Valencia

Overview

Valencian paella starts with rabbit, chicken, garrofó (a flat white bean), bachoqueta (a flat green bean), tomato, paprika, saffron, sometimes snails, and never, on pain of grandmothers, chorizo. Paella mixta with seafood and meat is a tourist invention; the Valencian version is a rice dish from the rice-growing fields around the Albufera lagoon south of the city, cooked over orange-wood coals on a wide flat pan that gives the dish its name. Get the socarrat (the caramelised crust on the bottom) and the meal is right.

The Valencian Community is the long, narrow strip of Spain’s Mediterranean east coast, running from just south of the Ebro delta down to the Murcian border. Three provinces (Valencia, Castellón, Alicante) share 518 km of coastline and a co-official language: valencià, the local variety of Catalan, which carries its own institutions, its own academy, and its own arguments about whether it’s the same language as the one spoken in Barcelona. Spoiler: linguistically yes, politically complicated.

The geography splits between coast and inland. The coast carries the population and most of the visitors, with three named stretches: the Costa del Azahar (Castellón province, the “orange-blossom coast”), the central Valencian coast around the city, and the Costa Blanca (Alicante province, with the headland tourist towns of Benidorm, Calp, Dénia, Jávea/Xàbia, and the inland Marina Alta). Inland, the Sistema Ibérico mountain ranges climb to Penyagolosa at 1,814m. The Albufera natural park south of Valencia city is a freshwater lagoon, the historical home of paella, and a stop on the Atlantic flyway for serious birding.

Valencia city is Spain’s third by population and an unusually walkable capital. The Mercado Central is one of the largest covered food markets in Europe; the Lonja de la Seda (the late-Gothic silk exchange) was UNESCO listed in 1996; the cathedral holds the Holy Chalice that the city claims is the original Grail; and the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències, Santiago Calatrava’s white architectural complex on the bed of the diverted Turia river, has become the city’s modern silhouette. The old Turia riverbed itself, after a catastrophic 1957 flood, was turned into a 9 km linear park threading the city.

Las Fallas of Valencia (March 15-19) is the headline festival: huge satirical papier-mâché figures, some of them thirty metres tall, erected across the city and burned on the night of March 19. UNESCO listed it as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2016. Bunyols and chocolate are the season’s street food, sold from corner stalls all morning.

Beyond paella, the regional kitchen runs on rice and noodles. Arròs a banda (rice cooked in fish stock, served separately from the boiled fish), arròs negre (with squid ink), arròs al forn (oven-baked rice with chickpeas, blood sausage, and ribs), and fideuà, the same idea as paella but with short noodles instead of rice, born in Gandia on the coast south of the city. The regional drink is horchata de chufa, a sweet milky drink made from tiger nuts grown around Alboraia and protected under the xufa de València DO, traditionally served with fartons (long sweet finger pastries to dip).

The wines run across three DOs: Utiel-Requena (inland, Bobal-dominant reds), Valencia (mixed), and Alicante (with the historic Fondillón, a long-aged Monastrell wine). The summer is hot but the sea breeze keeps the coast bearable; spring and autumn are the underrated travel windows.

History & character

Iberians and Romans

The pre-Roman population was the Edetani in the central plain and Contestani in the southern Alicante region. Saguntum (modern Sagunt, north of Valencia) is the headline pre-Roman city: an Iberian and Greek-trading town that famously held out against Hannibal in 219 BCE for nearly a year before falling, the casus belli for the Second Punic War. Roman ruins at Sagunt include a hilltop fortress, theatre, and forum.

The Roman foundation of Valentia was in 138 BCE by the consul Decimus Junius Brutus, originally for retired soldiers from the Lusitanian wars. Lucentum (modern Alicante) and Dianium (Dénia) were the southern Roman cities.

Visigoths and Al-Andalus

Visigothic period 5th-8th centuries; the conversion was straightforward and there are few visible Visigothic remains. After the 711 Muslim conquest, the region became part of Al-Andalus: the irrigated huerta (the horta valenciana around the city) is largely a Muslim-period inheritance, with the still-functioning acequias (irrigation channels) and the Tribunal de las Aguas (the Water Tribunal that adjudicates water disputes every Thursday at the cathedral’s Apostles’ Door, UNESCO Intangible Heritage 2009, the oldest continuously functioning judicial body in Europe). Madinat Balansiya (medieval Valencia) was a sophisticated capital.

The taifa of Valencia (after the 1031 collapse of the Caliphate of Córdoba) became briefly Christian in the 1090s under El Cid (Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar), who took the city in 1094 and held it until his death in 1099; his widow Jimena held out two more years before the Almoravids retook it. The Cid’s six-year rule of Valencia is the historical core of the medieval Cantar de mio Cid.

Catalan-Aragonese conquest and the Kingdom of Valencia

James I of Aragon (Jaume I el Conqueridor) took Valencia in 1238, after a long siege. He set up the Kingdom of Valencia as a separate constituent kingdom of the Crown of Aragon, with its own furs (statutes) and parliament. Catalan settlers came in such numbers that the language shifted to Catalan within a couple of generations, evolving into the local Valencian variety. Mudéjar Muslim communities (the moriscos, after forced conversion in 1525) remained the majority of the rural population until the Expulsion of the Moriscos in 1609, which depopulated much of the inland huerta and triggered a long agricultural crisis.

The Llotja de la Seda (the silk exchange, 1482-1548, UNESCO 1996) was built during the late-medieval Valencian commercial boom; the Generalitat Valenciana building (the regional government palace) and the Torres de Serranos and Torres de Quart (the two surviving medieval city gates) are from the same period.

War of Spanish Succession and the loss of the Furs

Valencia sided with the Habsburg pretender (the Archduke Charles) in the War of Spanish Succession; the Bourbon victory at the Battle of Almansa (1707) ended Valencian autonomy. Philip V abolished the furs and imposed Castilian law and taxation through the Decretos de Nueva Planta. The April 25 commemoration of Almansa is still observed locally.

