Taxi & private hire in Ávila

Ávila and Ávila y el Valle Amblés

The city of Ávila, with the Amblés valley below it, holds the hospital, the railway station, public offices and the tourism around the walls. It is where the northern half of the province comes for appointments and paperwork, and the starting point for most transfers to Madrid and Barajas.

From Ávila to Madrid and Barajas

From Ávila to Madrid the route is the AP-51 toll road to Villacastín and then the AP-6, which crosses the mountains through the Guadarrama tunnel and continues as the A-6; toll-free, the N-110 and the Alto del León pass. For Barajas the route skirts Madrid on the M-40 or M-50, and the conventional train via El Escorial stops in Madrid, not at the airport.

Around the province of Ávila

Gredos makes Ávila province work almost as two: getting from the Tiétar valley to the capital means crossing the mountains over the Pico pass or another Gredos crossing, on mountain roads. The most common internal trips are from the villages to the hospital and station in Ávila, and in the south, between valley villages where buses run only a few times a day.

Busiest times of year

• Santa Teresa fiestas (mid-October): Ávila celebrates its patron Saint Teresa around 15 October, with processions, events in the old town and many visitors from outside. There are traffic closures by the walls and it is best to set the pickup outside the walled area.
• Holy Week in Ávila (March or April): Holy Week processions fill the old town and the area around the walls, and coincide with holiday departures to the Tiétar valley. These are days of many transfers in both directions.
• Medieval Festival (early September): During the Medieval Festival the area inside the walls becomes a crowded market with closed streets. Driving into the old town on those days is difficult.
• Summer in Gredos and the Tiétar (June to September and long weekends): The Tiétar valley and the northern side of Gredos fill with summer residents and hikers from Madrid. Friday afternoons and Sundays concentrate the comings and goings with luggage.
• Snow on the passes (December to March): Snow and ice affect the Pico pass, the Gredos crossings and the Alto del León, and Ávila, at over a thousand metres, has very cold mornings. In winter, trips across the mountains need more margin.

Tip: If you are going to Ávila's old town, name the gate in the wall nearest your destination: traffic inside is restricted and drop-off happens at the entrance.