valencia prep and planning
After all of the whirlwind of traveling this summer, I was left with very few weekends just to be in Spain. By no means am I complaining! However, with such a short period of time to be in Spain, I was overwhelmed with figuring out how to manage those weekends that I did have. This weekend, Pilar was out of town with a friend, so I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything back in Madrid.
I decided to spend the weekend in Valencia, Spain. Valencia was truly a vacation for me. I had Friday night through Sunday afternoon there, and I fit in a mix of touristy things with some sleeping in/ hotel lounge time and beach time. And though it was a relaxing trip, I still did a lot of planning up front.
Since we are approaching- or in the midst of- vacaciones or "holidays" in Spain, I had one heck of a time getting a hotel and train tickets for Valencia! Everyone is traveling a lot right now, since most Spaniards have at least two, usually three, weeks of vacation in late July or August. And since everyone in Madrid wants to get to the beach, and Valencia is the most easily accessible, cue the high prices and demand for tickets and lodging. Note: The AVE is usually a bit expensive because of its punctuality and speed, so it wasn't more expensive than I'd anticipated, but it was less available!
I ended up spending too much on tickets and my hotel for that reason, but I don't say I regret it. I booked two nights at a Marriott in Valencia (sorry Mom, no Hilton Honors) that was in a perfect location, honestly. I later found some much more affordable hostels- even some with private rooms- but couldn't cancel my Marriott reservation. In the end, I was okay with that. You can't beat knowing what you're going to get in a hotel, including the service of the receptionists, cleanliness, and total privacy and freedom. Is it worth that much extra money? Not always, but this time, I was glad I went that route.
Getting train tickets was much more of an ordeal. I went to Atocha twice with the intention of getting my tickets. Both times, I allowed more than enough time to get there and anticipated having to wait a long while to be helped. The first time I went was early evening last Tuesday, and I got there around 6:15 knowing they close at 8 and stop distributing tickets around 7:30, depending on their business. At 6:15, they were already done giving numbers to customers who were waiting! I planned to go back the next day right after work since I was going to Pilar's and could leave from Atocha anyways. When I got there, there were 168 numbers of customers waiting in front of me! I ended up leaving, and Pilar helped me get the tickets through a travel agent in Camarma that evening. However, I ended up with the remains of the tickets that had been picked through by everyone else going to Valencia that weekend. I got to Valencia a few hours later than I would have liked on Friday, so basically I just got there to crash in my hotel room. Then for my return ticket, I had to pay for "preferente," which is like first-class, since that was all that was available aside from a super early morning trip and Monday afternoon returns!
After all of the complications and challenges had been resolved, I got to start the more enjoyable planning for the trip. Valencia, though the third largest city in Spain, is a far less popular tourist destination. With that being said, there are significantly fewer guides from bloggers and sites with info for what to do in Valencia. However, these sites were super helpful, particularly the Along Dusty Roads blog.
One of my sister's friends studied abroad there a few summers ago, so I messaged him for some recommendations, but I ultimately settled for and was very content with a slow paced weekend.
I did plan two particular things in advance. I purchased a Valencia Pass for 24 hours. All in all, I probably lost some money, but it was worth it mostly because it includes unlimited public transportation use for 24 hours after activated. I didn't need it at all on Friday night or Saturday morning, so it honestly worked out perfectly for my travel plans. The company also delivered the pass for free to my hotel, so it was there when I checked in. It includes free admission to some monuments or museums and discounts at a lot of other places. However, something I did not know is that all entries (besides the Cathedral) are free on Sunday, and that's when I did most of the things that I'd planned to use the card for. If I broke even, it was from using it for travel in transit.
I also "booked" a free walking tour with Free Tour Valencia. The free walking tours are one of my favourite was to get acquainted with an area. Tipping is expected, but the nice thing is you get to decide, at the end, how much you feel like the ticket was worth to you. I made the reservation ahead of time online and had a confirmation, but I paid nothing up front.
My favourite part of Valencia was the access to the water and the colourful buildings with pretty balconies. It reminded me a lot of a mix of Cádiz and Sevilla. The walking tour was also a highlight, and I never say no to beach time.