19th-century industry and the citrus boom

The 19th century built two regional economies: citrus exports (Valencia oranges to northern Europe via the rail-and-port system, the Valencian “naranjos” became the international shorthand for the city) and silk-and-textile industries in inland Castellón (Onda, Vila-real). The port of Valencia modernised heavily; by the mid-20th century it became one of the busiest container ports in the Mediterranean.

20th century: Civil War, Franco, transition

During the Civil War, Valencia served as the Republican capital from November 1936 to October 1937, after the government fled Madrid. The Republican-era political and cultural life produced major literary work (the Misiones Pedagógicas, the Joan Fuster intellectual circle later). Franco’s regime suppressed Valencian language and regional identity. The Riada flood of October 14, 1957, devastated central Valencia and triggered the long-running Plan Sur, which diverted the Turia river south of the city; the abandoned riverbed became the linear park (Jardín del Turia) that crosses the city today.

Valencia became its own autonomous community in 1982. The Estatut d’Autonomia restored Valencian as co-official with Spanish.

Today

The Valencian economy is built on tourism (Costa Blanca and Costa del Azahar), agriculture (citrus, rice, vegetables), industry (ceramics in Castellón, footwear in inland Alicante), and a major port-and-logistics sector. The City of Arts and Sciences (Calatrava, 1996-2005) and the cultural infrastructure of the early 2000s remade Valencia’s international profile, although the project’s cost and completion of associated developments became a long political controversy.

The region has been hit by repeated DANA / gota fría flash floods.

See & do

Valencia city

The full city guide is the Valencia city page. Headline sights for context:

The Cathedral, with its mix of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque elements, holds the Santo Cáliz (the cup the cathedral claims is the original Holy Grail, a 1st-century BCE-1st-century CE agate cup with later silver-and-gold mounting). El Miguelete (the cathedral bell tower, 51m) is climbable for the city panorama.

Plaza de la Virgen (the medieval civic square, with the cathedral, the Basílica de la Virgen de los Desamparados, and the Tribunal de las Aguas that meets at noon every Thursday).

Mercado Central: one of the largest covered food markets in Europe (8,000 m², 300 stalls), in a 1928 Modernist building of glass-and-iron. Tuesday morning is the freshest day for fish; Saturday morning the busiest overall.

Lonja de la Seda (UNESCO 1996): the late-Gothic silk exchange (1482-1548), with its ‘twisted-column’ main hall, the orange-tree courtyard, and the chamber of the Consulate of the Sea.

Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias (City of Arts and Sciences): the Calatrava architectural complex on the riverbed of the diverted Turia river. Includes the L’Hemisfèric (planetarium-IMAX, 1998), Museo de las Ciencias Príncipe Felipe (interactive science museum, 2000), L’Oceanogràfic (the largest aquarium in Europe, 2003, designed by Félix Candela), Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía (opera house, 2005), and the Ágora (multi-purpose space, 2009). Cumulative ticket bundles offer discounted entry.

Jardines del Turia: the 9 km linear park along the diverted riverbed, with cycling, running, public sports, and the Gulliver Park (a sculptural climbing-frame Gulliver giant for kids).

Albufera natural park: 12 km south of the city. The largest freshwater lagoon in Spain, the historical home of paella, with rice fields surrounding the water. Boat tours at sunset from the Embarcadero del Saler, El Palmar village (with traditional rice-restaurant lunches), the Devesa beach forest. The Albufera DOP rice (Bomba and Senia varieties) is grown here.

Sagunt and Castellón

Sagunt (Sagunto, 30 min north of Valencia by Cercanías): hilltop fortress with continuous occupation from Iberian to medieval, the Roman theatre (used in summer for performances), and the Jewish quarter at the foot of the hill.

Peñíscola (Castellón province, on a rock peninsula): the Castillo del Papa Luna (the castle of the Avignon antipope Benedict XIII, who took refuge here from 1411 until his death in 1423), and the walled old town below it. Used as a Game of Thrones location.

Morella (inland Castellón): a walled hilltop town at 1,000m, with intact medieval walls, the Basílica de Santa María, and a Festival de Calderes (a triennial cauldron-cooking festival linked to a 1672 plague vow).

Ports de Beseit and Tinença de Benifassà (northern Castellón): wild mountain country shared with Aragón and Catalonia, with Spanish ibex populations and the Tinença de Benifassà natural park.

Costa Blanca and Alicante

The stretch from Dénia to the Murcian border, with a string of resort towns and headlands.

Alicante (Alacant): the southern provincial capital. Castillo de Santa Bárbara (a Moorish-medieval fortress on the Benacantil hill, with a free elevator from the seafront), the Explanada de España (palm-lined promenade with mosaic paving), and the Casco Antiguo (Santa Cruz neighbourhood, white-washed houses on the castle slope).

Benidorm: the high-rise resort town. Two long sandy beaches, the Levante and Poniente, separated by the old town on a rocky headland. Beloved by British pensioners and stag parties; not for everyone, but worth a half-day visit.

Calp (Calpe): the Peñón de Ifach (a 332m limestone monolith on a peninsula, walkable to the top with a permit, panoramic views) is the regional landmark.

Altea: a small white-washed village on the coast, known for its picturesque old town with narrow cobblestone streets and blue-domed church.

Xàbia (Jávea): a fishing-and-residential town on a sheltered bay, with the Cap de Sant Antoni and Cap de la Nau capes, several pretty calas, and the Port district as the main eating area.

Dénia: the northern Costa Blanca port town, with a hilltop castle and ferry connections to Ibiza and Formentera. UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy since 2015. The gamba roja de Dénia (red prawn) is the local prized seafood.

Guadalest: a tiny inland village perched on a rock outcrop, offering panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and valley, with a small castle. Very tourist-trafficked but the setting is notable for its elevation and vistas.

