Rusha is another blogger I was fortunate to meet through Instagram! She is a New Zealand native, who moved to Valencia, Spain! In her contribution to the #CurvesandaCollab series, she is sharing all of her tips-whether you are planning a trip, or a big move, she’s got all the info to get you started! Make sure to follow along on her blog, too!-S
Want to move to Valencia?
Spain is a worldwide famous destination. It is mostly known for its beaches, weather and richness in culture.
When I travel, I don’t typically look for touristic spots or go generally for the main capitals. I like to keep it adventurous and indulge in the not so familiar gems.
Valencia
Valencia is the third biggest city of Spain, when you go there you can feel it in mass of landscape and space. But with the crowding of people, it doesn’t seem as crowded as a typical “3rdbiggest city” should normally feel like.
First arriving into Valencia, it just has a welcoming feel right off the bat. A sense of calmness and a ‘good vibes’ feel to it. The weather is generally warm here, the majority are friendly and helpful, also you even come across less rude bus drivers here than any other place in the world. (I find that this really makes the start of your day more pleasant haha) No matter how little your Spanish is, there is always someone around to help you out.
Things to do when you get there
Try the famous Paella from – Restaurant Marenostrum
Go to the beach and enjoy a relax day, then afterwards head to the Marina Beach Club for some drinks and a wild night!
Take a tour of the city visiting:
– The Sky Bar Valencia
– Ciudad de las Artes
– The Central Market of Valencia
– Albufera to watch the sunset
– El Carmen
– Gulliver Park
and many more!
Don’t miss the Montenejo Hot Springs!
Take a day trip to visit the most natural and erotic springs in the Valencia Province.
This natural beauty is basically a National Park with astonishing mountain landscapes, waterfalls galore and relaxing springs to indulge in after finishing your massive hike.
How to meet new people?
Join some Valencia expat groups on Facebook and via Whatsapp to get involved in meetups all around the city. Whether it’s a meet up at the beach, a party in El Carmen or a picnic in Turia Park! There are always meetups happening all around Valencia which makes it even that much more welcoming. Join them here below:
Expats in Valencia:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/230251170358165/
Valencia Expats:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/valenciaexpats/
Girls in Valencia:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1427897090639500/
*Join the Whatsapp chats by finding them posted in the following groups or ask around.
Accommodation
Accommodation is usually the first thing that everyone tends to freak out over when they either first move to a place or they just want to take a quick trip somewhere. I have been to Valencia twice for holidays and now I live there so I have two ranges of accommodation that I’ve always came back running to.
Where to stay:
The most popular locations to surround yourself around are El Carmen and Rusafa. Many people also say that Benimaclet is a great area, but I beg to differ. For students, it makes sense to live there but because transport around Valencia is amazing, it really doesn’t matter.
My most favorite hostel of all time, and where I always come back to is The River Hostel. Why?
- Cheap, Cheap and Cheap!! Generally, around 11€ per night, can even be 8€
- Clean. For me, cleanliness is a must! Most important priority that I look for in any accommodation. The River Hostel cleans their toilets and bathrooms at least twice a day and cleans the rooms/beds EVERY SINGLE DAY. The kitchen area and common room are always in order and everyone is required to clean up after themselves, with cameras available to see which messy people leave things lying around! Routine clean outs for fridges and cupboards every week so no food gets to rot away in the fridges.
- Activities. Every now and then they will have free dinners, drinking games, they have a pub crawl that goes from Monday – Saturday which I can totally vouch for! It’s a great time for only 10€! Their breakfast buffet is absolutely a Breakfast BUFFET. You can get that for 3€ a day which is cheap for how amazing it is.
- Customer service and help desk – The staff there are so welcoming and helpful. The main employer which at the time I was there was the Employer of the month/year was so lovely. I had a bit of an issue with being put into the wrong room when I first arrived and the Staff at the reception helped me out a lot and was able to fix the mistake with even giving me some free nights of stay and free breakfast buffets for the disturbance. If you need any assistance of knowledge about the city, walking tours, or anything about first moving their I’m sure they will not mind in helping you out!
- Wifi, security lockers in your rooms at no extra cost, luggage rooms, towels and more! This place has it all and I couldn’t recommend it enough.
I find that booking on Hostelworld for The River Hostel is the cheapest and gives you the best up to date availability for your stays.
If you are looking for a longer-term stay, I have the perfect place for you.
10min bus to the Old town city center, supermarkets only 3min walk, Metro transits 2min walk, bus stop 1min walk, Kiosks all around the corners. Turia Park 15min walk, Valenbisi station 2min walk.
John is the name of the private sub letter, who is from Peru and an absolute lovely host. He rents a double room for 300€ p/m and a single for around 200€+.
Very cheap place to rent for its location and the convenience of having everything near you in such a chilled neighborhood is the best! You can book with him on Airbnb and receive 40€ worth of credit with your first purchase by clicking here!
Enjoy yourself here as you won’t want to leave!
If you find yourself moving here after a small trip, don’t forget to let me know as I will be based here myself. I’d be more than happy to show you around and get in contact! You can find my links in my bio below!
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You can also read about my trip around Spain:
http://rumelepa.com/2017/10/10/annnnd-thats-a-wrap-spain/
Want to save Rusha’s Valencia tips for later, or read more from other #CurvesandaCollab contributors? Follow Curves and a Carry On on Pinterest!
