Walking through the streets of Valencia is almost like stepping into a time machine and going back into time. It astonishes with its harmonious blend of Mediterranean architecture, Moorish heritage and some of the most modern, vanguard buildings built so far this century. Thanks to its location, Valencia has been the Spanish gateway to the Mediterranean, with the special charm that seaport cities have.

A stroll downtown will afford you a pleasant mixture of smells, movement and colour as you near the modernist market known as Mercado Central where you can pop into the 15th-century Gothic La Lonja merchants’ exchange, added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1996, and admire the splendid colonnade. Head for the two surviving gates of the ancient city walls to reach the Palacio del Marqués de Dos Aguas with its extravagant rococo door surround what now hosts the National Ceramics Museum. Finally, join the quest for the Holy Grail in the 13th as you enter the Valencia cathedral, curiously built in different architectural styles.

Outstripped in popularity only by Madrid`s Prado museum, Ciudad de las Artes y de las Ciencias occupies over 350,000 square meters of the old Turia riverbed. It is a delightful complex of four buildings designed by Santiago Calatrava. The shape of the Museum of Sciences calls to mind a huge skeleton while the Museum of the Arts looks more like a pistachio. This contrasts sharply with the eye-looking Hemisferic – a planetarium, IMAX cinema and laser show all wrapped into one, right next door to one of the largest Oceanographic aquariums with thousands of rare species.

As an old Spanish song goes: "Valencia es la tierra de las flores.."-"Valencia is the land of flowers”. And it’s true! The Jardines de la Alameda and Jardines de Monforte, romantic parks of the 18th century, include a beautiful rosarium, large pines, a Zoo and hidden ruins of an old king's palace known as the Royal Gardens. For a relaxing afternoon choose The Botanical Garden with its extensive cactus colection.