Elche (Elx): the second city of Alicante province, with the Palmeral de Elche (a 200,000-palm grove, UNESCO 2000, the largest palm grove in Europe; founded by the Phoenicians and continuously cultivated), the Misteri d’Elx (a 15th-century mystery play, UNESCO Intangible 2001, performed every August around the Asunción of the Virgin), and the Lady of Elche site (where the famous Iberian sculpture was found in 1897, now in Madrid).

Orihuela: the southern town with a serious medieval cathedral; Miguel Hernández the poet’s hometown (his small house museum is open to visitors).

Inland Valencia

Requena and Utiel (the wine towns of the DO Utiel-Requena): inland highland country, with the underground medieval cellars in Requena’s old town. Bobal is the regional grape; the Fiestas de la Vendimia (late August-early September) is the big regional wine festival.

Buñol: the village 35 km west of Valencia famous for La Tomatina (the last Wednesday of August, the world’s largest food fight, in which 20-25,000 people throw 150 tonnes of tomatoes at each other; ticketed since 2013 to limit numbers).

Xàtiva: a hilltop town with a 16th-century castle, the historical centre of the Borgia family (born Rodrigo Borja, later Pope Alexander VI; the family’s Spanish name was Borja before it was Italianised).

Sierra Calderona, Sierra Aitana, Sierra de Mariola: the inland mountain ranges with serious walking, sometimes overlooked by foreign visitors who stay on the coast.

Cap de la Nau, Granadella, and the Marina Alta calas

The coastline around Xàbia and the Cap de la Nau is rocky and broken by small calas (coves). Cala Granadella, Cala del Moraig (in Benitatxell, with a famous double-arch sea cave), Cala Sardinera, and Cala Llebeig are the named ones; some require a walk to reach. Diving and snorkelling are at their best on this stretch.

Towns & cities

València

800,000 people in the city proper, around 1.6 million in the metropolitan area. Spain’s third-largest city. Cathedral, Mercado Central, Lonja de la Seda, City of Arts and Sciences, the Albufera south of the city. Full guide at València city.

Alacant (Alicante)

340,000 people. Capital of Alicante province. Castillo de Santa Bárbara on the Benacantil hill, Explanada de España, the Santa Cruz old quarter. Mediterranean port and cruise stop. Hogueras de San Juan (June 23-24) is the city’s biggest festival, with monumental papier-mâché figures burned on the night of June 24.

Elx (Elche)

230,000 people. Second city of Alicante province. UNESCO Palmeral de Elche (palm grove, since 2000) and the Misteri d’Elx (mystery play, UNESCO Intangible 2001).

Castelló de la Plana (Castellón de la Plana)

170,000 people. Capital of Castellón province. The Concatedral de Santa María, the Plaza Mayor, and the Fadrí (a free-standing 16th-century octagonal bell tower).

Torrevieja

83,000 official residents (and many more in summer). Coastal Alicante town with a strong British and Russian expat population, salt pans (the Salinas de Torrevieja, with pink water and major flamingo populations), and a long, low-development southern beach.

Orihuela

75,000 people. Southern Alicante province. Medieval cathedral, the Casa-Museo Miguel Hernández (the poet’s family home), the Episcopal Palace with a Diocesan Museum (holding Velázquez’s La Tentación de Santo Tomás de Aquino).

Sagunt (Sagunto)

66,000 people. Coastal Valencia province, with the hilltop fortress, Roman theatre, and Jewish quarter. Industrial outskirts (the historical Altos Hornos del Mediterráneo steelworks closed in the 1980s).

Benidorm

70,000 official residents (and many more in summer). The high-rise resort town of the Costa Blanca. Two long beaches and a small old town on a rocky headland.

Gandia

75,000 people. Mid-Valencia province coastal town with a long beach, a strong Borja-family heritage (the Palacio Ducal de los Borja), and the home of the dish fideuà (which originated here as a sailor’s variation on paella).

Vila-real (Villarreal)

50,000 people. Inland Castellón province; major ceramics industry. Hometown of Vila-real CF football club.

Calp (Calpe)

23,000 official residents (much higher in summer). Coastal Alicante town with the Peñón de Ifach rising above it.

Xàbia (Jávea)

28,000 official residents. Coastal Alicante town between the Cap de Sant Antoni and Cap de la Nau, with a sheltered bay, sailing port, and a strong British and German residential community.

Dénia

45,000 people. Northern Costa Blanca port town, ferry hub for the Balearics, UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy.

Altea

23,000 people. Small white-washed coastal Alicante town, one of the prettier of the smaller resorts.

Requena

21,000 people. Inland wine town of the DO Utiel-Requena.

Xàtiva

29,000 people. Hilltop inland town, the historical Borja family home; the original Spanish name Borja was Italianised after Rodrigo de Borja became Pope Alexander VI.

Buñol

10,000 people. Village 35 km west of Valencia, host of La Tomatina (last Wednesday of August).

Morella

2,500 people. Inland Castellón hilltop town at 1,000m, with intact medieval walls. Festival de Calderes every six years.

Peñíscola

7,000 official residents (much higher in summer). Coastal Castellón town with the Castillo del Papa Luna on a peninsula.

Vinaròs

28,000 people. Northern Castellón coastal town, with the famous Langostino de Vinaròs (red prawn).

Food & drink

Valencian cooking is built on rice (the regional starch in a way that pasta is for Italy), Mediterranean fish, Levantine vegetables, and the protected Valencian-grown citrus. Rice cooked in a wide flat pan (the paellera) is the regional technique that gave the most-misused word in Spanish cuisine its name.

Paella valenciana

The regional rice. Paella valenciana in the strict traditional sense includes: rice, rabbit (conill), chicken (pollastre), garrofó (a flat large white bean), bachoqueta (a flat green bean), tomato, paprika, saffron, sometimes caracoles (snails) or pato (duck), olive oil, water, and salt. Cooked in a wide shallow pan over wood or gas, served directly from the pan with a wooden spoon, eaten in concentric portions from the edge inward. The socarrat (the toasted-rice crust at the bottom) is the prized layer.

