Hello, I am renting a car to visit Pueblos Blancos. We are picking up in Sevilla and driving to Arcos, Ronda, Zahara and Grazelema, not necessarily in that order. From Sevilla RS recommends AP-4 to A-371. Then to visit the villages it looks like we will be on A-382 and A-376 and then A-384 to Granada where we will return the car at the train station. Are "A" highways always tolls? What is the method of payment? If we need cash, how much and what denominations should we bring? Do we need an exact amount? If we can use credit cards, are the machines consistently "friendly"? (We ran into problematic toll machines in France) We will have a VISA, AMEX and Mastercard. Preference is to use the Visa. Does any particular card work better than others? Lastly, i think we will park in the first parking lot we see in each village. Anyone know if we will encounter meters or how does one generally pay for parking?
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7160 posts
A = autopista/interstate. The toll road would be AP = autopista de peaje/toll interstate. I don’t recall any pay road near the white villages. Those roads are small 2-lane, with plenty of curves. In northern Spain I used cash for the toll machines. They accepted credit cards, but I used cash. They accepted bills or coins and did give change. The pay machines at parking lots take coins and will dispense a ticket that you place in your window. There is usually only one or two pay machines pet lot; just look for it. In smaller towns there is generally some free parking.
Posted by
Sevilla
1305 posts
As indicated in the previous reply of those only the AP-4 is a toll motorway (and to be very pedantic, the others you mention are not motorways but regional roads, when there are 3 digits the A stands for Andalucia instead of autovia/autopista. Spain's road numbering system is ludicrously complicated). I guess the toll will be about €7, you can pay in cash. But the AP-4 only makes sense if your first stop is Arcos dlF, even then you can avoid it.
If people here don't make specific recommendations, it might be worth you googling about parking for each town rather than necessarily using the first car park you see. For example, in Ronda the first you see might be at the bottom of the town, so you'd have to walk up the steepish hill to where the main sights are; but there are car parks up top too such as one near the bullring which is very convenient. Or I think there is (was), some free parking by the railway station.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7160 posts
Additionally, the red N roads are the old national roads before there were interstates. All roads after those are pretty much rural roads. They have green, yellow, or orange/brown signs. They will begin with 2 letters that denote the region you’re in e.g., SE-Sevilla, CO- Córdoba, AL- Almeria and be followed by 3 or 4 digits. When you cross into a different region, the letters will change. A road with 4 digits is a little more rural than a road with 3 digits. All roads are fairly well maintained. I told about the letters because if you use a GPS, it may say Colorado, or Alabama, so don’t be surprised.
Posted by
OP
Twin Cities of MN
6485 posts
Great information! Thank you so much