Valencia City Tour

Encounter Historic Landmarks and Modern Architecture:

Encounter more than two millennia of history on this tour of Valencia. First founded by the Romans in 138 BC, the city now boasts an impressive collection of historic buildings. Begin with a panoramic drive, passing the Old River and Serrano Gate, before heading out to the more modern parts of Valencia to see the stunning City of Arts & Sciences. Enjoy a stroll to the cathedral at Plaza de la Virgen, commonly known as the “Seu.” It was consecrated in 1238 by the first bishop of Valencia, Pere d’Albalat, and dedicated to Saint Mary by order of James I the Conqueror. After a visit of its interior, you will embark on a guided exploration of the surrounding area, including the Generalitat Palace, before returning to your ship.

Typically, I am not an early riser, but I happened to be up this morning and was able to witness a spectacular sunrise over the port of Valencia, Spain. Wow! Perhaps I should try this more often. Tim was not feeling well, so I struck out on my own for a panoramic tour of the city.

I Need to Get Up More Often for Sunrise

Valencia is Spain’s third largest city and is justly proud of its 2,000 years of history and culture. Its Old Town is particularly rich with historic buildings, wide-open plazas, and cultural monuments. Valencia, however, has also embraced modern architecture, and the city is known for its bold, contemporary buildings, especially the ones designed by Santiago Calatrava, a world-renown architect and native of the city.

Viking Neptune Looked Particularly Lovely in the Early Morning Light

After leaving the port, we began our tour with a drive by Santiago Calatrava’s most famous project here, the City of Arts and Sciences. This stunning complex includes numerous buildings, including Europe’s largest aquarium, an opera house, and a science museum, all of which are set among a series of reflecting pools. I found the architecture to be stunning, and I so wanted to get off the bus and simply wander around and gawk. Alas, we did not stop, and I could capture only a few photographs through the bus windows.

City of Arts and Sciences

Instead, we headed towards Valencia’s historic core. On our way, we passed by Plaza de Toros, the city’s bullring, and Estación del Norte, the central train station, before driving along the former riverbed of the Turia River, which has been converted into Turia Gardens, a park that winds through the center of modern Valencia.

Bullring, Train Station, and Turia Gardens

We soon exited the bus and began our walking tour of Old Town, where we viewed beautiful examples of Renaissance and Baroque architecture, as well as Beaux-Art and Art Nouveau styles. Interspersed among the buildings were elegant public plazas or squares.

Last night’s lecture helped me to search out each building’s architectural details, and I was especially intrigued by what I saw on Valencia’s City Hall. Our excellent guide explained the symbolism behind the rather bizarre animal that is a prominent feature on the city seal – a bat! Legend goes that it was a bat that woke King Jaume I and his soldiers at the exact moment the city was being attacked by Muslim troops. Ever since that day, the bat has become the city’s main symbol, representing protection.

Valencia City Hall and Its Bats

Perhaps my favorite stop was the Mercado Central, one of Valencia’s most famous covered markets. Although my eyes were initially drawn to the beautiful tile work on the exterior of the building, my jaw almost dropped when I walked inside this vast space. Although most people were drawn to the fabulous foods on display, I kept looking upwards, to the exposed iron beams, the gorgeous dome, and the stained-glass windows.

The Incredible Architecture of Mercado Central

The Enticing Food Stalls Inside Mercado Central

After our guide told us about a popular treat that is a Christmas tradition in Valencia, I decided to purchase a few. Turróns are a nougat confection typically made of honey and almonds. Although most are shaped into rectangular blocks, our guide helped me find a small quantity of individually wrapped ones. Yummy!

Various Turróns - Mine Are on the Bottom Right

Next up was the Llotja de la Seda or the Silk Exchange, built between 1482 and 1533 and one of the finest examples of late Gothic architecture in Spain. The building has always been a center for commerce and is Valencia’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today, however, its gargoyles seem to attract as much attention as its architecture and history, and our guide seemed to delight in explaining the symbolism behind some of the risqué ones.

The Silk Exchange

Another highlight of our tour was a visit to La Catedral, or Saint Mary’s Cathedral, which started life as a Roman temple, became a mosque, and was finally converted into a cathedral. The interior is famous for its Renaissance frescos, as well as the Holy Chalise, which is credited as being the actual Holy Grail.

Valencia Cathedral

During our walking tour, we learned that Valencia oranges are used as street trees throughout the city. I wonder what happens to the mess when the oranges fall to the sidewalks. Throughout our tour, we also wandered through many of Valencia’s lovely plazas, many of which have been decorated for Christmas.

I Had Never Seen Fruit Trees Used as Street Trees

The Plazas Were Ready for Christmas

Our tour covered almost every “must-see” location in Valencia’s Old Town, many more than I’ve described above, and I came away with an excellent appreciation of this stunning city and its history and architecture.

A Few More "Must-See" Buildings

On our drive back to our ship, we learned that Spain observes many holidays. Yesterday was Constitution Day, and tomorrow is Immaculate Conception, another holiday. Today, therefore, is a puente or “bridge” holiday, a day when Spaniards take off to bridge the time between one holiday and another or the weekend. When they take the entire week off it’s considered an “aqueduct” holiday. What a great system!

Tim and I had arranged to meet with Chantelle, the Shore Excursion Manager, this afternoon to talk about our upcoming World Cruise. Chantelle has completed several world cruises and is getting ready for the next one, so she was able to give us some very helpful hints. She strongly advised us not to stress about reserving shore excursions when they open for booking since Guest Services maintains a wait list once we are on board. Chantelle noted that additional tours are often added, and everyone can usually be accommodated.

Chantelle also encouraged us to manage our expectations and simply go with the flow, since it is inevitable that there will be many changes during our journey. Her discussion about the dynamics of traveling with the same 900+ people for 180 days was especially interesting! Thank you, Chantelle, for taking the time out of your busy day to talk with us.

Our Progress, So Far