Things that go in the original paella: rabbit, chicken, garrofó, bachoqueta, tomato, saffron, paprika, occasionally snails or duck. Things that absolutely do not go in the original paella: chorizo (the international addition that triggered Jamie Oliver’s famous 2016 social media incident), peas, peppers, parsley, lemon (lemon is sometimes squeezed at the table; it is not part of the cooking).

Where to eat the original: traditional rice restaurants south of Valencia city in El Palmar village, around the Albufera, in the Horta Sud suburbs (where many family restaurants serve paella as their arròs del dia Sunday lunch), and in the rice towns of inland Valencia (Sueca, Alzira, El Saler). The Wikipaella label and the DO Arroz de Valencia are quality marks.

Other Valencian rices

• Arròs a banda (rice a parte): rice cooked in fish stock, served separately from the boiled fish that made the stock. A Levantine fishermen’s classic, especially Alicantine.
• Arròs negre: rice cooked with squid ink, almost black, with squid pieces and alioli on the side.
• Arròs al forn: rice baked in a clay dish (cassola) with chickpeas, blood sausage (morcilla), pork ribs, potatoes, and a head of garlic. The Sunday inland-village classic.
• Arròs amb fesols i naps: a winter rice with white beans and turnips.
• Arròs caldós: a soupier rice, often with seafood.
• Arròs amb crosta: an oven-baked rice topped with beaten egg that forms a crust as it bakes; the Alicantine inland speciality.

Fideuà

The same idea as paella but with short noodles instead of rice. Born in Gandia as a sailor’s variation when rice ran out; the noodles are toasted dry in the pan first, then cooked in fish stock. Always served with alioli. The Concurso Internacional de Fideuà de Gandia every August is the regional cook-off.

Other regional dishes

• Esgarraet: roasted red pepper with salt-cured cod, garlic, and olive oil. The Valencian everyday tapa.
• All i pebre: an eel-and-potato stew with garlic and paprika; the Albufera lagoon classic.
• Olla churra (Olla de la Plana): an inland Castellón winter chickpea-and-meat stew.
• Borreta: an inland Alicante stew of dried cod, potatoes, peppers, and almonds.
• Coca: a flat bread-and-savoury topping (similar to pizza but distinctively Valencian); the Coca de tomate (tomato), Coca de pisto (vegetables), Coca de tonyina (tuna), and Coca de mollitas (with crispy pork bits) are the standard versions.
• Empanadilla and empanada de atún are similar to other Spanish regions.

Seafood

The Mediterranean catch is the headline fish: gamba roja de Dénia (the red prawn from the Dénia trough, prized) and gamba roja de Vinaròs are the regional shellfish stars. Anchovies from the Castellón coast, sardines, lubina, dorada, rape (monkfish), salmonete (red mullet), caballa (mackerel) are standard. Salt-baked fish (pescado a la sal) and suquet de peix (a Catalan-Valencian fish stew) are common preparations. Salmorra (a smoked-fish-and-roe paste) is an inland Levantine speciality.

Sweets

• Horchata de chufa: the regional drink, made from xufa (tiger nuts, Cyperus esculentus) grown around Alboraia (north of Valencia, with the DO Xufa de València). Cold, slightly sweet, milky. Best at Horchatería de Santa Catalina in central Valencia (since 1929; the building is older), and at any horchatería in Alboraia. Eaten with fartons (long sweet finger pastries to dip).
• Turrón: the Christmas almond confection. The two famous types are Turrón de Jijona DOP (soft, ground-almond) and Turrón de Alicante DOP (hard, whole-almond brittle), both from the inland Alicante province around Jijona (Xixona). Turrón Antiu Xixona and El Lobo are the longest-running brands.
• Coca de llanda and rollos de anís: simple home-style cakes.
• Buñuelos and chocolate: the Las Fallas street food, hot fried dough rings dipped in thick hot chocolate, sold from temporary stands across Valencia in March.

Cheese

Less prominent than in northern Spain, but the Queso Servilleta (a fresh white cheese wrapped in a cloth napkin) is a regional one. Tronchón is a sheep-and-goat-milk cheese from inland Castellón.

Wine

Three regional DOs:

• DO Utiel-Requena: inland (650-900m), with Bobal (the regional native red, a thick-skinned grape that produces deep dark wines), Tempranillo, and Garnacha. Quality has risen sharply since the 1990s when Bobal was rediscovered. Pago de Tharsys, Murviedro, Vera de Estenas are the producers to look for.
• DO Valencia: a more diverse zone with Moscatel, Tempranillo, Garnacha, and Bobal. The Moscatel de Valencia sweet wine is a long-established speciality.
• DO Alicante: includes the inland Vinalopó zone (Monastrell-dominant reds) and the historical Fondillón (a 1500s-style long-aged Monastrell, fortified-style oxidative wine matured in solera; only a handful of producers still make it, the most famous being Bodegas Primitivo Quiles).

Other drinks

• Agua de Valencia: a cocktail of cava, fresh orange juice, gin, and vodka, invented in 1959 at Café Madrid in Valencia. The classic terrace drink in summer. Sometimes (mistakenly) thought to be the regional soft drink.
• Cazalla and licor de mistela: traditional local distillates.
• Estrella de Levante is the regional lager.
• Cervecera Valenciana and several smaller craft-beer producers operate around the city.

Nature

The Valencian Community offers a diverse landscape with its long coastal strip and inland mountains: rice-paddy lagoon, Mediterranean coastal cliffs, palm groves, dry Levantine sierras, and the highest peaks of the southern Sistema Ibérico.

Albufera de Valencia

The headline natural area: a 21,000-hectare freshwater lagoon and surrounding rice paddies south of Valencia city, separated from the Mediterranean by a narrow sand bar with a pine forest (the Devesa del Saler). The largest freshwater lagoon in Spain. Declared a natural park in 1986. The lagoon is the historical home of paella, with the rice fields supplying the Bomba and Senia rices used in the dish.

