Valencia, Spain Travel Blog
Valencia is the third-largest city in Spain after Madrid and Barcelona, with around 800,000 inhabitants in the city center. The total population is around 1.6 million people. I flew into Valencia airport, which is approximately 30 minutes from the city center. There is a metro in the airport, which is the most convenient way I found to get to the city. The cost is 4.80 euros. Alternatively, you could take a taxi or city bus. The only downside of the metro in Valencia, is it does not expand very far. For example, it does not go all the way to the beach. I stayed at the Primus Valencia Hotel and Spa, which is about 20 minutes outside of the city center. The closest metro station is Maritim-Serreria, which is a 20 minute walk or 5 minute bike ride. The city has bike racks located all over the city, which you can rent for the week. Simply go to the website or purchase at one of the locations that allow it. I used these quite a bit during my trip. It was great to pick up a bike by the hotel and bike around the city and drop it off at a different location. The cost of the city bike rental is 13 euros for the week, which is much cheapter than I found for other bike rental companies for just a day. The Primus Valencia Hotel was very nice, but unfortunately, I did not get to enjoy the spa. It has an outdoor pool that is free of charge and an indoor pool that you can only use if you pay to use the spa. The price of breakfast I thought was a little unreasonable as well. However, I really liked the location of the hotel. Since I went to Valencia during Fallas Festival in March, I wanted to be outside of the city center so I wouldn’t be woken up as much from all of the fireworks. The hotel was also very close to the City of Arts and Sciences, which was my favorite area in Valencia. Fallas Festival Every March Valencia gets ready to welcome the spring. The Fallas is a traditional celebration held in commemoration of Saint Joseph. From March 1stto 19th, every day at 2PM in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento near City Hall, fireworks go off as tons of people watch. On the night of March 15th, the installation of the fallas monuments takes place in order to have them finished by dawn on the 16th. On the morning of the 17th, the falleros and their commissions go to the Plaza to collect prizes after all of the structures have been judged by the jury. Every night from March 15thto 18th, the sky of Valencia is filled with an amazing firework display at midnight. People gather on Paseo de la Alameda to enjoy the show. On March 17thand 18this an Offering of Flowers parade. Finally, on March 19th, all of the sculptures go up in flames to end the festival. Day 1 On my first day, I wanted to walk around the city center and see the main highlights. I started at City Hall, where I watched the Fallas Festival fireworks at 2PM. It was crazy to watch a firework show during the day. The streets were extremely crowded. I loved the atmosphere of everyone chanting and playing music. You are able to access the balcony of City Hall to get a view of the city and go into the history museum with the building although I did not do either of these things. After taking a look at City Hall and the Central Post Office across the street, I walked to Patriarch Square. I then strolled through Jardins de la Glorieta. Valencia has several beautiful gardens, all of which are worth strolling through to avoid the city traffic. I then ate lunch near the Valencia Cathedral at a restaurant called the Mercat de la Reina. It served traditional paella, which is a very good rice dish. It is usually served with seafood or chicken. I did not go into the cathedral because the entrance cost is 8 euros, which I think is a little much to see the inside of a church. I walked toward the Templar Palace before taking a walk through The Royal Gardens and the Gardens of Turia on the way to Serranos Towers. What once used to be a riverbed is now a cultural and leisure center of Valencia. It is also one of the largest parks in Spain, spanning across an area of 9 kilometers. Serranos is one of the city’s remaining two gates, which was constructed around 1392. It was built as part of the historical city wall, protecting the city of Valencia, and was later used as a prison. You can access the tower and take a look at the Gothic interior and the excellent view of the city upstairs for only 2 euros. Next, I walked to the Quart towers which is a memento of the old city walls protecting Valencia, built in the Late Gothic style. Napoleon entered the city through this tower, that once served also as a prison. It was cool to see the bullet holes. Next, I headed toward the Central Market, but it had already closed for the day. It is one of the oldest still running markets in Europe. However, I realized that Columbus Market was still open, so I headed there instead. By each of the markets, there are a lot of shops and restaurants. This is where I bought my souvenirs and had dinner before heading back toward the hotel. On the way back, I biked through the gardens behind the City of Arts and Sciences, which is extremely pretty all lit up at night. Even late at night, it was still busy with groups of people setting off fireworks and mini parades going on. The party never seemed to stop. Day 2 In the morning I got on