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Aviles is the oldest documented town in Asturias — its charter dates to 1085, when Alfonso VI of Leon granted it municipal privileges that recognised a settlement already centuries old — and for much of its history, it was the principal port of the Principality, shipping Asturian iron, cider, and emigrant families to the Americas from its ria (estuary) on the Bay of Biscay. The 20th century brought steel mills that dominated the local economy and heavily polluted the waterfront, but the 21st century has delivered an extraordinary reinvention: the Centro Niemeyer, a cultural complex designed by the legendary Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer — his only work in Spain — now rises on the former industrial waterfront in a composition of white concrete curves that has transformed Aviles from a fading industrial town into one of northern Spain's most architecturally exciting small cities.

The casco antiguo (old town) of Aviles is a remarkably intact medieval ensemble that rivals any in Asturias. The arcaded streets — Calle Galiana and Calle Rivero — are lined with buildings whose ground-floor columns create covered walkways that shelter shoppers and diners from the Cantabrian drizzle that is an accepted feature of Asturian life. The Romanesque church of San Nicolas de Bari, the Gothic Iglesia de los Padres Franciscanos, and the Baroque Palacio de Camposagrado create a timeline of architectural evolution within a few hundred metres of walking. The Plaza de Espana, framed by the imposing Ayuntamiento (town hall) and the 17th-century fountain, functions as the town's social heart — a place where the afternoon coffee stretches into the evening sidra and the night's culinary exploration.

Asturian cuisine is one of Spain's most robust and least internationally known regional kitchens, and Aviles is an excellent place to discover it. Fabada asturiana — a rich bean stew of white fabes, chorizo, morcilla (blood sausage), and lacón (cured pork shoulder) that is the region's signature dish — is served at tavernas throughout the old town with a generosity that defies modern portion conventions. Sidra (cider), poured in the traditional manner by the escanciador — held at arm's length above the head while the glass is positioned at the hip, the stream of cider aerated by the long pour — is the region's national drink, served in small measures and consumed fresh. The seafood from the Cantabrian coast is superb: percebes (gooseneck barnacles), spider crab, and the hake prepared a la sidra (in a cider sauce) that marries the sea and the orchard in a single plate.

The coastline surrounding Aviles offers some of Spain's most dramatic and least crowded beaches. The beach of Salinas, a few kilometres north, is a wide arc of golden sand backed by a promenade of Art Deco hotels and the Museo de Anclas — an outdoor collection of enormous ship anchors arranged as sculptural installations along the clifftop. The Asturian coast to the east — the Costa Verde — unfolds in a succession of fishing villages, cliff-top paths, and pocket beaches that rival the beauty of Galicia or Cantabria without the visitor numbers. Inland, the Picos de Europa mountains rise to over 2,600 metres within 50 kilometres of the coast, creating one of the most dramatic landscape transitions in Europe.

Aviles is visited by Ponant and Scenic Ocean Cruises on Bay of Biscay and Northern Spain itineraries, with ships docking at the ria port adjacent to the Centro Niemeyer. The most pleasant visiting season is June through September, with the shoulder months offering the mildest weather. Asturias is famously green — rain is part of the landscape's DNA — so waterproof layers are advisable year-round.