Major bird population: thousands of wintering wildfowl (mallards, pintails, shovelers, garganey), purple swamphen (a recovered population), Audouin’s gulls, glossy ibis, flamingos in passage, and the moustached warbler in the reedbeds. Sunset boat tours from El Saler and El Palmar are the standard visit.

Sierra de Mariola, Sierra de Aitana, Penyagolosa

The inland sierras run from north to south along the western edge of the region:

• Penyagolosa (1,814m, inland Castellón): the highest peak of the region, with the Penyagolosa natural park, walking trails, and the Romería de los Pelegrins de les Useres (a centuries-old March pilgrimage).
• Sierra de Aitana (1,558m, inland Alicante): the highest peak of Alicante province; pine forest, walking, and the Cumbres del Aitana as the regional headline ridge.
• Sierra de Mariola (1,389m, inland Alicante): a herb-and-honey country, with the Festa del Mareig (an old herbal-medicine festival) and the famous Herbero de Mariola liqueur (a yellow-green herbal digestif).
• Sierra Calderona (1,015m, between Valencia and Castellón provinces): pine forests close to Valencia city, with day-trip hiking.

Ports de Beseit and Tinença de Benifassà

The northern Castellón mountains, shared with Aragón and Catalonia. Wild country with the Spanish ibex population (one of the larger ones in Europe), deep gorges, and the Tinença de Benifassà natural park. Walking is serious; some routes need experience and good weather.

Coastal cliffs and capes

• Cap de Sant Antoni and Cap de la Nau (Xàbia, Cap de la Nau being the southernmost point of the Costa Blanca; not the geographical southernmost of the region): rocky calcareous cliffs with hiking trails and small calas.
• Peñón de Ifach (Calp): a 332m limestone monolith on a peninsula, declared a natural park, climbable to the top with a permit.
• Sierra Helada (Benidorm-Altea): a 600m coastal sierra with sheer cliffs and a long-distance coastal walking route.
• Serra Gelada marine reserve and Tabarca Island (off Santa Pola): the latter a small protected island in Spain’s first marine reserve, reachable by ferry from Santa Pola or Alicante.

Palmeral de Elche

A UNESCO-listed 200,000-palm grove (since 2000) in Elche; founded by the Phoenicians and continuously cultivated for over two millennia, the largest palm grove in Europe. Walking paths run through the grove; the Huerto del Cura (a private garden within the grove) has the famous Palmera Imperial (an eight-stemmed palm).

Salinas de Torrevieja and Santa Pola

Working salt pans south of Alicante, both with major flamingo populations. The Salinas de Torrevieja has a famously pink lake (from the Halobacterium bacteria), part of the Parque Natural de las Lagunas de la Mata y Torrevieja. The Salinas de Santa Pola further north has similar bird populations and a small thermalist tradition with the salt-pan mud.

Tabarca Island

A small island off Santa Pola, declared Spain’s first marine reserve in 1986. Walkable in 2-3 hours; the small fishing village has half a dozen restaurants serving the local caldero tabarquí (similar to the Murcian caldero). Snorkelling and diving in protected water are excellent.

Long trails

• GR-7: the long-distance European trail crosses the inland sierras from Aragón through Castellón and Valencia to Alicante.
• GR-92: the Mediterranean coastal trail runs the entire Valencian coast from the Ebro delta to the Murcian border.
• GR-238 (Sender Vora del Riu Túria): along the Túria river course inland.
• PR-CV (regional short trails): a dense network across the Sierra Calderona, Sierra de Aitana, and the inland sierras.

Vías Verdes

• Vía Verde de Ojos Negros (160 km): one of Spain’s longest Vías Verdes, on the bed of an old iron-ore railway from Teruel province through Castellón to the coast at Sagunt. Beloved by long-distance cyclists.
• Vía Verde del Maigmó (22 km, inland Alicante): on a never-completed railway, with several long tunnels and viaducts.

Marine

The Valencian coastal water has Posidonia oceanica seagrass meadows, especially around the Cap de la Nau, Tabarca, and the offshore Castellón cliffs. Posidonia anchoring is restricted in protected zones. Sea turtles (loggerhead) occasionally nest on the Costa Blanca; reports go to the Foundation for the Protection of Sea Turtles for monitoring.

Climate

The Valencian Community has a classic Mediterranean climate, with the inland sierras adding a continental note and the southern Costa Blanca leaning semi-arid.

The coast (Valencia, Castellón, Alicante)

• Valencia city (sea level): January average 12°C, July-August 26°C with regular highs of 30-33°C, occasional 38°C+ in heatwaves. Annual rainfall around 460mm, concentrated in autumn.
• Castelló de la Plana (sea level): similar to Valencia city, slightly drier in summer.
• Alicante (sea level): drier than Valencia, with annual rainfall around 320mm. January average 12°C, July-August 26°C.
• Benidorm and Costa Blanca: very similar to Alicante, with the headland geography giving slight microclimate differences.
• Costa del Azahar (northern Castellón): similar to Valencia.

The Costa Blanca (south of Cap de la Nau) is one of the driest parts of mainland Spain. Sea temperature reaches 25-26°C in August, drops to 14-15°C in February.

Inland

• Requena, Utiel (650-900m): cooler in winter (January 5°C, occasional snow) and slightly cooler in summer than the coast.
• Sierra de Mariola, Sierra de Aitana (1,000-1,500m): cooler year-round; snow December-March above 1,000m.
• Penyagolosa (1,814m): cold winters with reliable snow, summer averages 15°C at the summit.
• Morella (1,000m): mountain microclimate; cooler than the coast year-round and with regular winter snow.

The inland-coast contrast can be sharp: a 30°C August day in Valencia city can be 22°C and breezy in Morella.

