Valencia used to be an industrial city but underwent rapid development since the mid-90's, expanding both its tourism and cultural possibilities. Today, with all the restorations, the city is vibrant with great sites like the Towers of the medieval city, San Miguel de los Reyes and other monasteries. Valencia is visited by about 840 000 tourists every year.



If you are not sure where in Valencia to stay, the three most popular areas are the Beach, the city centre and the City of Arts and Sciences (CAS). The Beach or port area has a number of quality, and even some luxury, hotel accommodation. This is the best choice if you love sea views, or if you intend you are planning a mostly beach-based holiday. The area is peaceful but can be boring at times.

The centre will give you the best of all worlds if you are not planning a beach holiday. You can still, however, easily travel to and from the beach. This way, your holiday rental will be in the centre of things, and you will be able to explore Valencia without having to spend lots of time and money getting around. A disadvantage to take into account is that the city centre is noisy most of the time.

The City of Arts and Sciences has some great holiday accommodation. It is an upmarket area with chic skyscrapers and lush shopping. Keep in mind though that there isn't much else to do, and if you rent a holiday apartment here, you will not be too well connected to the rest of Valencia in terms of transport.

Once your holiday accommodation has been booked, look at some of the fabulous attractions Valencia has to offer. The Plaza del Mercado is a popular tourist attraction and hosts three interesting buildings. The Silk Market, hosts the Patrimony of the Humanity (UNESCO), 1 of the greatest examples of European civil gothic architecture. You will also find the baroque style Santos Juanes Church here as well as the colorful Central Market, which is built in beautiful modernist style.

The famous Serranos Towers are believed to be the biggest European Gothic city gateway, and were built towards the end of the fourteenth century by Pere Balaguer. The gateway was part of the Valencia's fortification at the time. They housed prison cells at first and acted as a 'triumphal arch' on a number of festive occasions.

The Fine Arts Museum San Pio V is located in a Baroque building that was recently renovated. It is well worth a visit as it truly is one of the best painting archives in all of Spain. Expect to see paintings of primitive Valencian painters, as well as works by El Greco, Murillo, Goya Velazquez, and a few archaeological pieces.

El Puerto y La Playa Valencia hosted the 32nd America's Cup international yacht race, in the summer of 2007. You can view this site and afterwards go for a long, luxurious walk by the promenade seafront.