Valencia

There's a saying that Valencians have no time for the tragic, and surrounded by the raucous bars and cafes on Calle it would seem impossible to dispute.

Spain's third city boasts the liveliest nightlife on the mainland, a rich architectural heritage and enough museums and galleries to satisfy the most culturally ravenous (gastronomes will be pleased to hear it's also the home of paella).

However, it's her latest addition, the futuristic City of Arts and Sciences, which looks set to catapult Valencia to the top of the nation's tourist itinerary.

Valencia's public transport system requires patience, so its lucky that most of the attractions are corralled within the ancient city walls and best explored on foot. Overlooking the gardens that now fill the bed of the diverted river Turia, the Serranos Towers provided the setting for El Cid's last stand against the besieging Moors in 1053.

Behind the city walls the twisting streets of Barrio El Carmen are Valencia's best-kept secret. Since completion, the Valencian Institute of Modern Art (IVAM) has spurred on the gentrification of the gothic quarter filling it with galleries and cafes.

Dominating Plaza de la Reina is the city's architectural centrepiece La Catedral, an impressive mishmash of Moorish domes, gothic arches and baroque carving watched over by the Miguelete Tower. Climb the 207 steps that lead to the top for rewarding views of the city that stretches to the coast.

The nearby Mercado is a fitting testament to the fertility of La Huerta, the name given to the agricultural lands that surround the city. Stepping inside is a genuinely Lilliputian experience as you shrink beneath a vast domed ceiling of cast iron and glass, surrounded by more than a thousand market-stalls.

Opposite, La Lonja (the silk exchange) has been declared a UNESCO world heritage site and often houses interesting, if idiosyncratic, collectors' fairs.

Valencia also hosts Spain's most exuberant fiestas, the Fallas. Come the 19th March, months of work building giant satirical papier-mâché figures (ninots) goes up in a barrage of fire, cordite and gunpowder. Each year just one ninot is spared the flames and takes its place alongside previous winners in the Museo Fallero.