Oceanografic Valencia

The Oceanografic anchors Valencia's City of Arts and Sciences - Santiago Calatrava's white futurist ensemble in the old Turia riverbed - with the largest aquarium in Europe: opened in 2003 beneath Felix Candela's swooping thin-shell pavilions, it holds some 45,000 animals of around 500 species in habitats that march from the Mediterranean through the tropics to the Arctic. The showpieces earn their queues - an underwater tunnel among Europe's longest slides you beneath cruising sharks and rays, belugas patrol the Arctic dome, and the wetland aviary and Mediterranean tanks reward slower attention than the crowd-pleasers get. Around it, the rest of the complex - the eye-shaped Hemisferic, the ribbed science museum, the Palau de les Arts opera house - makes the walk between buildings half the spectacle, best of all reflected in the shallow pools at dusk.

What you actually see

• The shark tunnel - one of Europe's longest underwater walks.
• The Arctic dome - belugas circling under white shells.
• The Candela pavilions - thin-shell architecture worth the visit alone.
• The City of Arts ensemble - Calatrava's white futurism reflected in pools.

When to go

Open year-round; summer and holiday weekends bring the longest queues, so book online and arrive at opening. Valencia's mild winters make the off-season a comfortable, thin-crowd visit.

Honest expectations

Tickets are among Spain's priciest attraction entries, and the food outlets inside price accordingly - budget properly for a family day. Peak-season crowds bottleneck at the tunnel and dolphin stands. Allow evening time outside: the complex at dusk, lit and mirrored in its pools, is free and unforgettable.

Nearby

The Turia gardens, Valencia's old town and the Malvarrosa beach front.