# A weekend in Ribadesella and Covadonga, an hour from Oviedo: cave art, beach and the Holy Cave Tito Bustillo cave art, the Guía chapel and Santa Marina in Ribadesella, and on Sunday the Holy Cave and the Cangas de Onís market. An hour from Oviedo. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/asturias/ribadesella/itineraries/two-nights-ribadesella-and-covadonga-from-oviedo · Revisado: 2026-11-12 Dónde: Ribadesella Ribadesella and Cangas de Onís are half an hour apart and complement each other: the sea, the indiano beach and cave art in one; Covadonga, the cheese market and the gateway to the Picos in the other. With two nights in Santa Marina, an hour from Oviedo and an hour and twenty from Santander, the weekend works out perfectly. ## How much does it cost? Allow €220–350 per person in a double: two nights at Villa Rosario, the starred dinner and Sunday lunch are what weigh most. The rock art centre costs €5.45, the surf lesson from €40 and Covadonga is free. To spend less, swap the starred meals for La Huertona in Ribadesella and El Molín de la Pedrera in Cangas. ## With children or in high season With children, the rock art centre has family workshops and the dinosaur footprints always work. In summer and at Easter, if you want to go up to the Lakes of Covadonga, you go up by bus from Cangas de Onís: leave the market for the way back and set off early. ## El plan ### Friday · 19:30 · Arrival in Santa Marina An hour from Oviedo along the A-8. Overnight at Hotel Villa Rosario, a mansion built by returned emigrants above the beach, open all year. ### Saturday · 10:00 · Tito Bustillo Rock Art Centre Across the bridge. An hour and a half with the story of the discovery and the great panel, €5.45. From March to October, try to book the cave. ### Saturday · 12:00 · Paseo de la Grúa and the Guía chapel The Mingote panels by the harbour and the climb to the 16th-century chapel. ### Saturday · 14:00 · Lunch at Güeyu-Mar Grilled fish on Vega beach, midday only; book ahead. On the way back, the Tereñes dinosaur footprints if the tide is low. ### Saturday · 17:30 · Surfing or a walk at Santa Marina A two-hour lesson with Surf Camp Ribadesella, from €40, depending on the tide; or the villas promenade to Punta el Pozu. ### Saturday · 21:00 · Dinner at Ayalga The Michelin-starred restaurant in the Villa Rosario mansion; book well ahead and confirm the hours. ### Sunday · 10:00 · Covadonga Half an hour to Cangas de Onís and 8 km further. The Holy Cave and the basilica, free, before the groups arrive. ### Sunday · 12:00 · Cangas de Onís market Cheeses and garden produce, and the bridge over the Sella. ### Sunday · 14:15 · Lunch at El Corral del Indianu and the drive back In Arriondas, on the way to the A-8: starred Asturian signature cooking, midday only on Sundays. In Oviedo by around 18:00. ## Consejos ### Book Ayalga and El Corral before the hotel They are the tables that fill up first. ### Check Saturday's tide Tereñes and surfing depend on it. ### Not in January The rock art centre closes for the whole month. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### Where is it better to sleep, in Ribadesella or Cangas? In Ribadesella if you want the beach and dinner by the sea; in Cangas de Onís if you are going up to the Lakes early. ### How long does it take from Oviedo? An hour to Ribadesella; from there to Cangas de Onís, half an hour. ### Is the Tito Bustillo cave open? From March to October. It is now closed until March 2027; the rock art centre does open. ### Can I go in winter? Yes, except January. Villa Rosario opens all year. ## Dónde dormir if you're driving - **Hotel Villa Rosario**: Sleeping in an indiano villa Villa Rosario is really three houses on the Santa Marina beach promenade. Villa Rosario I is the mansion, an early 20th-century indiano building on the seafront at Calle Dionisio Ruisánchez 6, with direct access to the promenade. Villa Rosario II is the modern building at number 3, in the second row just behind the mansion and about 30 metres from the beach, with large glass windows. And the Chalé Antiguo de Zabala, at number 26, is a colonial palace from 1915 that is rented out whole. Turismo Asturias lists it as a four-star hotel with 17 rooms and 34 beds, open all year, which is unusual on this beach. The rooms in the mansion The mansion has three types. The Economy rooms are the smallest, all with a double bed; some have no view or are reached only by stairs, and the hotel itself does not recommend them for long stays. The Executive Signature rooms are all different because of the building's architecture: they do not face the sea head-on, but may be attic rooms, with side views, a balcony or a terrace. There are