Renting a Car in Spain: All You Need to Know

Planning a trip to Spain and thinking about renting a car?

You’re in the right place. I’ve just spent another amazing trip driving through this beautiful country, and in this guide, I’ll tell you everything you need to know about renting a car and driving in Spain — straight from my own experience.

Driving License Requirements for Spain

Let’s jump straight into the first subject: driving licenses.

If you’re from Europe or the UK, you’re good to go—just make sure your license is valid, of course.

Now, if you’re from outside of Europe—like from Australia or the US—you’ll need to get an IDP (International Driving Permit). With that and your regular driver’s license, you’re also good to go. Usually, the IDP costs around $50 and lasts for one year.

Here’s the thing, though: some rental companies might give you the car even without an IDP. But—and this is a big but—in case of any problem, the insurance may not pay out.

And if the police stop you? Good luck with that, because they’re going to fine you.

Feeling great? Probably not. So stay above board and get the permit.

Where to Rent a Car in Spain

My biggest suggestion here is to never rent once you’re already in Spain—rent well in advance. The sooner, the better. I usually book as soon as I decide to actually come to the country, and by doing that, I get the best prices. Usually, you can cancel the booking anyway up to 24 hours before pickup time, which is great.

I typically use an aggregator website called DiscoverCars. I use this one because they work like an “Airbnb of cars”—all the car rental companies are ranked based on actual user feedback. I always have doubts about Google Maps reviews.

This is fantastic because you can see if a rental company is a bit scummy or if they’re serious operators. And it doesn’t matter if they’re international brands or local operators. Believe you me, there are good and bad providers in every country.

Pro tip: Organise full insurance. Just do it. Parking is very, very narrow here in Spain, and the streets can be really narrow too. It’s so easy to scratch your car, and once you take it back, they can charge you €200-300 for a small dent or scratch. That’s not how you want to finish your holiday in Spain.

I usually organise full insurance for just €7-8 per day directly on DiscoverCars—which is a bargain, to be honest. Perfect for a “no worries” experience.

Watch Out for Scams When Renting a Car in Spain

There are a few car rental scams in Spain you should be aware of. Here are the two major ones to watch out for:

1. The Insurance Upsell (The Big One)

As I said earlier, you can do full insurance through the aggregator website for about €7-8 per day. Great price, peace of mind. But here’s the scam: once you pick up the car, they’ll tell you that insurance “hasn’t been designed for Spain” and they can offer you a “better” insurance that costs three to six times as much.

Now, I’m not really sure what that means. To me, it just means they’re going to charge you three to six times as much. The only difference I can see is that with their insurance, if you have damage and return the car, they won’t charge you anything.

Meanwhile, with the website insurance, they’ll charge you everything upfront, and then you have to claim it back.

It happened to me in the past—I damaged the car for over €4,000, and it took about 4 weeks to get refunded. So yes, it takes a little bit, but it’s not too bad because I got the money back at the end of the day.

My advice? Stick with the online insurance and don’t fall for the upsell. On a 10-day rent, they may charge you €500 more than if you buy the insurance in advance.

2. The Fuel Policy Trap

Some companies have a “full to empty” policy. You get the car with a full tank and have to give it back with an empty tank, which is honestly impossible.

The petrol left when you return the car stays with the rental company. Admittedly, it’s usually only a few euros, so it’s not a massive scam, but still annoying.

Types of Roads in Spain

Spain has all sorts of roads, like any other country—you can go from highways to small country lanes.

One crucial suggestion: Don’t venture into historical centres. The streets get really narrow, and it’s so easy to scratch your car. Parking is almost impossible.

For example, I’m currently in the historical centre of Estepona, where most of the old town is actually only for residents. But even if you could venture in with a car, don’t do it—it’s going to be hard to move around and impossible to get out.

Important: do not enter the “Zona Verde”. These are usually the historical centres where access is exclusive to the local residents.

Speed Limits in Spain

Usually, you have three main speed limits:

• 120 km/h – Highways (autopistas)
• 90-100 km/h – Main roads or secondary roads
• 50 km/h – Towns and cities

But—and this is important—there are exceptions to the rules. For example, I experienced a small town where the speed limit was 20 km/h. Then on the main road it was 90 km/h, but some parts were only 60 km/h, and other parts were 40 km/h. I know, confusing.

