View over the rooftops of Valencia from the top of the Miguelete tower
  1. Home
  2. Destinations
  3. Spain
  4. Valencia
  5. 1 day itinerary

Valencia in 1 day

  • 1 day
  • 5.4 km on foot
  • 17 stops
  • Audio guide

One day is enough to take in the essentials of Valencia if you don't mind an early start and a lot of walking. This plan strings together the three routes of the compact old town: the must-sees in the morning, medieval Valencia in the afternoon and the legends as the light drops. About five and a half kilometres on foot, with a paella stop and a sweet finish.

One day in ValenciaFrom the Miguelete to the dragon

Start early at the North Station with the route “The best of Valencia”: Town Hall Square, the Central Market, Plaza Redonda and the climb up the Miguelete before the queue builds. Have a leisurely paella for lunch. In the afternoon comes “Walls, silk and water”, from the Serranos Towers through L'Almoina and the Silk Exchange to the Quart Towers. At sunset, “Secret Valencia” takes you from the Cats' House to the Patriarca's dragon. For dinner, a glass of horchata with fartons on Plaza de Santa Catalina.

  1. Morning

    The best of Valencia: from the orange station to the Geperudeta

    Mixed · 1.7 km · 1 h 40 min

    1. North Station (Estación del Norte)A railway station decorated with oranges and orange blossom that has been welcoming people to Valencia since 1917.
    2. Town Hall SquareThe square of the mascletàs stands on the site of a medieval convent and packs a century of architecture into a small space.
    3. Central MarketA modernista cathedral of iron, glass and ceramics devoted to food, crowned by a parrot and a swordfish.
    4. Plaza RedondaA perfect circle from 1840 hidden among narrow streets, on the site of the city's old slaughterhouse.
    5. The MigueleteThe cathedral's octagonal tower is as tall as its perimeter is long, and owes its name to a seven-tonne bell.
    6. Plaza de la Virgen and the Basilica of Our Lady of the ForsakenValencia's loveliest square revolves around the Geperudeta, the slightly stooping Virgin who protected the insane and orphans.

    Start the audio guide See the route

  2. Lunch

    Try Paella valenciana at La Pepica. Passeig de Neptú, 6

  3. Afternoon

    Walls, silk and water: two thousand years of Valencia

    History · 1.8 km · 1 h 40 min

    1. Serranos TowersValencia's great medieval gate has been a triumphal arch, a prison for knights and a refuge for the Prado's paintings.
    2. Palau de la GeneralitatA house bought in 1422 became the palace of the Valencian government, with two towers built almost four centuries apart.
    3. Apostles' Door and the Water TribunalIn front of this Gothic doorway, eight farmers dispense justice every Thursday without a single sheet of paper.
    4. L'Almoina, Roman ValenciaBeneath a sheet of water and glass lie the foundations of Valentia, the city founded in 138 BC.
    5. Silk Exchange (La Lonja)The temple of trade of fifteenth-century Valencia, with a hall of columns that looks like a forest of stone palm trees.
    6. Quart TowersThe western gate of the city walls still bears in its stone the wounds of the French artillery of 1808.

    Start the audio guide See the route

  4. Early evening

    Secret Valencia: cats, grails and a dragon

    Mysteries & legends · 1.9 km · 1 h 35 min

    1. The Cats' HouseA miniature house at ground level, a plaque bearing the year 1094 and a legend that accuses El Cid of hating cats.
    2. The Cathedral and the Holy ChaliceInside this cathedral is kept a two-thousand-year-old stone cup that tradition identifies with the Holy Grail.
    3. The Patriarca and its dragonFor four centuries a stuffed caiman, which Valencians call “the dragon”, has hung at the entrance to this church.
    4. Palace of the Marqués de Dos AguasValencia's most extravagant doorway fuelled the legend that only a madman could have designed it.
    5. The Silk Exchange gargoylesTwenty-eight fifteenth-century gargoyles keep watch over the Silk Exchange, and many of them are anything but pious.

    Start the audio guide See the route

  5. Dinner

    Try Horchata with fartons at Horchatería El Siglo. Plaza de Santa Catalina, 11

The map

Valencia in 1 day, on the map

Each route’s stops are numbered in order; the stars are the extra sights.

Mixed History Mysteries & legends

Loading the map…

Before you go

Tips for Valencia in 1 day

  • Wear comfortable shoes: Valencia is flat, but the three routes add up to about five and a half kilometres of narrow streets and cobbles, not counting the walks between them.
  • Spring and autumn are best. In summer the midday heat and humidity bite, so do the routes early and late and keep the middle of the day for a long lunch.
  • Many monuments and museums close one day a week, often Monday. Check the opening hours of the Silk Exchange and the Miguelete before you fix the order of the day.

Questions

Valencia in 1 day: your questions

Can you see Valencia in one day?

Yes. The old town is compact and almost everything is within half an hour's walk. In one day you can do all three routes and still eat well. The City of Arts and Sciences and the beach need another day.

How far do you walk in one day in Valencia?

The three routes add up to about 5.4 km: 1.7 for the essentials, 1.8 for history and 1.9 for mysteries. With the walks between them it will be a little more, but it is all flat and you can sit down often.

Where should you start a day in Valencia?

At the North Station, next to Town Hall Square. The route “The best of Valencia” starts there and ends at Plaza de la Virgen, about a fifteen-minute walk from the Serranos Towers, where the history route begins.

Other itineraries for 1 day

Valencia

More or less time?

2 day itinerary 3 day itinerary All about Valencia