Gota fría and DANA

The regional weather hazard. Gota fría (cold drop) and the technical term DANA (Depresión Aislada en Niveles Altos) describe the autumn pattern: cold upper-atmospheric air over warm Mediterranean water that triggers intense, localised storms. The Valencian region is the single most DANA-affected part of Spain.

Lessons from past events have reshaped the regional emergency-warning system: the ES-Alert SMS warning system is now used aggressively, and the Plan Especial de Inundaciones has been re-drafted. As a visitor, never drive across flooded ramblas (dry riverbeds), even if water looks shallow; ramblas can fill in minutes from upstream rain you cannot see. Pay attention to ES-Alert SMS warnings on your phone (they arrive automatically; no opt-in needed). DANA risk peaks in September-November.

When the weather works

• April through mid-June: prime season. Comfortable temperatures, citrus and almond blossom (April), Las Fallas (March, but cold and possibly rainy), Easter, and the long pre-summer beach window.
• September through October: the second sweet spot. Sea still 24°C, low crowds, but DANA risk increasing through October.
• July and August: hot. The coast is busy with domestic tourism; inland is uncomfortable midday but the higher sierras (Aitana, Mariola, Penyagolosa) are cooler.
• November to March: mild on the coast (15-18°C daytime), cooler inland. The Costa Blanca is the year-round expat destination because of the mild winters.

What to pack

• Summer: light clothes, real sunscreen, water bottle, hat. Carry layers for inland visits.
• Spring and autumn: layered clothing for 10°C swings. Bring a rain jacket; autumn rain can be torrential.
• Winter: a real jacket for inland and the sierras; light layers for the coast.
• For the sierras (Aitana, Mariola, Penyagolosa): walking boots and rain gear year-round.

When to go

March: Las Fallas

Las Fallas of Valencia (March 15-19, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage 2016) is the regional festival of the year. Hundreds of ninots (papier-mâché figures, some 30m tall, some satirising current politicians and celebrities) are erected in the streets across the city; on the night of March 19, all but one (the ‘pardoned’ ninot indultat) are burned in the Cremà. The week of build-up includes daytime mascletàs (deafening daytime fireworks at 14:00 in Plaza del Ayuntamiento, every day from March 1 to 19), nightly fireworks, parades, and a city full of bunyols i xocolata.

Hotels are booked months ahead; if you don’t have a reservation by January, book regional towns (Sagunt, Gandia) and commute in.

April to mid-June: spring

Prime season. Holy Week is celebrated in Crevillent, Orihuela, and the Costa Blanca with serious processions; Cartagena’s Holy Week is just over the southern border. Las Hogueras de San Juan in Alicante (June 23-24, with monumental papier-mâché figures burned on the night of June 24) is the southern equivalent of Las Fallas.

Moros y Cristianos festivals run across inland Alicante in spring (different towns hold theirs at different dates; Alcoi in late April is the most famous, in late April for the Festes de Sant Jordi). Corpus Christi (variable date in May-June) brings religious-and-civic processions across the region.

Mid-June to early September: summer

Beach season. The Costa Blanca is at maximum, with British, German, Dutch, and domestic tourism filling Benidorm, Calp, Xàbia, and the Mar Menor cluster. Tomatina in Buñol (last Wednesday of August): the world’s largest food fight, ticketed since 2013 to limit numbers to about 20,000.

Misteri d’Elx (Elche, August 14-15, UNESCO Intangible 2001): the medieval mystery play around the Asunción of the Virgin, performed continuously since the 15th century in the Basilica of Santa Maria.

Festival Internacional de Música de Peñíscola and Festival Castell de Peralada (just over the Catalan border) are the summer classical-music events.

Late September to October: autumn

The second sweet spot, but with DANA risk increasing through October. Wine harvest (vendimia) in Utiel-Requena runs late August to early October. Día de la Comunidad Valenciana (October 9): regional national day, marking the entry of Jaume I into Valencia in 1238; with parades and the Mocadorà (a sweet-marzipan gift between sweethearts).

Festa del Crist d’Anetlla (October, in inland Alicante) and various local fiestas patronales run through the autumn.

November to March: winter

Mild on the coast, cooler inland. Christmas markets in Valencia, Alicante, Castellón, and the larger towns. Cabalgata de Reyes (January 5 evening) parades across the region; the bigger ones in Alcoy (which claims to have started the modern parade tradition in 1885), Valencia, Alicante, and Elche.

Almond blossom in inland Alicante runs late January to early February. Carnival is celebrated everywhere, with the bigger ones in Vinaròs and Pego.

Festival calendar

• Cabalgata de los Reyes Magos: January 5 evening (Alcoy claims the original tradition).
• Almond blossom: late January to early February.
• Carnival: February (all coastal towns, biggest in Vinaròs).
• Las Fallas: March 15-19 (Valencia city).
• Holy Week (Setmana Santa): late March or April; especially Crevillent, Orihuela, Cartagena (just over the border).
• Festes de Sant Jordi (Alcoi): late April (Moros y Cristianos).
• Día de la Comunidad Valenciana: October 9.
• Hogueras de San Juan (Alicante): June 23-24.
• Misteri d’Elx: August 14-15.
• Tomatina (Buñol): last Wednesday of August.
• Festes de la Verge dels Lledoners (Castellón): third week of August.
• Bous a la Mar (Dénia): early July (running of the bulls into the harbour, controversial but a strong local tradition).
• Festival Internacional de Música de Peñíscola: July-August.
• Mocadorà / Día de Sant Donís: October 9.
• Festa del Crist (various inland towns): October.
• Magdalena (Castellón): third week after Ash Wednesday, the city’s biggest week.

