The city of Valencia is packed full of incredible experiences, museums, art galleries and culture. If you only have a few days in Spain’s third largest city you’re unlikely to visit all the museums on offer but you may well wish to visit one or two. I certainly did. Let’s take a look then, at the best and most visited museums in Valencia so you can figure out which of the many you want to explore. 

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Museums in Valencia

In this article I’ve split the museums in Valencia into sections:

➡️ Ciutat de les Artes i les Ciències (The City of Arts and Sciences)

➡️ Ciutat Vella (the historical centre)

➡️ Other

➕ When people are trying to decide between visiting Valencia or Seville, the sheer number of museums in Valencia can be a deciding factor.

Note: Museums are generally closed on Mondays – the City of Arts and Sciences is open every day, however.

The City of Arts and Sciences

This museum zone is located at one end of the glorious Turia Gardens. The buildings here were designed by the architect, Santiago Calatrava and even if you have no interest in these museums, the buildings themselves are magnificent and are well worth your time.

🔬 Museu de les Ciències Príncipe Felipe

This is the famous Science Museum of Valencia. It is a 3 storey building with interactive experiences, live learning classes and plenty of buttons to press and enjoy.

🐠 Oceanogràfic de València

The largest aquarium in Europe and home to the longest shark tunnel in Europe, too. This is a very impressive aquarium (except, in my opinion, for the fact that they keep beluga whales and dolphins in captivity).

🎞 Hemisferic

This is a giant IMAX cinema housed inside a fabulous representation of an eye. Here you can watch movies that generally relate to the natural world.

➕ concert hall (Palau de la Musica) and the Caixa Forum which hosts events and exhibitions. 

🔥 Fallas Museum

Museo Fallero de Valencia / Museu Faller de València

This museum is not officially in the City of Arts and Sciences but it’s very close by. Here you can learn about the annual Las Fallas festival, which is held every March in Valencia. The museum’s collection consists of the best figurines from each festival each year.

Ciutat Vella

Ethnology Museum (L’ETNO) and Museum of Prehistory

Museu Valencià d’Etnologia & Museu de Prehistoria de Valencia

This is two museums in one building: the Museum of Prehistory and the Ethnology Museum both in the old Casa de la Beneficencia.

The Museum of Prehistory holds archaeological pieces from the Palaeolithic period all the way through to the Visigoth period with some fabulous exhibits on both the Iberian and Roman cultures in the region.

L’ETNO is entered either in its own right or seamlessly from the Prehistory Museum. In this museum you’ll learn about Spain’s devastating civil war, the problems of today’s society and even what life was like for farming communities in the region throughout the ages.

Valencian Institute of Modern Art

Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno (IVAM)

In this gallery, over 11,000 works of contemporary and 20th century modern art are displayed. Temporary exhibitions and permanent collection sit side by side to complement one another.

Archaeological Centre, Almoina / Almoina Musuem

Centro arqueológico La Almoina

The city’s archaeological museum collection displays archaeological remains that were found on the same site in 1985. Several monumental buildings from different eras were found as were more than 1000 coins and numerous ceramic pieces. People who enjoy Roman ruins speak very highly of this museum (as a fan I know I’ll be back to visit).

National Museum of Ceramics and Decorative Arts González Martí 

Museo Nacional de cerámica y de las Artes Suntuarias González Martí / Museu Nacional de Ceràmica i de les Arts Sumptuàries Gonzàlez Martí

This museum, located in the Palace of the Marques dee Dos Aguas, is a national museum of ceramics and decorative arts. The building’s façade is quite something to behold and the interior is sumptuous stately home with frescoes and old furniture.

Museo Taurino

As you might guess from its name, this museum focuses on the traditional Spanish sport of bullfighting. Personally, I’m against all blood-sports so wouldn’t choose to visit here but I understand that the focus is primarily on the costumes worn by the matadors.

Hortensia Herrero Art Centre

This is a private collection homed in the old Valeriola Palace. It contains pieces from 50+ renowned contemporary artists including Anish Kapoor, Andreas Gurksy, Mat Collishaw, Anselm Kiefer.

Other

Valencia History Museum

Museu d’Història de València

This museum is dedicated to the history of Valencia through 8 distinct eras. The museum is housed in the first reservoir of drinking water for Valencia. Includes interactive videos of the city’s history.

Municipal Museum of Natural Sciences

Given the fame of the Science Museum in Valencia, it’s good to know about this quieter, less flashy museum of Natural Sciences where you will find one of the best European collections of South American Pleistocene fossils and so much more.

Museum of Fine Arts (Museo de Bellas Artes)

The visitor to the Museo de Bellas Artes, Spain’s second largest gallery after the Prado in Madrid, will find art from the 15th century through to the 19th century by Valencian masters as well as some contemporary art. Goya, El Greco, Velázquez all have works housed here.

Military History Museum

Anyone interested in Spanish weaponry will want to visit here. The ground floor houses civil war weapons that were manufactured in Valencia.

Museo de la Seda

A museum dedicated to the history of silk that includes a demonstration of silk making. If you’ve visited the Lonja de la Seda and wondered why there’s nothing really to see inside the buildings, this might just be the place for you.