Valencia Sights

  1. Baños del Almirante

    Baños del Almirante are Arab-style baths, built in 1313, that functioned continuously as public bathing facilities until 1959. There's an excellent AV presentation with optional English commentary every half hour.

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  2. Cathedral

    The Cathedral is a microcosm of the city's architectural history: the Puerta del Palau on Plaza de la Virgen is Romanesque; the dome, tower and Puerta de los Apóstoles are Gothic; the presbytery and main entrance on Plaza de la Reina are baroque; and there are a couple of Renaissance chapels inside.

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  3. Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias

    The aesthetically stunning Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias occupies a massive 350,000-sq-metre swath of the old Turia riverbed. It's mostly the work of local architect Santiago Calatrava, designer of, among many other exciting creations around the world, the transportation terminal for the new World Trade Center site in New York.

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  4. Cripta de la Cárcel de San Vicente Mártir

    The Cripta de la Cárcel de San Vicente Mártir was reputedly used as a prison for the 4th-century martyr San Vicente. Although the crypt of this Visigoth chapel isn't particularly memorable in itself, it's well worth taking in the 25-minute multimedia show that presents Valencia's history and the saint's life and particularly gory death. Reserve by phone or at the Palacio del Marqués de Campo just opposite, and ask for a showing in English.

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  5. Hemisfèric

    The Hemisfèric is a planetarium, IMAX cinema and laser show in one, all with optional English commentary.

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  7. Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno (IVAM)

    Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno (IVAM), pronounced ' ee -bam', is currently in the throes of a major expansion. It houses an impressive permanent collection of 20th-century Spanish art and hosts excellent temporary exhibitions.

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  8. Jardín Botánico

    The Jardín Botánico, established in 1802, was Spain's first botanic garden. With mature trees and plants and an extensive cactus garden, it's a shady, tranquil place to relax.

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  9. Jardines del Real

    Reaching down to the riverbed are the Jardines del Real, usually called Los Viveros and a lovely spot for a stroll.

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  10. Lonja

    Pop into the 15th-century Gothic Lonja, an early Valencian commodity exchange, now a Unesco World Heritage site, with its striking colonnaded hall.

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  11. Mercado Central

    Set aside time to prowl the Mercado Central, Valencia's Modernista covered market, constructed in 1928, a swirl of smells, movement and colour and bright and perky after its recent €11 million remake.

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  13. Mercado de Colón

    The Mercado de Colón, also a market in its time and now occupied by boutiques and cafés, is a fine Modernista building.

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  14. Miguelete Bell Tower

    Left of the main portal of the Cathedral is the entrance to the Miguelete bell tower. Clamber up the 207 steps of its spiral staircase for great 360-degree city-and-skyline views.

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  15. Museo de Bellas Artes

    The Museo de Bellas Artes ranks among Spain's best, with works by El Greco, Goya, Velázquez, Murillo, Ribalta and artists such as Sorolla and Pinazo of the Valencian impressionist school.

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  16. Museo de Ciencias Naturales

    Within the Jardines del Real is the Museo de Ciencias Naturales.

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  17. Museo de Historia de Valencia

    The Museo de Historia de Valencia plots more than 2000 years of the city's history. Hands-on and with lots of film and video, it's great fun even if your Spanish isn't too hot. Ask to borrow the museum's informative folder in English.

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  19. Museo de las Ciencias Príncipe Felipe

    The Museo de las Ciencias Príncipe Felipe is an interactive science museum where each section has a pamphlet in English summarising its contents.

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  20. Museo de Prehistoria y de las Culturas de Valencia

    The Museo de Prehistoria y de las Culturas de Valencia, usually called La Beneficencia, has a wealth of finds from the Palaeolithic period, plus Roman and Iberian artefacts.

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  21. Museo del Patriarca

    The bijou Museo del Patriarca is particularly strong on Spanish and Flemish Renaissance painting, including canvases by El Greco, Juan de Juanes and Ribalta.

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  22. Museo Fallero

    During the festival of Las Fallas de San Jose'- a frenzy of fireworks, music, festive bonfires and all-night partying - huge sculptures of papier-ma^che' on wood, known as fallas , are built by teams of local artists. After midnight on the final day of the anarchy, each falla goes up in flames - backed by yet more fireworks. Each year one of theseis saved from the flames by popular vote. Those reprieved over the years are displayed in the Museo Fallero.

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  23. Museo Nacional de Cerámica

    The Museo Nacional de Cerámica displays ceramics from around the world - and especially of the renowned local production centres of Manises, Alcora and Paterna.

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  25. Museo Taurino

    The small Museo Taurino holds a collection of bullfighting memorabilia.

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  26. Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados

    Beside the cathedral is the church of Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados. Above the altar is a highly venerated statue of the Virgin, patron of the city.

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  27. Oceanogràfic

    The highlight of the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias complex, especially if you have young children, will probably be the Oceanogràfic. This watery world, in whose aquariums sloshes sufficient water to fill 15 Olympic-size swimming pools, has, among much else, polar zones, a dolphinarium, a Red Sea aquarium, a Mediterranean seascape - and a couple of underwater tunnels, one 70m long, where the fish, including sharks, giant eels and rays have the chance to gawp at visitors.

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  28. Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía

    The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía broods over the riverbed like a giant beetle, its shell shimmering with translucent mosaic tiles. With four auditoriums and seating for 4400, it's exceeded in capacity only by the Sydney Opera House.

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  29. Torres de Serranos

    Two imposing, twin-towered stone gates are all that remain of the old city walls. Once the main exit to Barcelona and the north, the well-preserved, 14th-century Torres de Serranos overlook the bed of the Río Turia.

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