Valencia

Introduction

Spain has always been a place that I want to visit, but had never gotten the chance to until now. I picked Valencia because I knew I wanted to tan near the beach, but also it seemed a little more lowkey than Madrid or Barcelona. I’m glad I went here, because it’s a cute town - not too big, not too small. Also, there’s a great food scene and a very relaxed vibe! I would go again if I could.

Navigating around the city is quite easy with your Maps app. The city center is incredibly walkable, and it’s well connected by public transportation. When you land at the airport, you’re able to find some ticket kiosks for the metro. I would recommend buying a SUMO 10-ticket pass, where each time is just one-way on the bus, metro, or tram. This made sense because I was there for a week and I wouldn’t use it enough for a unlimited 24/48/72 hour pass.

Overall, I highly recommend coming to Valencia and would encourage you to do the same!

*** bolded bullet points below are ones that are highly recommended (in my opinion).

Nature

What I really liked about Valencia was the diversity of nature. One end of the city is the beach, and the other end could be a park with a lot of trees so you could experience multiple aspects in the same day!

Jardi del Turia - This riverside park splits Valencia right down the middle (at least how I saw it). You can literally go from east to west on the whole stretch and walk for hours! Personally, I loved walking along any part. If I had more time, I would recommend doing a bike ride from one end to the other - I saw a lot of people doing this!
- Pont de les flors
- Pont de la Mar
Jardins del Real / Vivers
Jardí de Montfort

Malvarrosa Beach - The beachfront was hands down, one of my favorite areas of Valencia. The beachfront goes pretty far north-south and is huge! You can go to the surrounding beaches (Platja de Llevant & Platja del Cabanyal) too. The beach is beautiful here and I highly recommend coming and making a beach day for yourself!

food

Bar & Kitchen - Cute spot to get some lunch. The place was frequented by musicians. I got the bravas potatoes and the Valencian hummus, which were both good, particularly the potatoes. It was a hearty portion!
The Central Market of Valencia - The Central Market is a great place to get a sense of what Valencia has to offer. There's so many different stalls selling all sorts of things, and everything is priced quite reasonably. I probably went to the market every day while I was in Valencia and I could mix/match a lunch for <$10.
Escalons de la Llotja - This placed served superb tapas at great portions! I only wished I had a friend with me to try more things. I got the smoked sardine with basil oil & secreto with pork, both of which were really good.
Voltereta, Bienvenido a Bali - This place had such a tropical vibe and in the restaurant you really felt like you were transported to Bali (literally). I love the atmosphere here and it definitely felt kind of theraputic! I got the pear and cheese sachets, butter chicken, nasi goreng flower which was all super tasty and pretty filling for just me.
La Pepica - On the beachfront, I got the fried cod, fish paella, and coffee. All the dishes were good, but I had to wait ages to get the bill since they were super busy. But this was one of the only places that let me eat paella as a solo person (usually you need 2 people) but I had to eat from their set menu, which was 32 euros.

Attractions

La Lonja de la Seda
Church of Santa Caterina
Placa de la Reina
Sant Nicolau de Bari i Sant Pere Martir
El Micalet / Valencia Cathedral / Virgin Square
Torres de Serranos
Mercat de Colón
Museum of Fine Arts of Valencia - Really interesting to walk through while seeing all of the Spanish art. The musuem is a little small but it's free!
Quart Towers
CCCC (Centre del Carme Cultura Contemporània)

For the attractions below, I highly recommend visiting the area around these attractions! I didn't go into the attraction itself (like there's an art museum, an aquarium, etc. that costs money) but just walking around is very cool. This is because the architecture is pretty unique, and it's a good potential photo opp. It's worth just walking around here!