Getting there

By air

Three commercial airports:

• Valencia (VLC): medium-sized, mainly European low-cost and full-service routes plus the Madrid and Barcelona shuttles. Iberia, Vueling, Ryanair, easyJet, Air Nostrum, Lufthansa, KLM, BA, and several others. The airport is 8 km west of the city, with Metro lines 3 and 5 linking it to the centre in 25 minutes.
• Alicante-Elche (ALC): large, heavily seasonal. The main entry point for the Costa Blanca, with massive British, Irish, German, Dutch, and Scandinavian summer traffic. Direct from most northern European cities. The airport is 10 km southwest of Alicante; the C-6 ALSA bus to the city centre runs every 20 minutes.
• Castellón-Costa del Azahar (CDT): small, regional. A handful of seasonal routes; mostly used by inland Castellón residents.

By high-speed train

The AVE Madrid-Valencia line opened in December 2010, putting Valencia within 1h45 of Madrid. Approximate times via Renfe, Iryo, and Ouigo:

• Madrid-Valencia: 1h45.
• Madrid-Alicante: 2h20.
• Madrid-Castellón: 2h30 (Alvia, the Madrid-Valencia AVE plus Cercanías connection).
• Barcelona-Valencia: 3h on Euromed/AVE.
• Barcelona-Alicante: 4h45 on Euromed.
• Sevilla-Valencia: 4h45 with a change at Madrid.
• Valencia-Alicante: 1h35 on Euromed.

Valencia’s Estación del Norte (the older Modernist station) and Joaquín Sorolla (the AVE station, a few hundred metres south) are the two main stations; a free shuttle runs between them.

By bus

ALSA, Avanza, and others run frequent buses from Madrid to Valencia (4h, around €25-40) and to Alicante (5h). The Valencia-Alicante bus is more practical than train for some Costa Blanca destinations (Benidorm, Calp, Xàbia, Dénia) which are not on the rail line.

By car

• A-3 Madrid-Valencia: 350 km, 3h30 driving.
• AP-7 Mediterranean motorway: runs the entire Valencian coast from the Catalan border at the Ebro delta down to the Murcian border. Tolls were lifted in 2020 and the AP-7 is now a free motorway.
• From Catalonia and Aragón: AP-7 from Barcelona (3h30 to Valencia), A-23 from Zaragoza (4h to Valencia via Teruel).
• From Andalucía: A-92 from Granada via Murcia (5h30 to Alicante; longer to Valencia).

By ferry

Ferries to the Balearic Islands run from Valencia (multiple daily to Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, and Maó) and Dénia (daily to Ibiza, Palma, Formentera). Operators: Baleària, Trasmediterránea / Naviera Armas. Times: Valencia-Palma 7-8h overnight; Valencia-Ibiza 5-6h; Dénia-Ibiza 2h fast ferry; Dénia-Formentera (with Ibiza connection) 2h fast ferry.

The Tabarca Island ferry runs from Santa Pola (closest, 30 min) and Alicante (90 min, in summer).

Getting around

Train

• Cercanías Valencia (operated by Renfe): a comprehensive commuter network from Valencia city to the surrounding towns. The C-1 to Gandia, C-2 to Moixent, C-3 to Bunyol-Utiel, C-4 to Empalme, C-5 to Caudiel, C-6 to Castellón. Useful for the southern coast (Gandia, Cullera, Sueca) and the Albufera approach.
• Metrovalencia: the city metro and tram, operated by FGV. Lines 3 and 5 reach the airport. Lines 1, 4, 6, 8, and 10 cover the city; lines 4 and 6 are partly tram. Reaches some inland towns (the Línea 1 to Bétera and the Línea 9 to Riba-roja).
• AVE Euromed: the high-speed services along the coast (Valencia-Castellón, Valencia-Alicante).
• Cercanías Murcia/Alicante: the southern Cercanías line links Alicante to Murcia (1h, with stops at Elche, Crevillent, and Orihuela).
• TRAM d’Alacant (FGV): the Alicante tram-train hybrid, with Line 1 running from Alicante along the Costa Blanca to Benidorm and onward to Dénia as the Líneas 1, 9, and 41. Slow but scenic; the line follows the coast and the inland Marina Baixa.

Bus

• ALSA runs the major intercity routes (Valencia-Alicante, Valencia-Castellón, Valencia-Madrid). Local services in inland Castellón and Valencia provinces.
• Avanza Bus also runs many regional services.
• EMT Valencia (city buses), TRAM d’Alacant (tram and bus combinations), TUS Castellón.
• Vectalia (Alicante province local buses).

Car

The AP-7 Mediterranean motorway is now toll-free (since 2020) and runs the entire coastal length. The A-3 from Madrid to Valencia, the A-23 from Zaragoza, and the N-340 along the coast are the main alternatives.

Main rental hubs: Valencia airport (cheapest), Alicante airport, Joaquín Sorolla AVE station, Castellón. Petrol around €1.55-1.70 per litre in early 2026.

Watch for:

• DANA flooding: never drive across flooded ramblas in autumn rain.
• Coastal traffic in summer: AP-7 around Calp, Benidorm, and Alicante can be slow on Friday afternoons and Sunday evenings.
• Old town parking: Valencia, Alicante, Elche, and the smaller historic towns have very limited central parking. Use the underground car parks at the edge of the historic centre.

Cycling

Valencia is one of Spain’s most cycling-friendly large cities, with a comprehensive bike-lane network and the Valenbisi bike-share. The Jardín del Turia linear park (9 km along the diverted river) is the city’s main bike artery. The Vía Verde de Ojos Negros (160 km from inland Aragón to Sagunt) is one of Spain’s longest. The Vía Verde del Maigmó (22 km, inland Alicante) is a popular shorter route.

City transport

• Valencia: walkable historic centre. Metrovalencia (lines 3 and 5 to airport, 1 and 4 to city). EMT Valencia city buses. Valenbisi bike-share.
• Alicante: walkable centre. TRAM d’Alacant runs along the seafront and to the airport (the Aerobús C-6 is the more direct airport connection). Vectalia city buses.
• Castellón: small enough to walk. TRAM Castellón (a single tram-bus hybrid line) connects the centre to the Grao (port).
• Elche: walkable, with the palm grove a 10-minute walk from the centre.
• Benidorm, Calp, Xàbia, Dénia: all walkable in their old centres, with TRAM connections along the coast.