I had a loose itinerary, a few destinations and food items in mind, and lodging and travel arrangements, but other than that, I was pretty flexible. It didn't appear to be a city where I would be crunched for time with a plethora of monuments and museums to see, and I left under the same impression. But after seeing Valencia, I feel like I have really made the classic loop around and through Spain! More detailed posts and pictures to come!
I decided to spend the weekend in Valencia, Spain. Valencia was truly a vacation for me. I had Friday night through Sunday afternoon there, and I fit in a mix of touristy things with some sleeping in/ hotel lounge time and beach time. And though it was a relaxing trip, I still did a lot of planning up front.
Since we are approaching- or in the midst of- vacaciones or "holidays" in Spain, I had one heck of a time getting a hotel and train tickets for Valencia! Everyone is traveling a lot right now, since most Spaniards have at least two, usually three, weeks of vacation in late July or August. And since everyone in Madrid wants to get to the beach, and Valencia is the most easily accessible, cue the high prices and demand for tickets and lodging. Note: The AVE is usually a bit expensive because of its punctuality and speed, so it wasn't more expensive than I'd anticipated, but it was less available!
I ended up spending too much on tickets and my hotel for that reason, but I don't say I regret it. I booked two nights at a Marriott in Valencia (sorry Mom, no Hilton Honors) that was in a perfect location, honestly. I later found some much more affordable hostels- even some with private rooms- but couldn't cancel my Marriott reservation. In the end, I was okay with that. You can't beat knowing what you're going to get in a hotel, including the service of the receptionists, cleanliness, and total privacy and freedom. Is it worth that much extra money? Not always, but this time, I was glad I went that route.
Getting train tickets was much more of an ordeal. I went to Atocha twice with the intention of getting my tickets. Both times, I allowed more than enough time to get there and anticipated having to wait a long while to be helped. The first time I went was early evening last Tuesday, and I got there around 6:15 knowing they close at 8 and stop distributing tickets around 7:30, depending on their business. At 6:15, they were already done giving numbers to customers who were waiting! I planned to go back the next day right after work since I was going to Pilar's and could leave from Atocha anyways. When I got there, there were 168 numbers of customers waiting in front of me! I ended up leaving, and Pilar helped me get the tickets through a travel agent in Camarma that evening. However, I ended up with the remains of the tickets that had been picked through by everyone else going to Valencia that weekend. I got to Valencia a few hours later than I would have liked on Friday, so basically I just got there to crash in my hotel room. Then for my return ticket, I had to pay for "preferente," which is like first-class, since that was all that was available aside from a super early morning trip and Monday afternoon returns!
After all of the complications and challenges had been resolved, I got to start the more enjoyable planning for the trip. Valencia, though the third largest city in Spain, is a far less popular tourist destination. With that being said, there are significantly fewer guides from bloggers and sites with info for what to do in Valencia. However, these sites were super helpful, particularly the Along Dusty Roads blog.
- https://www.alongdustyroads.com/posts/2017/1/13/things-to-know-visiting-valencia-spain
- https://www.alongdustyroads.com/posts/2017/1/9/things-to-do-valencia-spain
- http://www.adoration4adventure.com/valencia-spain/
One of my sister's friends studied abroad there a few summers ago, so I messaged him for some recommendations, but I ultimately settled for and was very content with a slow paced weekend.
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| I spent most of my time right here. |
I also "booked" a free walking tour with Free Tour Valencia. The free walking tours are one of my favourite was to get acquainted with an area. Tipping is expected, but the nice thing is you get to decide, at the end, how much you feel like the ticket was worth to you. I made the reservation ahead of time online and had a confirmation, but I paid nothing up front.
My favourite part of Valencia was the access to the water and the colourful buildings with pretty balconies. It reminded me a lot of a mix of Cádiz and Sevilla. The walking tour was also a highlight, and I never say no to beach time.
I had a loose itinerary, a few destinations and food items in mind, and lodging and travel arrangements, but other than that, I was pretty flexible. It didn't appear to be a city where I would be crunched for time with a plethora of monuments and museums to see, and I left under the same impression. But after seeing Valencia, I feel like I have really made the classic loop around and through Spain! More detailed posts and pictures to come!
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