Routes around Valencia with children

If you are coming to Valencia with children and are feeling a bit lost, we can offer you two ideas of routes for you to do with them. Two itineraries that are full of places where they can just be kids, and where you, the adults, can just relax.

Valencia is a city with everything you need to explore it together:

The distances

The distances between points of interest are reasonably short. And, to top it off, it is completely flat.

Its activities

It has activities for all tastes: for the sportier ones, and also for those who are into more cultural things.

Its climate

It has a mild climate all year round and beaches that are almost wild, just a stone's throw from the city.

That's why the urban routes we suggest can be done on foot or by bike, depending on the weather and your preferences. And, pretty much from start to finish, you can walk along the Turia riverbed and come up to the ‘surface’ at each stop.

The perfect route to get to know Valencia with children

The two itineraries are designed so that you can do them in one day if you want to. If that’s what you fancy doing, the best way to go is by bike, of course. On foot would be too much for the little ones in a single day.

No matter how much time you have, it is possible to begin at Point 1 and continue to the end, or go the other way round, as the order you do it in does not change the experience.

Likewise, if you feel like mixing stops from Route 1 with others from Route 2, then go ahead and do that; the combinations are infinite, although here are two that have a little bit of everything and can be completed in a day well spent.

And if you're looking for beaches, in addition to the in-town ones, there are several within ten kilometres of the city, which we'll tell you about further below.

Here are the suggestions, with their stops, from north to south, so you can make the most of your time.

ROUTE 1

Bioparc (Biopark)
Parque de Cabecera (Cabecera Park)
Jardines del Turia (The Turia Gardens)
Jardín Botánico (The Botanic Garden)
Jardines de Monforte (Monforte Gardens)
Oceanogràfic (Aquarium)
Paseo Marítimo (The Promenade)
Playa de la Malvarrosa (La Malvarrosa Beach)

ROUTE 2

Parque Central (Central Park)
Museo L'Iber de soldaditos de plomo (L’Iber Tin Soldier Museum)
Jardines del Turia (The Turia Gardens)
Jardines del Real (Royal Gardens)
Museo Fallero (The Fallas Museum)
Oceanogràfic (Aquarium)
Paseo Marítimo (The Promenade)
Playa del Cabanyal (Cabanyal Beach)

Stops to make on each route

So you know what you'll find at each of these places in the city, and to help you plan your perfect route, here's little taste of each stop:

Bioparc València Information

A little slice of Africa in Valencia. Here you can learn about the most outstanding animals, vegetation, and landscapes found in the neighbouring continent's habitats: the savannah, the forests of Equatorial Africa and Madagascar, and the wetlands.

Cabecera Park

A metropolitan park of... 168,000 square metres! A green space in the heart of the city with hills, abundant Mediterranean flora, and a navigable lake. Ideal for playing, having a picnic, or taking a duck-shaped boat out for a row on the lake.

Turia Garden

Nine kilometres of flat green areas that cross the city along the length of the old Turia riverbed. It has a cycle lane, a special track for runners, football pitches and kiosk bars where you can have a bite to eat or maybe a vermouth, a true Valencian tradition.

Botanical Garden

This garden is a living, and lively, museum, one that is crammed with life. It is a place where you can discover species and trees from all over the world arranged in monographic collections; the perfect place to learn about their adaptations to the environment and their usefulness for human beings.

Parque Central

This large, ten-hectare, urban park opened in 2019 band in the heart of the city centre. Next to the North Station, it is perfect for families and pets because, in addition to plenty of green areas, a climbing wall and slides, it has an area set aside for dogs with games for them.

L’Iber – The Tin Soldier Museum

Located in the heart of the Barrio del Carmen, this museum has a collection of more than 95,000 tin soldiers mounted on realistic mock-ups. As well as a graphic history lesson, you can admire the Gothic-style palace it is housed in.

Royal Garden & Viveros Garden

This well-kept mega-garden, is the city’s most emblematic. Here you can see sculptures from different periods and in a variety of styles (there is even a tribute to Donald Duck). Slides, swings and even a signposted circuit where you can learn how to drive will make you never want to leave.

Monforte Garden (L'Hort de Romero)

This little haven of peace in the heart of the city looks like something out of a fairy tale: a palatial mansion with two private gardens full of neatly trimmed hedges, ponds, statues, pathways and coquettish, Instagrammable nooks and crannies.

The Fallas Museum

The Fallas are the Valencian festival par excellence. Internationally renowned for the artistry of the monuments that are burnt every year, in this museum you can see a representation of the famous ‘ninots’; a display of figures that have been saved from the bonfire.

València Aquarium Oceanografic

Europe's largest aquarium: 500 marine species represented by a whopping 45,000 specimens from the most important ecosystems of each of the Earth's seas and oceans. A real tribute to marine life, with a dolphinarium and bio-educational displays.

Paseo Marítimo & Paseo Neptuno

Welcome to this balcony looking on to the sea, where you can do anything and everything: skate, fly a kite, snack, or have lunch in one of the many restaurants that offer all culinary styles.

València Beaches

They involve the Cabanyal, Malvarrosa and Patacona beaches, which between them they offer everything you need for your contentment over the length of their three and a half kilometres of fine, soft sand.

Basically, you could spend the whole day in any of these places because they offer so much. But if you're in Valencia for a limited time, do the tour that takes your fancy. And if you have anything left to see, you already have an excuse to come back.

The least urban part of the routes: the beaches

In addition to the two urban beaches included in the routes, there are some other, very different, beaches within a maximum distance of 15 kilometres from the city, in the Albufera Natural Park.

All of them can be reached by bike, and then you can take a stroll along the white sand dunes or go sunbathing or hiking through the woods by the sea. And, of course, you can eat paella, not for nothing is this the birthplace of our most famous dish.

Here is a list of beaches outside the town centre, which can also be reached by public transport (the yellow buses!).