Places worth visiting

Historic 16th-century botanical garden with more than 4,500 species, greenhouses and green corners right in the city. A quiet, very photogenic oasis, and in summer it hosts nighttime visits with the garden lit up.

A 19th-century neoclassical garden with geometric hedges, marble statues, stone lions and fountains that looks straight out of an Italian villa. It's one of the most beautiful and peaceful corners of the city, and hardly anyone knows it.

A green retreat around an old Art Nouveau farmhouse, with centuries-old trees and barely any tourists. Ideal for sitting in the shade and switching off from the bustle.

Hidden in an alley in El Carmen, this Gothic church conceals an explosion of Baroque frescoes covering the entire vault, which have earned it the nickname of the Valencian Sistine Chapel. Stepping in and looking up takes your breath away.

Beneath a sheet of water right in the square hides an underground museum with the remains of Roman, Visigothic and Arab Valentia. You literally walk over 2,000 years of history, and it's almost always empty.

The world's largest collection of toy lead soldiers, with more than a million pieces recreating entire battles, inside a Gothic palace. A fascinating oddity that surprises even those who arrive with no expectations.

A tiny miniature house set into a wall, built for the neighborhood's cats. An endearing and absurd detail that has become a knowing wink among those who discover it while strolling through El Carmen.

A perfect circular plaza, hidden among narrow alleys, with stalls of haberdashery, lace and traditional souvenirs around a central fountain. An urban snail that surprises you the moment you cross the entrance arch.

A former modernist market of iron and ceramics, spectacular and full of light, today reborn as an elegant space of cafés, horchaterías and terraces. Architectural beauty with a relaxed local atmosphere.

A masterpiece of civil Gothic and a World Heritage Site, with its Trading Hall of Solomonic columns that look like palm trees of stone. On Sunday mornings, admission is free.

A 1970s building with curved balconies of an Oriental air that looks like an architectural whim out of place, and that is exactly why it hooks you. A little-photographed icon facing the old Turia riverbed.

A former fishing village with streets of low little houses decorated with ceramics and colourful trencadís, street art and lifelong taverns. Strolling along the streets Progrés, Rosario or Escalante is like stepping into another era.

Valencia's most bohemian neighbourhood, with a village spirit, its always-lively square, urban allotments, street art, a Thursday market and alternative bars full of students. Authentic, alive and not at all touristy.

A former ice factory at the port reborn as a cheeky cultural space, with a bar, markets, exhibitions and live concerts almost every day. The creative, laid-back soul of El Cabanyal.

An 1836 winery among century-old wooden barrels where you can have tapas just like a hundred years ago, awarded as one of the best wine bars in Spain. Pure seafaring tradition, no pretension.

A baroque, lavishly decorated café-bar full of flowers, candelabra and velvet, looking like a Parisian salon from the last century. Order its famous Agua de Valencia and let the theatrical atmosphere wrap around you.

Spain's second most important art gallery, with works by Velázquez, Goya, Sorolla and the largest collection of Valencian primitives. Admission is always free: a perfect culture plan for a morning without spending a thing.

A giant free playground in the old Turia riverbed: a 70-metre figure of Gulliver lying down that kids explore via slides and ramps. Guaranteed fun without spending a single euro.

Europe's largest aquarium, with more than 45,000 animals from 500 species in settings that recreate the planet's seas, including an underwater tunnel and dolphins. A must when going with kids.

A new-generation zoo with no bars in sight, where the African savanna is recreated with moats and natural barriers and the animals seem to roam free. Immersive, educational and spectacular.

A noble town of stately streets, fountains and palaces, birthplace of the Borgia popes. Its historic centre stretches at the foot of a double fortress that crowns the mountain with immense views over the huerta.

A huge fortified complex of Iberian and Roman origin stretching along a hilltop above the old town, with a Roman theatre at its foot. The views over the Mediterranean and the huerta are magnificent, and admission is free.

A village perched beneath an Arab castle and surrounded by the canyon of the river Turia. Its famous Hanging Bridges Route runs through spectacular gorges to the Charco Azul, perfect for hiking and a swim.

A magical gorge of waterfalls and natural pools wedged between rock walls, part of the three-waterfalls route of Anna. Its waters and shady setting make it an unforgettable swim in summer.

A tropical, almost Balinese-looking spot where two waterfalls tumble into turquoise pools on walls covered in moss and plants. An easy, very photogenic route through lush vegetation.

A medieval mountain village with an old town of steep, cobbled alleys climbing up the rock. Next to the village are Les Covetes dels Moros, a honeycomb of cavities carved into a cliff, one of the great curiosities of the province.

An inland medieval town famous for its wine, with the La Villa quarter and an underground labyrinth of caves dug in the Muslim era beneath the houses. Perfect for combining history, wine tourism and a stroll along its walls.

A natural balcony at over 600 metres in the heart of the Sierra Calderona Natural Park, reachable by car or on foot. On clear days you can make out the Gulf of València, the Albufera and even the Columbretes islands.

A series of crystal-clear pools carved into the rock by the Clariano river on the outskirts of Ontinyent, one of the great classics of natural-pool bathing. Its pools invite you to jump and swim.

One of the most beautiful towns in Spain, rising on a hill and ringed by a wall with towers and an imposing castle. Its arcaded streets and the basilica of Santa María alone justify the trip north.

A walled town atop a rocky outcrop surrounded by the sea, crowned by the Templar castle where Pope Luna lived. Its old town of white streets overlooking the Mediterranean is one of the most spectacular on the coast.

A tiny village perched 500 metres up, reached through a tunnel carved into the rock and topped by a castle overlooking the valley. The views of the turquoise reservoir and the mountains are among the most photographed in the Comunitat.

The largest lake in Spain, surrounded by rice paddies and the pine woods of the Devesa del Saler, where paella was invented. A boat ride at sunset, when the water turns gold and red, is one of the most magical plans near the city.

The water park closest to València, in Cullera, with slides, a wave pool and a kids' area. The refreshing plan par excellence for the hot days of summer.