To get a real sense of Valencia, spend at least three full days here. One in the old centre, among cathedrals, palaces and market squares. A second on art and architecture, from painted church vaults to Calatrava's buildings. A third by the sea, in a former fishing village that kept its character even after becoming part of a big city.
Splitting the city this way shows you how varied Valencia can be and helps you work out what you would like to explore in more depth. I also give the Spanish names of places so they are easy to find in Google Maps. If you have less than three days, shorter versions of the programme are at the end.
Day one. Valencia inside the city walls
Start at the Serranos Towers (Torres de Serranos). They were once part of a great city wall and the ceremonial entrance to Valencia, and the gates were shut at night. Today they are the natural way into historic Valencia: you leave the open space of the old Turia riverbed behind and step into medieval streets.
Calle Serranos brings you out onto the Plaza de la Virgen. The cathedral, the regional government palace and the Basilica of Our Lady of the Forsaken (Basílica de la Virgen de los Desamparados) all stand around it.
Step into the basilica to see the image of the city's patron saint. Her name may sound unusual, but for Valencians she is a close, almost family figure — they fondly call her “la Geperudeta”, the little hunchback, because of her characteristic bowed pose. Look up at the frescoes in the dome: they are the work of the celebrated Spanish painter Antonio Palomino.
The cathedral: the Holy Grail and Goya
Walk round the cathedral to the Plaza de la Reina, where the main entrance to Valencia Cathedral (Catedral de Valencia) is.
The cathedral surprises you with things you would hardly expect under one roof: a chalice venerated as the Holy Grail, paintings by Francisco Goya, the largest processional monstrance in the world and the relics of Saint Vincent the Martyr.
If you visit on your own, take the audio guide — it is included in the standard ticket and available in English. Allow about an hour and a half to see the cathedral and its museum without rushing.
We also go into the cathedral on my tour Valencia — first acquaintance. With me, as a licensed guide, you skip the queue and get a discount on the ticket.
Market square: two centuries of trading Valencia
From the cathedral head to the Plaza del Mercado. Here the Central Market (Mercado Central) and the Silk Exchange (Lonja de la Seda) face each other. Centuries separate them, but the pairing makes perfect sense: trade shaped Valencia's wealth and appearance for a very long time.
Start with the market while it is open — until 3 pm every day except Sunday. The building is a masterpiece of Modernisme, with ceramics, stained glass and soaring vaults. But it is a working market, so it is just as interesting to watch the produce and the shoppers: what they choose, what they ask the stallholders, what they leave with.
Half an hour among the stalls is about enough. If you like oysters, you can try them right there with a glass of dry cava. Look out for the local variety Les Perles de Valencia — the pearls of Valencia.
Then go into the Silk Exchange. After the bustle of the market, its main hall with tall twisted columns makes a particularly strong impression. It is as solemn as a church, although it was built for striking deals — this is how medieval Valencia displayed its commercial power.
Allow 30–40 minutes for the Exchange, and take the audio guide here too. It is one of the monuments I always recommend seeing inside. More about it in my article Four UNESCO treasures in Valencia.
City Hall square and the station with oranges
The route continues through the Plaza del Ayuntamiento to the North Station (Estación del Norte). Here the city changes scale: wide open spaces, imposing buildings and the architecture of the era when Valencia had already spilled beyond its walls.
Look for the oranges on the station's façade. They mattered enough to the city to decorate the building that greeted every arrival. Inside, notice the ceramics and mosaics — even if you are not catching a train, the hall is worth a look.
If the market and the station leave you wanting to understand Valencian Modernisme better, I have a separate walk devoted to it: Valencia and the masterpieces of Modernisme.
Day two. From painted vaults to Calatrava
The second day can go different ways. For adults, I suggest continuing with art in the centre and heading to the City of Arts and Sciences in the evening. With children, it makes sense to spend the whole day there.
The Church of San Nicolás
The entrance to the Church of San Nicolás (Iglesia de San Nicolás de Bari y San Pedro Mártir) is easy to miss among the houses of Calle Caballeros. That makes the inside all the more striking: overhead, a vast expanse of painting unfolds, with figures and clouds filling the vaults.
It is not easy to take it all in — there is so much detail. Every hour the church hosts an audiovisual show, The Light of San Nicolás (La Luz de San Nicolás): light projections and music guide your eye to particular parts of the paintings and change how you see the interior. For cultural visits the church is open every day except Monday.
You can visit San Nicolás with me too, skipping the queue and with a discount: we go there on the Valencia of three cultures tour.
A palace or an art museum?
After the church, choose whichever appeals to you more.
The Palace of the Marqués de Dos Aguas (Palacio del Marqués de Dos Aguas) houses the National Ceramics Museum (Museo Nacional de Cerámica). But the palace itself is reason enough to come. Its owners clearly wanted to impress their guests — you can see it in the alabaster portal and in the state rooms.
