Valencia

Getting Here and Around

By car, Valencia is about 3½ hours from Madrid via the A3 motorway, and about the same from Barcelona on the AP7 toll road. Valencia is well connected by bus and train, with regular service to/from cities throughout the country, including 15 daily AVE high-speed express trains from Madrid, making the trip in an hour and 40 minutes, and seven Euromed express trains daily from Barcelona, taking about 3 hours. Valencia's bus station is across the river from the old town; take Bus 8 from the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Frequent buses make the four-hour trip from Madrid and the five-hour trip from Barcelona. Some 49 airlines, large and small, serve Valencia airport, connecting the city with dozens of cities throughout Spain and the rest of Europe.

Once you're here, the city has an efficient network of buses, trams, and metro. For timetables and more information, stop by the local tourist office. The double-decker Valencia Bus Turístic runs daily 9:45-7:45 (until 9:15 in summer) and departs every 20 to 30 minutes. It travels through the city, stopping at most of the main sights: a one-day ticket (€15) lets you get on and off at eight main boarding points, including the Plaza de la Reina, Institut Valencià d'Art Modern, Museo de Bellas Artes, and the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències. The same company also offers a two-hour guided trip (€14) to Albufera Nature Park, departing from the Plaza de la Reina. In summer (and sometimes during the rest of the year) Valencia's tourist office organizes tours of Albufera. You see the port area before continuing south to the lagoon itself, where you can visit a traditional barraca (thatch farmhouse).