For all you board members who think I act like miss-know-it-all (grin, smile, giggle), here is a legitimate question w/ which you can help me!! Last year I rented an automatic trans. car in Madrid, no problem. But this year I want to rent one in either Santiago or La Corunya, and I don't see automatics coming up on all the major car rental websites for those places. HELP! No, I don't want to drive from Madrid to La Coruna. And yes, I, rgf, with so many years of travel to Spain do NOT drive a manual and have no intention of learning now at my old age......

Try http://www.galinor.es
They list many car rental agencies in Vigo, Santiago, A'Corunna, Pontevedra, etc. An A/T may cost you a lot; but I am sure one of them will be able to find one for you. Last Spring, I went to an Avis location in Santander (on C/Nicolas Salmerón right next to the Hotel Alisas) looking for an A/T car. They said they could get one but the price was out of my range. I used buses for the most part (I was just 200m from the bus station).
P.S.
There's a daily Talgo that departs Madrid (Chamartin) around 13:15 arrives Santiago around 21:00. There's also an Hotel Tren.

[This message has been edited by Eddie (edited 02-19-2001).]

Eddie-- thanks for that. Would taking buses from La Corunya to Gijon and Oviedo make sense?? Those are the areas I want to drive to/visit... if I don't have a car, will I be able to see the cool Romanesque churches in the area, i wonder! Thanks all.

There is another possibility, there is a another big agency, ATESA which is related to the Citroen car maker (Galicia is a huge Citroen industrial car making area), I took a look into their site and they do have automatic chrysler neon!!!! for rental. They also have an office at the La Coruña airport. You can book through their site in http://www.atesa.es/info/en/indexen.htm

Thanks, nativo!! You guys are the experts. I drove a neon automatic last summer and it was just fine.

I must defer to Nativo's more current/expert knowledge. As for me: Some Spain car rental companies won't rent to people over a certain age; and I (70-years young) fall into that group - so I am pretty much forced to rely on public transportation. The only exception is if I book a 'Fly'n Drive' or a Spain Flexipass (3-days rail & 2-days car or something on that order) in advance. You might want to consider the latter for your Galicia-Asturias journey.

Eddie, that's really hideous that they won't rent to your age group!! You are probably safer than 90% of the folks on the road.

Thank you for your kind remarks: Yes, there are septugenarians, like myself, who drive very prudently; and there are others who are a menace on the roads.

As for Covadonga, site of the famous battle in AD 711 that began the Reconquista, I have not been there. It wasn't much of a battle. Most of the Moors who died were killed, not by Don Pelayo's troops, but in a landslide in the mountains. A continuing controversy: The people of Liébana still maintain that the Reconquista began there (in Cantabria) rather than Asturias and that Don Pelayo was from Cantabria. This was told to me during my two visits to the Monastery of Santo Toribio in year 2.000.
BTW http://www.Alsa.es
Alsa is a Motorcoach line that serves northern Spain (Irun - Gijon). Numerous local bus lines serve the villages from the Capitals. There are routes in the mountains that have no service during the winter months.

rgf: One other solution would only cost you an additional $600: Fly me over there. I can drive a stick, I know Galicia and Asturias like the back of my hand, and can get the time off work. Covandonga here we come!!! (been there twice, and know the roads... )

CaliBasco, sounds tempting!! If you were in NY state maybe you could teach me how to drive a standard and I could fly around those mountain roads like a pro!