Overview to Valencia: Travel Guide and Tourist Information

  The Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias

In a country as full of remarkable cities as Spain, it’s something of an achievement to stand out. But Valencia genuinely does so. And yet, despite the sheer variety of its attractions, the city has somehow managed to stay under the radar for most backpackers in Spain.

Like it's neighbor, Barcelona, Valencia is an attractive mixture of grand apartments, broad boulevards and intriguingly rundown, narrow old streets. The city’s bustling market – the Mercat Central – can be found at the heart of the Old Town, as the Avenida de Maria Cristina runs north from the Plaza del Ajuntament.

A little to the north of the market lies the stunning 13th century Cathedral which gives on to the busy Plaza de la Reina. From the top of its bell-tower – El Miguelete – there are some truly spectacular panoramic views of Valencia, and even out to the countryside beyond.

However, the real attractions of this 14th century building are on the inside. In addition to a stunning interior, the cathedral museum offers one artifact in particular that will impress even the most disinterested sightseer (although its authenticity is of course hotly disputed)  – a chalice that the curators claim is the Holy Grail itself!

But the city couldn’t be further from just a dusty collection of old relics: to the north of the center, the district of Carme is just as fashionable as any part of neighboring Barcelona. The streets are lined with fashionable boutiques, art galleries, designer furniture stores and trendy cafés and bars.

And this chic theme is continued in the astonishing, ultramodern building (to the east of the center) of the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias. An ambitious and impressive complex, this ‘city within a city’ offers an arts center and a science museum as well as a planetarium and the 'ocean park' – Europe's largest aquarium.

The city is bursting with some top museums and galleries, such as the Museu de Belles Arts with work by El Greco and Goya among others. Out towards the Jardin Botanico, the IVAM is one of the preeminent museums of modern art in Spain while, a little south of the center, the National Ceramic Museum also stands out.

A couple of impressive old gates (riddled with pockmarks from the Napoleonic era) are now all that’s left of the historic walls. Since they're at opposite ends of the city, though, it's probably best to tie in the Torres de Serranos to the north with the Jardines del Turia.

Along with the Jardin Botanic (to the northwest), it's one of a series of pleasant parks and outdoor spaces. In this respect, too, Valencia is spoilt beyond belief: a little outside the city, the scruffy strips of sand of the Playa de la Malvarosa and Las Arenas stretch away - the perfect respite from the fullest day’s sightseeing.

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