Valencia Apartment for rent

About Valencia city

Valencia is a charming old city and the capital of the Old Kingdom of Valencia province of Spain that is well worth a visit. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea approximately four hours to the south of Barcelona and three hours to the east of Madrid. Valencia is famous for its Fallas Festival in March, for being the birthplace of paella, for hosting the "2007 America's Cup", and for the massive architectural project by Santiago Calatrava called The City of Arts and Sciences.

There used to be a river running through the center of the city, but the river was redirected a while back and replaced by a beautiful park. This is a very nice place to spend any free time you have in the city on a sunny day.

Get in

By plane

Valencia Airport (IATA: VLC) is 9 km from the city center. The bus to Tùria station departs every 11 minutes and takes about 30-40 minutes. Additionally there is the Aerobus which goes directly to the city center, but costs a bit more. Local trains run every 20 minutes. Subway goes directly to the town centre from the Airport.

A taxi ride form the airport to Calle de La Paz, which is in the heart of the historic city centre and covering a distance of approximately 11km costs around €19 with an additional 'airport supplement' of around €4! The tarifs were on display in the taxi but were not easy to see and were written in Spanish, so be careful about getting ripped off. The same journey back from Calle de La Paz to the airport cost only €12! These fees are accurate as of August 2008.

Valencia is served by Iberia, Spanair, Lufthansa, AirFrance, Clickair, AirBerlin, TuiFly, Lagunair, Ryanair, Vueling, and several other airlines.

By train

Many trains come from Madrid (eg: Alaris), Barcelona (eg: Euromed or ARCO), and many other cities. The main train station, Estacion del Norte, is located in the center of the city, near the Town Hall. Travel time by train from Barcelona Sants is about 3 1/2 hours.

The national train company is RENFE. You can check tickets and book online. The first time you buy a ticket online, you have to collect it from a station and show ID, the 'localizer' ticket code, and the credit card itself. Ticket staff are unlikely to speak much English. Saying in Castellano "Quiero recogerlo" (I want to collect it) and showing your documents should work. The big stations have a system where you get a number and then sit back and wait your turn.

By bus

There are also many buses coming from almost every big city in Spain and most of the cities in the Valencia region. The bus station is located by the river in Valencia, about a 15 minutes walk from the center.

By boat

Direct ferry routes exist between Valencia and Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca, and Mahon.

Squares and gardens

The largest square is the Plaça de l'Ajuntament, which contains the town hall (ayuntamiento), a cinema which shows classic movies (La Filmoteca), and many restaurants and bars. This is where the noisy fireworks of the mascletà can be heard every afternoon during the Las Fallas.

The Plaza de la Virgen contains the Basilica of the Virgin and the Turia fountain, and is a popular spot for locals and tourists. Around the corner is the Plaça de la Reina, with the Cathedral, orange trees, and many bars and restaurants.

The Turia River was diverted in the 1960s, after severe flooding, and the old river bed is now the Turia gardens, which contain a children’s playground, a fountain, and sports fields. The Palau de la Música is adjacent to the Turia gardens and the City of Arts and Sciences lies at one end.

Other gardens in Valencia include the Real, Monforte, and Botanical gardens.

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