My guests are especially surprised by the porcelain room. Look at the furniture, then raise your eyes: even the birds on the curtain cornices are made of porcelain. Details like these show very clearly what counted as luxury in an aristocratic home. I write more about the palace and its collection in Museums inside Valencia's palaces.
If you would rather see paintings, go to the Museum of Fine Arts (Museo de Bellas Artes de Valencia). Here you can trace how Spanish art evolved, from medieval altarpieces with gold backgrounds to Sorolla's sun-drenched canvases. Look out for Velázquez's self-portrait and Rubens's Madonna and Child; the collection also includes Botticelli, Goya and El Greco.
Through the Turia park to the City of Arts and Sciences
In the afternoon head for the City of Arts and Sciences (Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias). From the centre you can walk there through the Turia park (Jardín del Turia), laid out in the former riverbed. After the catastrophic flood of 1957 the river was diverted south of the city, and its old bed gradually became a long green park.
The walk takes you under bridges that once joined the two banks. Now people cycle, run, walk their dogs and play sport beneath them. It is a good place to see everyday Valencia — especially in the evening, when locals come out to the park after work.
Depending on where you enter the park, allow an hour or more for the walk. Gradually, white futuristic buildings appear among the greenery — the work of architect Santiago Calatrava.
After the rich interiors of the centre, it is a relief to be in open space among large pools and unusual buildings. They look like the skeletons of unknown creatures one moment and a set for a film about the future the next. They are worth walking around from different sides: the outlines change, and reflections in the water complete the shapes. At L'Hemisfèric, the building and its reflection form a giant eye.
You need no ticket for this walk. Climb up to the Umbracle gallery, look at the opera house and stroll along the pools. If you want to know what is inside, read my detailed guide to the City of Arts and Sciences.
If you have children
With children, I would leave the churches and art collections for another trip and give this day to the City of Arts and Sciences. Choose between the aquarium (Oceanogràfic) and the Príncipe Felipe Science Museum (Museu de les Ciències Príncep Felip).
My favourite spot in the aquarium is the underwater tunnel, with sharks and rays gliding overhead. The jellyfish make a completely different impression: you can watch their slow movements in a lit tank for a long time.
In the Science Museum it is fun to try things together and work out how they function. A lot depends on the child's curiosity: one will linger over a single experiment, another will want to explore everything. More ideas for a family trip are in my article Valencia with kids: where to go and what to see.
Day three. Valencia by the sea
On the third day, head for the sea. Seaside Valencia has its own history: El Cabanyal was a separate fishing village for a long time, and you can still feel it in the scale of its streets and houses.
If you are here between June and September, take a swim at one of the city beaches — Cabanyal (Playa del Cabanyal) or Malvarrosa (Playa de la Malvarrosa). The wide strip of sand works for a couple of hours or most of the day. How the beaches differ and which to choose is covered in my article on beaches in and around Valencia.
In any season you can walk from the marina (Marina de València) along the seafront towards Patacona (Playa de la Patacona). Restaurants, cafés and a promenade line the shore. This is the part of the trip for a long lunch, coffee by the water and a walk without hurrying to catch another monument before it closes.
The folk Modernisme of El Cabanyal
From the seafront, be sure to turn into El Cabanyal. After palaces and cathedrals, here you look at small houses whose owners also wanted to live beautifully. The great architectural fashion of the day found its expression in coloured tiles, moulded flowers, patterns above the windows and decorated balconies.
The historic part of El Cabanyal is protected as a Bien de Interés Cultural, a site of cultural heritage. What is valued is the whole ensemble: the street layout, the low-rise buildings and the variety of façades.
Walk along Calle de la Reina, Calle de la Barraca and Calle de Escalante. It is especially fun to see how differently neighbouring houses are decorated: similar in size, they seem to compete in tile patterns and colour combinations.
The Sea Museum and gifts from the seaside quarter
You can continue exploring the area at the Sea Museum (Museu de la Mar) in the Casa dels Bous. The building's name refers to oxen, which were kept here for work on the shore, hauling boats and nets out of the water. Today these rooms tell the story of fishermen, maritime crafts and life in seaside Valencia. After walking around today's Cabanyal, the museum helps you imagine what it used to be like.
And at Calle de Escalante 185, drop into TROBAR Cabanyal for books about Valencia, decorative objects and work by independent makers. I included it in my selection of souvenir shops with local character.
What to see in Valencia if you have less time
With just one day, spend the first half in the historic centre: walk from Serranos to the cathedral, then to the market and the Silk Exchange. For a proper visit inside, choose either the cathedral or the Exchange.
In the second half of the day, go either to the City of Arts and Sciences or to the sea. The first gives you modern architecture, the second the seafront and El Cabanyal. I would pick one: otherwise much of what is left of the day goes on getting from place to place.
In two days you can get to know all three parts of the city. Give the first day to the historic centre, and start the second with a walk through the Turia park to the City of Arts and Sciences, then continue by the sea.