six Unique Sea View rooms, with direct sea views; two have a terrace, and one has a door straight into the garden. All have a television, safe, telephone, minibar and free wifi. The modern building and the chalet Villa Rosario II has four types: Studio, with a bedroom and an attic lounge where extra beds fit; Ground floor, with direct access to the street, the only rooms that accept pets; Standard, on the first floor; and Attic rooms, on the second. They have air conditioning and heating. It is the most functional option. The Chalé Antiguo de Zabala is for groups or families who want the house to themselves: seven double rooms with bathroom, a lounge with a library, kitchen, dining room, wine cellar, an attic lounge with a cinema and a terrace over the sea, with the hotel's services. You book it by phone or email. Breakfast, parking and pets Breakfast is a buffet with à la carte dishes cooked to order. In the mansion it is included, except in the triple rooms, which pay €18 per person; in Villa Rosario II it is paid separately, at €18 per person. Parking is free: tell them when you book that you need it. Pets are only allowed in the ground-floor rooms of Villa Rosario II, at an extra charge, with prior notice, a vaccination card and a lead in the shared areas. What it offers The restaurant Ayalga, with a Michelin star, is in the mansion, and the hotel sells accommodation-and-dinner packages from €212. Turismo Asturias adds a café-bar, garden, meeting rooms and 24-hour room service. You book on its website, on 985 860 090 or at info@hotelvillarosario.com. Getting there and what is nearby Cross the bridge over the Sella and follow the Santa Marina promenade; the centre of the town is about ten minutes' walk away. In front of you are Santa Marina beach and its villas and the surf lessons; across the estuary, the Tito Bustillo cave and the Grúa walk. - **Hotel Ribadesella Playa**, desde 60 € / night: A 1905 villa on the sand The Ribadesella Playa occupies Villa Cochola, a mansion from 1905 that was the summer residence of the Marchioness of Argüelles. It is at Calle Ricardo Cangas, 3, directly on Santa Marina beach, on the promenade of indiano villas. It has operated as a hotel since 1988 and its website says it was completely refurbished in 2025. Turismo Asturias lists it as a three-star hotel, with 16 rooms and 31 beds. Rooms The website distinguishes eight room types: standard double, sea-view double, superior sea-view double, sea-view triple, standard double with sofa bed, single, superior double with sitting room and a family junior suite on the top floor, with sloping ceilings, for families or groups of friends. If you want to wake up looking at the Cantabrian Sea, choose one of the sea-view categories; the standard ones do not guarantee it. Turismo Asturias adds that the rooms have television, telephone and minibar, that the hotel has a garden, safe, heating, reception and cot service, and that public transport is less than 500 metres away. Breakfast, parking and services Breakfast is a buffet with Asturian produce: freshly made coffee, homemade pastries, local cheeses and cured meats, fruit and freshly squeezed orange juice. The hotel's website says it is included in the stay; the Turismo Asturias sheet gives it as extra at €8.90 per person, so confirm it in your rate when you book. There is free parking reserved for guests, and free wifi. The hotel also arranges taxis, at extra cost. Price and season Turismo Asturias gives indicative prices of €60 to €140 a night. The hotel closes from 1 November to 1 April. In winter, the Villa Rosario hotel, on the same promenade, stays open. Book on its website, on +34 985 86 07 15 or at info@hotelribadesellaplaya.com. What is nearby You leave the hotel and you are on Santa Marina beach and its villas, where the surf lessons also take place. Crossing the bridge over the Sella you reach the old town and the Grúa walk. The Tito Bustillo cave is on the other side of the estuary. For a special dinner, Ayalga, with a Michelin star, is on the same promenade. The hotel is also about 34 km from the Covadonga sanctuary and lakes, according to its website. ## Dónde dormir in style - **Hotel Villa Rosario**: Sleeping in an indiano villa Villa Rosario is really three houses on the Santa Marina beach promenade. Villa Rosario I is the mansion, an early 20th-century indiano building on the seafront at Calle Dionisio Ruisánchez 6, with direct access to the promenade. Villa Rosario II is the modern building at number 3, in the second row just behind the mansion and about 30 metres from the beach, with large glass windows. And the Chalé Antiguo de Zabala, at number 26, is a colonial palace from 1915 that is