for each driver listed on the rental form. IDP's are easily obtained at any AAA/CAA office for a small fee and are using in conjunction with your home D.L.

This is a few years old, but provides an example - https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/transportation/you-do-need-an-idp-when-driving-in-spain-or-pay-250-euros

Wow, I would want 3+ days for this ...
1) via Ponferrada/Astorga to Leon
2) via Zamora to Salamanca
3) via Segovia to Madrid

Thank you for all of your tips and suggestions. What do you think about a 3-day trip from Baiona along the coast to Bilbao and then to spend the final night in Madrid? This would take a total of 13 hours driving, which is not bad if spread over 3 days.
Would it be better to travel instead from Baiona through Leon, Salamanca and Segovia? This will take a total of 9 hours driving over three days. We are interested in geography and culture...not too many castles and churches. Driving along the coast of Biscay and then into Basque country sounds interesting from my armchair in California.

Having just driven the northern route, I can tell you (strictly for reference) that from Santiago to Oviedo is a good 5 hours. Madrid to Zamora to Leon is 4 hours. My rule of thumb is to spend more time seeing things than driving so you can experience where you're going rather than just being there. If there is some place in particular you want to visit on the northern route and the time you spend there is worth the time it takes to get there, then take the northern route. I cut out going to see a castle on this trip because it was going to take an hour driving on mountain roads to get there, just for a 20 minutes visit. I still vote for Ourense-Leon-Salamanca-Segovia.

FYI, Santillana de Mar is small and is really only a few hour stop. Likewise, unless you're going to engage in some outdoor activity, the Picos de Europa and its Sanctuary de Covadonga is also a couple hour stop. The road to Picos de Europa is 2-lane, but winds through the hills. Once you get off the autopistas, driving anywhere takes longer, but you'll see more than you will from the autopistas.

A few places that were nice to see: Muxia, the rocks by the lighthouse; Cabo Ortegal, Zumaia, the rock formations unique this this part of the coast as well as the outcropping from the hermitage, cathedral beach a few miles west of Ribadeo. Best if you're there at low tide where you can walk on the beach and look up at the rock arches.

At this point it may help to check some of the places/towns along each route, then decide which is best for you.

I spent more than a month bouncing around northern Spain last summer, albeit by bus and train rather than rental car, so I don't have a good sense of the driving times along the way. But I think you need to consider not just the straight-shot driving time (use ViaMichelin and pad, because it's considered optimistic), but also navigating time to find parking within the towns and cities where you might stop, plus time actually at any sights. As you know, key sights are usually embedded deep in hard-to-access historic districts. There is so much to see on any path you might take that I would try to stick to one with shorter driving time. I find it frustrating to blow past places I wish I had time to see.

All that said, these are the areas I considered the most scenically dramatic:

• Picos de Europa (by a considerable margin; Potes would make a nice overnight stop)
• Basque country (this might add considerably to your driving time; I haven't checked)
• Galicia
• northern part of Castilla y Leon

I did not get to Benavente, Ourense, Zamora or Ponferrada but thought Leon was very appealing for its mix of historical architecture and lively restaurants and bars. Betanzos and Santillana del Mar are both attractive small towns, Santillana being far more touristy. I liked both Salamanca and Segovia, but I think it probably takes considerably longer to do Salamanca justice and would choose Segovia with limited time available. Astorga has an interesting-enough historic core and a Gaudi building.

I don't know when you're traveling. There are marked differences in expected temperatures and rainfall on and near the coast vs. farther inland. You might want to factor the weather into your equation.

Bilbao is a long drive for just the one night, when you consider there is so much to see along the way. And then you have the journey to Madrid.

