Santiago Calatrava's futuristic complex in the drained Turia riverbed. Hemisfèric planetarium, Science Museum, Umbracle garden, and the most ambitious piece of architectural hubris in modern Spain. Love it or hate it, impossible to ignore.
Location
Quatre Carreres, Valencia
Map
Insider Intel
Start at the Science Museum (Museu de les Ciències Príncipe Felipe) — the interactive exhibits justify the ticket price. The Hemisfèric IMAX is worth doing if the programme interests you. Walk the Umbracle garden overhead for the perspective view of the entire complex. Combine with Oceanogràfic if you are doing the full day.
Weekday morning to avoid crowds. Evening for the complex illuminated against the sky — the white structures glow blue and the effect is theatrical. Summer means heat reflecting off all that white concrete; spring or autumn is more comfortable.
Calatrava is Valencian and this was his signature project — the city spent enormous sums to build it in the late 1990s and 2000s. The complex is controversial locally (budget overruns, maintenance costs), but as architecture it is genuinely spectacular. Tickets are sold separately for each building; a combined ticket saves money if you are visiting multiple. The Science Museum is the highlight. Photography is excellent here — the structures are designed to be photogenic.