Apps that help

• Renfe for AVE and Cercanías.
• Metrovalencia for the Valencia metro.
• EMT Valencia for city buses.
• TRAM d’Alacant for Alicante.
• Valenbisi for the Valencia bike-share.
• Moovit for combined real-time routing.
• Baleària for ferries to the Balearics.

Practical info

For Spain-wide basics (currency, plugs, time zone, tipping, public holidays, ETIAS), see the Spain country guide. The notes below are Valencian-specific.

DANA / gota fría warnings

ES-Alert is the EU-wide cell-broadcast SMS warning system that delivers severe-weather, flood, and other alerts directly to mobile phones in the affected area; you do not need to subscribe, the system reaches every phone in the alert zone automatically. If you receive an alert, take it seriously.

During autumn (September-November) heavy rain:

• Never drive across flooded ramblas, even if the water looks shallow.
• Avoid low-lying areas, basements, and underpasses during active flood warnings.
• Move to higher floors of buildings if alerted.
• The Albufera and the Horta Sud suburbs of Valencia (Paiporta, Catarroja, Picaña, Algemesí, Massanassa, Aldaia) are particularly flood-prone.

Languages

Valencian (valencià) is co-official with Castilian Spanish. Valencian is a variety of Catalan, with mutual intelligibility (the dispute over whether to call it ‘Valencian’ or ‘Catalan’ is political; linguists treat them as the same language). About 50% of the regional population speak Valencian fluently, mostly in inland Valencia, inland Castellón, and the northern Costa Blanca; less common in southern Alicante. Place names are usually written in Valencian first; many road signs are bilingual or Valencian-only.

Spanish is universally understood and locals will switch without complaint. English is widely spoken in tourist areas, especially in Benidorm, Calp, Xàbia, and Alicante (where the British expat community is large).

Useful Valencian: bon dia (good morning), gràcies (thanks), adéu (bye), si us plau (please).

Las Fallas safety

During Las Fallas (March 15-19, especially March 17-19), the city is full of fireworks, petards (firecrackers thrown by children and adults at street level), and the Cremà burning of the ninots on the night of March 19. Wear ear protection (especially during the daily 14:00 mascletà in Plaza del Ayuntamiento, which can hit 130 decibels). Avoid loose clothing near burning fallas. Many streets are closed; budget extra time for moving across the city.

Paella authenticity

If you want the original Valencian paella (rabbit, chicken, garrofó, bachoqueta, no chorizo, no peas), look for restaurants outside the central tourist drag: in El Palmar village, the Albufera restaurants, the inland Horta villages, or the rice towns (Sueca, Alzira). The Wikipaella label and the DO Arroz de Valencia are quality marks. In central Valencia, traditional restaurants like Casa Carmela (since 1922, Avenida Neptuno) cook over wood and are reliable.

Many central-Valencia tourist restaurants serve a mixed paella with seafood and meat, which is not traditional but is widely sold.

Tomatina ticketing

La Tomatina in Buñol (last Wednesday of August) was free until 2013 when crowd control led to a paid ticketing system. Tickets are sold via latomatina.info; around 20,000 are sold each year. The event itself is one hour, 11:00-12:00. Wear old clothes you can throw away; carry waterproof bag for phone and ID; goggles for the eyes.

Bullfighting

Valencia has a strong bullfighting tradition. The Plaza de Toros de Valencia (next to Estación del Norte) holds bullfights during Las Fallas (March) and the regional Feria de Julio (mid-July). Alicante’s Plaza de Toros holds the Hogueras bulls in June. Bous al carrer (running of bulls in the streets) is a strong inland-village tradition, especially in eastern inland Castellón and Alicante; Bous a la Mar in Dénia (early July) is the famous one where bulls are run into the harbour. The decision to attend is yours; the regional debate is real but the festivals continue.

Beach access in summer

• El Palmar and the Albufera rice fields: limited road access during summer harvest; use the lagoon ferry routes from El Saler.
• Cala Granadella, Cala del Moraig, Cala Sardinera (Xàbia): small calas with limited parking; arrive early or walk in.
• Tabarca Island: ferry-only access; book ahead in summer.
• Sotavento, Cap de la Nau, Peñón de Ifach: parking-controlled, limited.

Sun and water

The summer Mediterranean coast hits 30-35°C with high humidity (the inland Murcian semi-aridity stops at the Valencian border). Tap water is safe but tastes mineralised in much of the region; many residents drink filtered or bottled. Sea temperature reaches 26-27°C in August.

Hospitals

Main hospitals: Hospital Universitari i Politècnic La Fe (Valencia), Hospital General Universitario de Valencia, Hospital General Universitario de Alicante, Hospital General Universitari de Castelló. Smaller hospitals across the coastal towns (Benidorm, Dénia, Gandia, Sagunt). 112 for emergencies. Mountain rescue (Penyagolosa, Aitana, Mariola) coordinates through 112; maritime rescue through Salvamento Marítimo.

LGBTQ+

Valencia, Alicante, Benidorm, and the Costa Blanca are generally welcoming. Benidorm has Spain’s largest concentration of gay clubs outside Madrid, Barcelona, Sitges, and Maspalomas. Pride / Orgullo in Valencia runs in late June.

Driving caveats

• AP-7: now toll-free (since 2020) but heavy summer Friday-evening and Sunday-evening traffic.
• Old town entry: Valencia and Alicante have central low-emission zones in development; check rental car ratings and signage.
• Petrol: similar to mainland Spain at €1.55-1.70 per litre in early 2026.

Football

Valencia CF plays at the Mestalla (with the long-stalled Nou Mestalla stadium project still incomplete in 2026). Levante UD plays at the Ciutat de València stadium. Villarreal CF (the inland Castellón club) plays at the Estadio de la Cerámica. Elche CF plays at the Martínez Valero. Tickets via club websites; Valencia and Villarreal often have European fixtures.