rented out whole. Turismo Asturias lists it as a four-star hotel with 17 rooms and 34 beds, open all year, which is unusual on this beach. The rooms in the mansion The mansion has three types. The Economy rooms are the smallest, all with a double bed; some have no view or are reached only by stairs, and the hotel itself does not recommend them for long stays. The Executive Signature rooms are all different because of the building's architecture: they do not face the sea head-on, but may be attic rooms, with side views, a balcony or a terrace. There are six Unique Sea View rooms, with direct sea views; two have a terrace, and one has a door straight into the garden. All have a television, safe, telephone, minibar and free wifi. The modern building and the chalet Villa Rosario II has four types: Studio, with a bedroom and an attic lounge where extra beds fit; Ground floor, with direct access to the street, the only rooms that accept pets; Standard, on the first floor; and Attic rooms, on the second. They have air conditioning and heating. It is the most functional option. The Chalé Antiguo de Zabala is for groups or families who want the house to themselves: seven double rooms with bathroom, a lounge with a library, kitchen, dining room, wine cellar, an attic lounge with a cinema and a terrace over the sea, with the hotel's services. You book it by phone or email. Breakfast, parking and pets Breakfast is a buffet with à la carte dishes cooked to order. In the mansion it is included, except in the triple rooms, which pay €18 per person; in Villa Rosario II it is paid separately, at €18 per person. Parking is free: tell them when you book that you need it. Pets are only allowed in the ground-floor rooms of Villa Rosario II, at an extra charge, with prior notice, a vaccination card and a lead in the shared areas. What it offers The restaurant Ayalga, with a Michelin star, is in the mansion, and the hotel sells accommodation-and-dinner packages from €212. Turismo Asturias adds a café-bar, garden, meeting rooms and 24-hour room service. You book on its website, on 985 860 090 or at info@hotelvillarosario.com. Getting there and what is nearby Cross the bridge over the Sella and follow the Santa Marina promenade; the centre of the town is about ten minutes' walk away. In front of you are Santa Marina beach and its villas and the surf lessons; across the estuary, the Tito Bustillo cave and the Grúa walk. - **Hotel Ribadesella Playa**, desde 60 € / night: A 1905 villa on the sand The Ribadesella Playa occupies Villa Cochola, a mansion from 1905 that was the summer residence of the Marchioness of Argüelles. It is at Calle Ricardo Cangas, 3, directly on Santa Marina beach, on the promenade of indiano villas. It has operated as a hotel since 1988 and its website says it was completely refurbished in 2025. Turismo Asturias lists it as a three-star hotel, with 16 rooms and 31 beds. Rooms The website distinguishes eight room types: standard double, sea-view double, superior sea-view double, sea-view triple, standard double with sofa bed, single, superior double with sitting room and a family junior suite on the top floor, with sloping ceilings, for families or groups of friends. If you want to wake up looking at the Cantabrian Sea, choose one of the sea-view categories; the standard ones do not guarantee it. Turismo Asturias adds that the rooms have television, telephone and minibar, that the hotel has a garden, safe, heating, reception and cot service, and that public transport is less than 500 metres away. Breakfast, parking and services Breakfast is a buffet with Asturian produce: freshly made coffee, homemade pastries, local cheeses and cured meats, fruit and freshly squeezed orange juice. The hotel's website says it is included in the stay; the Turismo Asturias sheet gives it as extra at €8.90 per person, so confirm it in your rate when you book. There is free parking reserved for guests, and free wifi. The hotel also arranges taxis, at extra cost. Price and season Turismo Asturias gives indicative prices of €60 to €140 a night. The hotel closes from 1 November to 1 April. In winter, the Villa Rosario hotel, on the same promenade, stays open. Book on its website, on +34 985 86 07 15 or at info@hotelribadesellaplaya.com. What is nearby You leave the hotel and you are on Santa Marina beach and its villas, where the surf lessons also take place. Crossing the bridge over the Sella you reach the old town and the Grúa walk. The Tito Bustillo cave is on the other side of the estuary. For a special dinner, Ayalga, with a Michelin star, is on the same promenade. The hotel is also about 34 km from the Covadonga sanctuary and lakes, according to its website.