My suggestion? Really check all the speed limits whenever you drive, because there are police checks, and you don’t want to be fined in Spain—it can be quite expensive.

If you do get fined: Pay straight away. If you leave the ticket to the rental company to handle, they’ll charge you the cost of the fine plus an admin fee. Not worth it.

Driving Culture in Spain

Well, it depends where you are, of course.

In big cities, Spanish people are a little bit stressed, like anywhere in the world, it must be said. But once you’re out of the cities, things get much easier, and people are more chilled out. Which is great, because that’s what you want—you don’t want to be stressed when you’re driving.

I’m currently on a road trip in Andalucia, and honestly, it’s a breeze to drive around. Even when I rented the car in Malaga, which is a big city, and I drove into the city, honestly, I found it to be quite manageable.

Parking in Spain

There are three types of parking lines:

Blue lines are the areas where you have to pay. Usually, they charge around €1-1.50 per hour. You’ll find columns where you can pay with a credit card or cash, or you can use one of the many parking apps.

I like Easy Parking because you can easily find parking around you, pay for it, and you only pay for what you need—no more, no less.

Important: Never park on yellow lines. You will very likely be fined in about 10-15 minutes. There are lots of checks around. Look instead for proper parking.

Petrol Stations in Spain

Petrol stations are plentiful here. Repsol is one of the major providers in Spain, but there are many others.

The cost of petrol is similar to most of Europe, which means it’s expensive if you’re coming from the US or Australia.

One interesting thing I found: They charge you €1 to inflate your tyres! This is the first thing I usually check when I rent a car, so factor that in. Not a game changer, but certainly annoying.

Seat Belts and Child Safety

Seat belts are compulsory—both in the front and in the back seats as well. Same as all of Europe.

Travelling with children?

Bear in mind that if your child is older than 12 years old OR taller than 135 cm, you don’t need a child seat. Otherwise, you need a child seat—which could be just a booster if they’re, say, 8 years old and below 135 cm, or other kinds of seats for younger kids.

Attention! Rules may change at any time. Check out the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) for the most up-to-date information

The rental cost for a child seat is between 4 and 7 Euros/day.

Navigation in Spain

My suggestion?

Use Google Maps. Just be aware that sometimes you’re going to lose signal—both the data signal and the GPS signal. So download the maps offline on your mobile for the areas where you’re going to visit.

Is it worth taking the GPS system from the rental car? Probably not.

Main reason: most of the time, it’s not updated, and anyway, you won’t have live traffic conditions. Your phone is better.

Petty Crime Prevention

Unfortunately, petty crime can happen, so I highly suggest: Never leave anything visible in the car.

Not even an empty bag, because thieves may break into the car. Then you’ll have to report it to the police, you may have to pay the rental company for damage—it’s time-consuming and money-consuming.

If you must leave something in the car: Place it in the boot/trunk, but make sure it’s not visible from the outside. In saying that, I would not do it in major cities like Barcelona or Madrid.

Renting a Car vs. Public Transportation: Which Is Better?

So, is it better to rent a car or take public transportation?

My view: If you plan just to visit the major destinations—like Barcelona, Madrid, maybe Valencia or Seville—then probably a train would work better. You move from city to city, it’s easy-going, and you won’t have any trouble with parking.

But if you want to go a little bit off the beaten path—like visiting Barbate, one of the southernmost towns of Andalucia, completely off the beaten path—then you need a car. If you take the bus or public transportation, it will take a ton of time.

It must be said that public transportation is usually a cheaper experience than renting a car; however, if you’re travelling as a group or as a family, it’s probably going to be cheaper to hire a vehicle than taking public transportation.

You want to rent a car if:

• You want to be flexible with your trip
• You want to stop along the route, not just go from destination to destination
• You want to experience the best of Spain in off-the-beaten-path towns

Whenever you see a nice Spanish town, just have a stop, have some food or drinks—that’s how you’re going to experience the real Spain.

Overall, I prefer to rent a car whenever I come to Spain because I want to experience things that aren’t just the major destinations.

Quick Checklist Before You Go

• [ ] Valid driving license (and IDP if required)
• [ ] Book a rental car in advance (not when you arrive)
• [ ] Organise full insurance online (€7-8/day)
• [ ] Download offline maps
• [ ] Check if you need child seats
• [ ] Budget for fuel (€1.50-1.80/litre)
• [ ] Never leave valuables visible in the car