“Calmer” than Madrid or Barcelona, and just as much an Eldorado for foodies. Whether you travel with or without a baby: Valencia, Spain’s third largest city, is simply a dream. Plus, many kilometres of city beaches at the mouth of the river Turia make Valencia especially attractive for us as a family.
In addition, a dear friend recently moved from Austria to Spain with her Chilean husband. It is the two of them who ultimately make us go, diving into a sea full of travel adventures with our two young children.
Hola, Valencia: Out and about with our friends Michi & Alejandro (first and third from left); both kids are on siesta mode in their prams.
Thanks to the support of our local friends and their practical tips, the journey is much easier on us naturally.
Flying with kids “made easy”: The most important tips for relaxed kids (and parents).
So how, as parents, do you go about ensuring peace right from the start, making those arrival and departure days with (very young) children as stress-free as possible? One important tip is, of course, preparation: Does everyone have a valid passport, for instance? Babies and toddlers also need their own passport when travelling (at least here in Austria). Who carries which item of luggage (and child), other than a carrier, pram, nappies, baby food, toys – clothes?! What goes into our bags, whether hand luggage or checked luggage?
Take a look at the photos below and find out how we organised it all! Here are also a few useful links for you:
- Packing list for our first flight with baby Liam, now seven months old.
- Our first trip as a #FamilyOf4 : Booking flights with an unborn baby
- Take the family to Malta: Tips on how to travel with a baby and toddler in tow.
Preparing for the flight to Valencia: My husband and I love our large travel backpacks, in which we also divide up the clothes for the children – this leaves us “hands free” when navigating around with the two of them.
In the aircraft itself, the baby is given its own small seat belt and is thus “attached” to the seat belt of a parent. I recommend – from personal experience – breastfeeding (or giving bottles) during the climb and descent to prevent possible earaches for the baby.
On the spot, it proved useful to borrow a second travel pram for our three-year-old. The one on the right is our own, bought especially for use as hand luggage on the plane.
Another good tip for travelling with (small) children: Book a family-friendly AirBnB that, like ours here, even has toys, a baby bath, a high chair, etc. It makes everything much easier for us parents ..!
Valencia travel tip #1 : Beach, beach, beach – and mild autumn vibes.
We booked our AirBnB accommodation not only because it was family-friendly, but also because it was close to the city beaches of Valencia, El Cabanyal and Malvarosa. This seemed to be the best choice for travelling with children: in the sand, fun and games are guaranteed without much effort. Once, I went to the beach with my older son, while daddy and baby Levin were resting: Liam even dared to go into the sea, which offered surprisingly mild water temperatures despite the time of year (end of October).
Check this out.
View over the massive beach in Valencia city. On Saturday morning, we greet the fishermen!
Liam and I are busy elsewhere (all the toys that you can see here are from our AirBnB, so cool!) …
… our friend Michi also joined us on the beach …
… and for little Levin, it was his second time ever on a beach after Malta …
… we loved our beach time here: Do make sure to check it out when you travel to Valencia!
Valencia travel tip #2 : Visit a very cool sea world.
This tip came early on from our local friends Michi & Alejandro, as well as from a parents’ travel community on Facebook. The layout of the aquariums, the quality of the food on site, the guided tour of the diverse and varied grounds: in the end, the €33 admission fee per adult (children under four are free) seemed justified to us.
View of the “Oceanogràfic” sea world in Valencia …
… both my kids were absolutely thrilled …
… of the mighty underwater world …
… in front of their eyes. We all especially loved the large aquarium tunnels.
Above ground, Liam checks out a bunch of flamingos at the Oceanogràfic in Valencia.
Valencia travel tip #3 : Learn to prepare your own Spanish Paella!
Learning to prepare a real Spanish paella where it originally comes from, is I believe a must when visiting Valencia! This has been a declared gourmet goal of mine for a long time, as I have been cooking paella for my family in Austria for years (following the recipe of a friend from Madrid).
Turns out that Miguel, through his Horta Viva business, provided just the right offer: Outside the main city, we could learn how to cook a paella for twelve people at his home together with a group from the Netherlands – including vegetables freshly harvested from the family garden.
It was Miguel who finally taught me that the real secret “among the thousand different paella recipes” is to get the flavour of the meat and vegetables into the rice through the broth first – so that the rice doesn’t need to be seasoned at all. And it’s not just any rice they use here in Valencia, of course, it’s the original round grain rice grown especially here around Valencia.
Enjoy our cooking demo through the photographs below.
Our foodie trip to cooking a Spanish paella starts with … straining a special type of “pear tomato” (picture (c) Michaela Valle) …
… Miguel has prepared many ingredients already, such as veggies from his own garden, meat and olive oil …
… while Michi and I stir …
… Liam is happy to learn that he can feed the salad leaves to the chicken behind the house.
Thank you for the beautiful family picture, Michi! (picture (c) Michaela Valle).
After a good hour’s work, the paella for twelve is finally ready!
We love it – including Liam. All digging in. I can only recommend you to check out Miguel’s food travel experiences!
Valencia travel tip #4 : Enjoy the city’s old town district.
The old town of Valencia is well worth a visit. Michi and Alejandro told us a little bit about the history of the city. However, naturally when travelling with young children, any longer stretches of sightseeing will have to wait until they are a bit more grown …! But even so, just strolling around (in our case: pushing the prams) is very very nice in Valencia.
“The Walking Dad” …
… off we go through one of Valencia’s medieval gates.
We love the inner city …
… full of typical small streets and tall, narrow houses …
… many historical sights …
… and even some time to us as parents, while both kids happen to nap at the same time (jackpot!).
Another travel tip is this: In the immediate vicinity of the old town, you can cycle or walk through the dried-up (diverted) riverbed of the Turia river, a nearly 10-kilometre-long recreation centre in the middle of Valencia. Next time we visit, we want to cycle along here too! (picture (c) Michaela Valle).
Valencia travel tip #5 : Discover the modern face of Valencia.
Nothing like visiting la “Ciutat de les Arts i Sciències” (the “City of Arts and Sciences”). In 2022, Valencia has been known as “World Capital of Design” – well deserved, I’d say!
Natural Valencia photo stop (picture (c) Michaela Valle).
Only a few steps away from the “Oceanogràfic” …
… we discover extremely exciting buildings here, such as the modern opera house of Valencia, which is spanned by a huge “leaf” – an architectural and constructional masterpiece!
This is another must-see area when you’re in Valencia! Also, don’t forget to order Horchata (typical regional soft drink). It’s doubly refreshing after long walks. (picture (c) Michaela Valle).
Valencia travel tip #6 : Tapas, Tapas, Tapas!!!
What would a trip to Spain be without trying tapas? We have tasted our way through many of them, not spurning an extra kilo or two from the trip, and can only recommend the following temptations to you …
Easy beginnings: Juicy olives (“aceitunas”) are served as tapas everywhere, also appealing to our son Liam..!
… Tapas dinner at the local bar and restaurant “Pintxo i Trago” at Plaça Redonda …
… now this meal, called Fideua, is still known to me from my time living in Costa Brava …
… and everywhere we go is very child-friendly, too. A great city destination when travelling with young ones!
Fancy going to Valencia? If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to comment here. Buen viaje!