💡 The Short Version: Cabanyal, Malvarrosa and Patacona are free city beaches, reached by Metrovalencia lines 4, 6 and 8 and EMT buses 24, 25, 26, 28, 32, 92, 95, 98 and C2. In 2026 the lifeguards worked from 1 June to 15 September, with extra weekends to 9 October. The seafront restaurants serve paella at lunchtime, and Casa Carmela’s Valencian paella must be booked and the restaurant is closed on Sundays. La Marina, the old port, is the free walk beside the beach, with the Veles e Vents building and the old sheds. The Cabanyal market is closed on Sundays. Prices are in euros. Or book a tour: the sailing catamaran cruise with a sunset optionad is from €15 and the sunset or daytime catamaran cruisead from €15 (GetYourGuide).
Getting there and the season
The beaches are free and always open. Visit València describes Cabanyal, Malvarrosa and Patacona as a long stretch of golden sand with a promenade, every service and a tourist office on the beach, to enjoy all year.
- Metro and tram: Metrovalencia lines 4, 6 and 8.
- Bus: EMT lines 24, 25, 26, 28, 32, 92, 95, 98 and C2. Line 95 follows the Turia from the Bioparc to the Marina.
- By bike: a cycle lane connects the centre with the coast, and there are large car parks. The Turia Gardens are the green way to the sea.
- Lifeguards: in 2026 the city’s ordinary service ran from 1 June to 15 September, then at weekends in September, the first weekend of October and on 9 October.
Tours worth paying for
These are boat trips from the port, not guides to the beach. Both are rated about 4 stars, so treat them as a way onto the water, not a sight. Prices are the lowest “from” prices, per person.
Sailing catamaran cruise with sunset option
From €15 · 4.1 stars from 4,998 reviews
Valencia: Sailing Catamaran Cruise with Sunset Option and DJad is a 1 to 1.5 hour sail sold by Mundo Marino.
Sunset or daytime catamaran cruise with a drink
From €15 · 4.0 stars from 3,422 reviews
Valencia: Sunset or Daytime Catamaran Cruise with Drinkad lasts from 50 minutes to 1.5 hours and is sold by Boramar.
What to see
Cabanyal, Malvarrosa and Patacona
Free · always open · Avenida Neptuno and the promenade
The promenade is lined with rice restaurants. La Pepica, at Avenida Neptuno 6, says it has served paella since 1898 and takes bookings by phone or on its website. Casa Carmela, at Calle de Isabel de Villena 155, says it has been open since 1922, cooks over orange wood, closes on Sundays and takes its Valencian paella by advance booking only, because it makes a limited number each day. Visit València also lists Casa Montaña and La Alegría de la Huerta. Best paella in Valencia says which to order. The beach has a tourist office, sports courts at the Malvarrosa and paddle-surf and windsurf lessons.
The palm-lined promenade beside the Malvarrosa beach. Photo: Smiley.toerist, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
La Marina de València
Free to walk · the old port, beside Cabanyal beach
The Marina is the old port, where the ferries and cruise ships arrive. The white Veles e Vents building, by David Chipperfield and Fermín Vázquez, was built for the 2007 America’s Cup and holds three restaurants and terraces, La Marítima, La Sucursal and Hoja Malabar. Visit València lists it as open daily 10:00 to 01:30. Three of the port’s modernist sheds, the tinglados, survive and host markets, fairs and exhibitions, and Manolo Valdés’s sculpture La Pamela stands beside Tinglado 2. Valenciaport puts the cruise terminal 3.5 km from the Malvarrosa beach and 6 km from the city centre. The cruise port page covers the buses and the taxi supplement.
The Veles e Vents building on the water at La Marina. Photo: Choinowski, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
El Cabanyal
Free to walk · the old fishermen’s quarter behind the beach
Tiled façades, the Cabanyal market, open Monday to Saturday 7:00 to 15:00 and closed on Sundays, and two museums: the Rice Museum, €2, in a mill of 1906, and the Museu de la Mar, free, in the Casa dels Bous. Both are closed on Mondays. The Blasco Ibáñez house-museum, €2, stands on the Malvarrosa beach.
Tiled and painted house fronts in El Cabanyal. Photo: Enric, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The wild beaches of El Saler
In the L’Albufera natural park
Visit València divides the coast into the urban beaches and the wild ones, which lie in the L’Albufera natural park. Visit València lists EMT line 24 for the park’s beaches. The Albufera page covers the park.
The order that works: take the metro to the beach, walk the promenade to a paella lunch booked in advance and finish on the Marina’s terraces. What to skip: swimming outside the lifeguard season, which in 2026 ran from June to mid-September.
- Getting there: see above. The 24, 48 and 72-hour Tourist Cards cover the metro and buses.
- The one thing that ruins a visit: turning up for a Valencian paella at Casa Carmela on a Sunday, or without a booking.
What to book in Valencia has the closed days for every sight. Valencia with kids fits the beach into a family day. The Rice Museum and the Museu de la Mar are in the Cabanyal. Best time to visit Valencia gives the weather by month. 3 days in Valencia puts the beach on a day of its own. For the beach against seven other cities, see beach city breaks. For a bed by the sea, see where to stay in Valencia.
Common questions
Which are Valencia's city beaches?
Cabanyal, Malvarrosa and Patacona, which Visit València describes as a long stretch of golden sand with a promenade, all services and a tourist office on the beach. They are free.
How do I get to the beach from the centre of Valencia?
By Metrovalencia lines 4, 6 and 8, by EMT buses 24, 25, 26, 28, 32, 92, 95, 98 and C2, by bike along the cycle lane that connects the centre with the coast, or on foot. The 24, 48 and 72-hour Valencia Tourist Cards cover the metro and buses.
When are there lifeguards on Valencia's beaches?
In 2026 the city's ordinary lifeguard service ran from 1 June to 15 September, then at weekends in September, the first weekend of October and on 9 October.
Where do I eat paella on the Valencia seafront?
The promenade has several rice restaurants, among them La Pepica, open since 1898, and Casa Carmela, open since 1922, whose Valencian paella must be booked in advance and which is closed on Sundays. Visit València lists others.
What is La Marina de Valencia?
The port area between Cabanyal beach and the port, where the ferries and cruise ships arrive. It has the white Veles e Vents building from the 2007 America's Cup, restaurants and terraces, and three of the port's old sheds.
