Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, Valencia

Many visitors come to the city expressly for Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, an eye-catching cultural and architectural site that’s home to a science museum, opera house, planetarium, IMAX movie theater, and open-air oceanographic park, the largest such aquarium in Europe. Built in the 1990s at the end of the former riverbed of the Turia River, the futuristic complex was designed by renowned architects Santiago Calatrava and Felix Candela. The principal building, housing the science museum, is filled with hundreds of hands-on exhibits. Attendants can help you find your way around, or leave you alone to enjoy the displays at your own pace. Once you’ve had your fill of exhibits and jostling crowds, enjoy a stroll through the site’s gardens, featuring hundreds of plant species indigenous to this area. Visitors curious to learn the stories behind all the buildings in this giant complex are encouraged to book a guided walking tour. Put Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias and other Valencia attractions into our Valencia trip planner, and watch your holiday take shape.