Option A (better for architecture)
1. Drive via Ponferrada/Astorga to Leon
2. Drive via Zamora to Salamanca
3. Drive via Segovia to Madrid

Option B (better for scenery)
1. Drive via Lugo to Oviedo
2. Drive via Cantabrian Coast to Santillana del Mar
3. Drive to Bilbao
4. Train to Madrid

acraven -- thank you for your suggestions and insight! I will be in the Vigo area for 5 days mid-June (meetings during the day, touring in the evening). I plan to leave early on a Friday morning and need to be at an airport hotel Sunday night (monday morning flight). After all the feedback, I am now thinking of driving along the coast towards Bilbao/ San Sebastian. I do want to see the Picos de Europa; Salamanca was on my list because someone emphatically told me not to miss the cathedral. I would rather see Picos. Did you go to Picos through Leon or did you go along the coast? Maybe stopping in Burgos on the way to Madrid would be better. I really appreciate your help.

jaimeelsabio -- I would like to see Zumaia but that might be too much. I leave Vigo early Friday and need to be at an airport hotel in Madrid Sunday night. So I have 2 nights and 3 full days to travel. Thank you for your help!

When we went to the sanctuary of Covadonga last week we were coming from the direction of Oviedo on the A8, then got off onto the N-634 towards Cangas de Onis. In that town is a medieval bridge that's worth stopping g to see. At the sanctuary we parked right by the church to look around. From there we walked through a cave just past the street you take when leaving and it takes you to the small Hermitage built into the mountain. When leaving there, stick to the "N" (red sign, stands for nacional) roads because the "AS" (for Asturias) road winds through the mountains.

Figured Zumaia was too far for your time constraints, but threw it in anyway. Have a nice trip.

I had to take a bus tour to get to the Picos de Europa. It ran from Santander, but that's of no help to you. If you look at the maps on VuaMichelin.com, you'll find the especially scenic roads marked in green.

Burgos is a very attractive city with a good cathedral. Lots of young pilgrims so very lively. I suspect you wouldn't be able to roll into town and find a room.

Spain has a lot of really fabulous cathedrals. I'd say the ones you shouldn't miss are the ones along your route of travel.

If you really want to do Picos de Europa, you should plan your drive around that. I am planning a 2+ week trip to northern Spain. My original idea was to go to the Basque region, to Picos de Europa, and Galicia, with Segovia and Salamanca (and Leon and Burgos). There was too much to see! So, we chose the southern route...Salamanca, Leon, Galicia (3 stops, a full week) and Segovia on the way back. I cut Basque region because it was far away from Galicia. I cut Picos de Europa because we would be there mid-summer and that is high season. I don't like crowds. My kids are growing up and soon we will have more flexibility as to when we travel, so we're saving Picos de Europa. Your trip is before mine, so I won't be able to report back in time.

As far as routes go, I think if you really stick to the coast, it will be slow going. It's all about your priorities. Think about climate too -- how are you in hot temps? The coast will be cooler.

Picos de Europa sounds fabulous! This is now my primary destination. Could you please recommend a place to stay while driving there from Baiona? (Mieres de Camino, Oviedo, Pola de Siero, Langreo?)
I have two possible routes from Baiona: 1) north and along the coast will take 6.5 hours; 2) through Leon will take 7.5 hours. Ideally, I would like to drive 5 hours (with breaks to eat, brief sightseeing, etc) and then find a place to spend the night, so I can start for Picos in the morning. I'd like to spend the day in Picos, and maybe even spend the night, then make my way towards Madrid for a final night near the airport.

Can't help you with a place to stay in that area. I think you need to decide if you want to stay in a larger town, or a much smaller place. I think I would go with one of the smaller places, but I don't have any special insight. Good luck in your planning.

We tried to stay at Paradors most nights on our most recent trip. www.parador.es/en. There is one in Cangas de Onis only a few miles from Picos. We also stayed at Paradors in Villafranca de Bierzo, Leon, Ribadeo, and Santillana del Mar. In Burgos we stayed at the Abba Burgos. There's also a parador in Gijon, and another one close to Picos in Fuente de Potes. Other than the paradors in Santiago de Compostela and Hondarribia, all the paradors were less the $120 a night (that's including a buffet breakfast). You may want to check them out.

With the paradors, there's a discount for those over 55 and if you join their friend of the paradors program, you'll get a free beverage upon arrival.