Valencia is a charming old city famous for its Fallas Festival in March, for being the birthplace of paella, for hosting the "2007 & 2010 America's Cup", and for the massive architectural project by Santiago Calatrava called The City of Arts and Sciences, an avant-garde and futuristic museum complex.

It is on the Mediterranean Sea approximately four hours to the south of Barcelona and three hours to the east of Madrid. The river Turia ran through the center of the city, but it 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.

The city contains a dense monumental heritage (including the Llotja de la Seda (World Heritage Site since 1996) and there are several city beaches, and three major beaches outside of Valencia. Playa de Malvarrosa and Playa e Levante o de la arenas are the most popular city beaches, just north of the port. To get there, take the metro or tram to Eugenia Vines or Arenas station, or take the metro to Maritim Serreria and continue with the tram to Neptu (all on one ticket).