Holiday in Valencia

About Valencia

Valencia, Spain's third-largest city, surprises as a perfect blend of avant-garde architecture, Mediterranean lifestyle, and culinary excellence. The Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias (City of Arts and Sciences) by Santiago Calatrava is a futuristic complex of white, shell-shaped buildings in the drained riverbed of the Turia: oceanarium, planetarium, science museum, and opera house form one of the most impressive modern architectural landscapes in Europe. The Barrio del Carmen in the old town is the vibrant counterpart: medieval alleys with street art, vintage shops, tapas bars, and flamenco bars. The Mercado Central, housed in an Art Nouveau building from 1928, is one of the largest fresh markets in Europe with over 1,000 stalls. Here, Valencians buy their ingredients for paella — because Valencia is the birthplace of this world-famous rice dish, traditionally prepared over orange wood fires outdoors. The Jardines del Turia, a nine-kilometer-long park in the former riverbed, are the green lung of the city — perfect for jogging, cycling, and picnicking. Las Fallas in March is one of the most spectacular festivals in Europe: huge papier-mâché figures (up to 30 meters high) are artistically constructed and burned on the night of March 19. The city beach Malvarrosa and the nearby Albufera lagoon with its rice fields and boat trips complete the picture of a city that combines sun, culture, and enjoyment as relaxed as hardly any other in Europe.