Valencia is Spain's third city —around 800,000 people in the city itself and close to 1.6 million in its metropolitan area— and the capital of the Valencian Community, facing the Mediterranean on the Costa del Azahar.
Its defining feature was born from a disaster: after the 1957 flood, the Turia river was diverted and its old bed became the Turia Gardens, a nine-kilometre park that crosses the city from end to end and flows into Calatrava's spectacular City of Arts and Sciences. That blend of age-old farmland and futuristic architecture defines today's Valencia.
The old town is one of the best preserved in Spain: the Cathedral with the Holy Chalice and the Miguelete tower, the Silk Exchange —a UNESCO World Heritage Site—, the Modernista Central Market and lively neighbourhoods like El Carmen and Ruzafa. On the outskirts, the natural park of La Albufera, with its rice paddies and barracas, is the birthplace of Valencian paella.
Valencia is also a city of urban beach (La Malvarrosa), bikes (one of the flattest, most cycle-friendly cities in Spain) and great food at reasonable prices compared with Madrid or Barcelona. Two or three days cover the essentials. The best time to visit is spring and autumn; come in mid-March