Welcome to Valencia

How to get there
Iberia flies directly to Valencia from Barcelona, Gran Canaria, Madrid, Malaga, Seville, Tenerife, and the European cities of Brussels, Frankfurt, London, Paris and Rome. Aviaco has daily flights to Valencia from Bilbao, Granada and Palma de Mallorca. Valencia is also connected via Madrid and Barcelona with the rest of Europe, America and Japan.

A-7 motorway connecting to the European motorway network. National route N-340 to Barcelona and Alicante. The N-III to Madrid and Castille-La Mancha.

From a number of Spanish and European cities, rail links to the RENFE Railway Station in central Valencia.

Climate and location
Valencia, the capital of the Valencia Autonomous Region, is situated on the eastern side of the Iberian Peninsula, a geographical location that ensures Mediterranean climate. The winters are mild, with temperatures dropping only occasionally below 10C, and the summers are hot.



Cuisine
Rice is the best known ingredient of Valencian cuisine. There are not many places serving the typical family dishes like rice amb fesols y naps (with white beans and turnips) and "black rice". This is partly because they are overshadows by the huge fame of paella and arroz a banda, but there is more to traditional Valencia cooking than those two dishes; try fideua for example, which is made with seafood and noodles.

Eladio. Chiva, 40. Tel: (96) 384 22 44. One of the classic Valencian home-made cakes.

Galbis. Marua, 28. Tel: (96) 380 94 73. Nouvelle cuisine inspired by the Valencian tradition.

Oscar. Dr. Sumsi, 4. Tel: (96) 373 29 49. Market-fresh ingredients imaginatively cooked by chef Oscar Torrijos. A very good wine list.

El Plat II. Ciscar, 3. Tel: (96) 374 12 54. A wide selection of rice dishes, with specialties like vegetable paella and baked rice. A different rice recipe is prepared each day of the week.

El Gourmet. Taquigrafo Mari, 3. Tel: (96) 395 25 09. A large international menu, with home-made cakes and a wide choice of wines. Excellent value for money.

Los Madriles. Avenida antic Regne de Valencia, 50. Tel: (96) 374 23 35. A small family-run restaurant copiously decorated with bullfighting motif. Home cooking like stuffed potatoes and veal cooked in its gravy.

Cierva. Lerida, 11. Tel: (96) 347 59 17. One of Valencia's leading seafood restaurants. A wide range of tapas at the bar.

La Hacienda. Av. Navarro Reverter, 12. Tel: (96) 373 18 59. Smart food for expense account clients.

Hotels in Valencia:

Holiday Inn Valencia

Hotel Adhoc Valencia

Melia Valencia Palace Hotel Valencia

Shopping
Coinciding with the city center are the main shopping streets: La Paz, Colon and Plaza de Ayuntamiento. There are shops here specializing in the very latest design trends.

On Sunday mornings, the milling crows in Plaza Redondda (behind Plaza de la Reina) denote feverish commercial activity. anything can be found there, from parrots to leather bags or second-hand watches. Customers are warned, however, to check that the article they are buying lives up to the promises of the expert salesman.

Many of the central streets are named after the trades that ware carried on there in former times, and there are still some vestiges of popular handicrafts today. For fine wickerwork, go to the well-known calle de las cestas (street of the baskets). There are also a lot of fan-markers and goldsmiths, but the region's main handicraft is without a doubt ceramics. The pottery and ceramic shops are all over Valencia, and sell their wares directly to the public.

Worth Visiting
Cathedral. Plaza de la Reina. It was built in the heart of the oldest part of Valencia after the city was conquered by Jaime I. Its combination of styles ranges from Cistercian Gothic to Neoclassical, and its principal artistic glories are the Miguelete Tower and the Charter House.

Valencian Institute of Modern Art. Guillem de Castro, 118. Permanent displays devoted to sculptor Julio Gonzalez and painter Ignacio Picazo, and two or more simultaneous temporary exhibitions, generally retrospectives.

Merchants' Exchange. Plaza del Mercado, 1. It includes the old Chamber of Commerce, dating from the late 15th century, and the Maritime Consulate building, separated from the great hall by a tower with three stories and a cellar.

Royal monastery of Santa Maria. A convent laid out in a rectangle around a large central courtyard, rebuilt in the 17th century. The church is Gothic. It is located in El Puig, 25 km away from Valencia.

Roman Theatre. Standing in the town of Sagunto, this is one of the finest buildings to have survived from Roman Hispania. It was built in the 1st and 2nd centuries, and was declared a national monument a hundred years ago.

Palacio de la Generalitat. Seat of the Valencian Government, with Renaissance-style coffered and gold-beaten ceilings, and reminiscences of the Orient. The Salon de las Cortes (Parliament) contains large paintings by Zarinena.

Nightlife
Cerveceria Madrid. Abadia San Martin, 10. One of the best places to try the famous Agua de Valencia, a cocktail made of fresh orange juice, Cava and liqueur. A congenial and peaceful establishment.

Casablanca. Playa de la Malvarrosa. An improbable Arabesque Palace built right on the beach, and now converted into a cocktail bar and dance hall with a live band.

Johann Sebastian Bach. Mar, 31. A palace in the historic center that has been turned into a Baroque-cum-Surrealist night club. Decorated with a vast profusion of religious images, antiques, live animals in cages (including some lions) and other extravagances. Baroque music, with an emphasis on Bach.

Casino Monte Picayo. Urbanizacion Monte Picayo (Puzol). French and American roulette, blackjack, faro and fruit machines, as well as an international restaurant. Open from 7 pm to 4 am.

Belle Epoque. Cuba, 8. Upmarket music hall with nightly performances.

La Champaneria. Eugenia Vines, 118. This champagne bar on La Malvarrossa Beach is a must for all lovers of Good Cava. Open every day.

Pacha. Emilio Baro, 71. Live rock and pop concerts. Open from Thursday to Sunday.

Useful Addresses
Municipal Tourist Office
Plaza del Ayuntamiento, 1
Tel: (96) 351 04 17.

Valencian Institute of Tourism
Avenida de Aragon, 30, 8
Tel: (96) 394 2222.

Iberia Offices
Paz, 14
Tel: (96) 352 75 52