Formula one in Valencia

Valencia will host the Formula One European Gran Prix from the 22nd of June till the 24th of June 2012. This page offers you information about this race.

The history
The first race was in 2008. The winner of this race was Rubens Barrichello. In 2009 Felipe Massa won the race.
During the race in 2011 Webber had a spectacular crash. Thankfully he didn’t have any injuries. Sebastian Vettel won this race.

The circuit
The circuit is in the streets of the harbor area of Valencia city. The racetrack has a length of more than 5 km (3.3 mi) and has a total of 25 turns. The number of laps of the race is 57 and the maximum speed of this track is 323 km/h (201 mph).

The program

As soon as the program of the Formula one 2012 in Valencia will be published, you will find an overview on this page.

Friday 24th of June 2011
10.00 hours till 11.30 hours – The first free training
14.00 hours till 15.30 hours – The second free training

25th of June 2011
11.00 hours till 12.00 hours – The Saturday training
From 14.00 hours – The qualification

Sunday 26th 2011 of June
From 14.00 hours – The race

Tickets
You can buy the tickets at Ticketmaster, Bancaja and El Corte Ingles. For more information about buying tickets you can find at the official website of Formula One in Valencia. Ticket prices are varying from 25 -595 euro.

Tapas Tour
You can combine the formula one weekend in Valencia with a tapas tour. During this tour we will bring you to three different tapas bars. At these bars you can taste the tasteful Spanish tapas culture. The price is 25 Euros per person (including 3 tapas and 3 drinks). Click on Tapas Tour for more information or book now.

Virgen de los Desamparados

Are you visiting Valencia the second Sunday of May and would you like to know more about the celebration in honor of the Virgen de los Desamparados? On this page you can find more information.

Patron saint of the city Valencia

The Virgen de los Desamparados, or the holy virgin of the helpless, is the patron saint of the city Valencia. Every year on the second Sunday of May there is a celebration in honor of her. You can find the statue of the Virgen de los Desamparados in the Basilica which is located next to the Plaza de la Virgen. The Virgen de los Desamparados has got a also a nickname, namely “La Geperudeta”, the hunchback. The Valencian people gave her this name due to her slightly bent position of her head and neck.

Celebration

On Saturday evening a concert of the Valencian municipality band will take place at the Plaza de la Virgen. Furthermore there will be a firework spectacle in the Turia park and afterwards you can enjoy the “Dansa a la Mare de Deu”, typical Valencian dances. At 05.00 hour in the morning there will be a service in the open air and at 08.00 hour in the morning the service for the children takes place. At 10.30 hour starts the removal of the “Virgen de los Desamparados”, from the Basilica she will be moved to the cathedral. At 14.00 hour, there will be a mascleta at the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. A mascleta is a firework spectacle which is mainly focused on the sound/rhythm of the firework and less on the colours or decoration. At 19.00 hour a procession will take place and during this procession, the Virgen de los Desamparados will be carried through the streets in the old city centre.

Date

The celebration of the Virgen de los Desamparados takes place on:

• Sunday the 8^th of May in the year 2011
• Sunday the 13^th of May in the year 2012
• Sunday the 12^th of May in the year 2013

Recommendation

In order to get an impression of this celebration, you can have a look at the following:

Tomatina 2012

Are you planning to join the tomato festival, La Tomatina 2012 on Wednesday the 29th of August, in the region Valencia in Buñol? On this page you can find a lot of information about La Tomatina.

Buñol

Have you ever heard about Buñol? Probably not. This municipality is situated 40 kilometer from de region capital Valencia in the “Communidad de Valencia” (region Valencia). Buñol had around 10.000 inhabitants in the year 2009. In the surroundings of Buñol, you find mainly agriculture. You may not have heard of Buñol, but you probably have heard once of the yearly tomato fight in Spain, La Tomatina. Tomatina takes place in Buñol.

La Tomatina

On the last Wednesday of august, the well known Tomato festival, Tomatina, takes place in Spain, in the municipality Buñol.

In the year 1945 (on the last Wednesday of the month august) it all started with some adolescents that were throwing things to people with costumes. The year after, these adolescents started throwing with tomatoes and that’s how the yearly returning Tomatina festival started.

The climax of Tomatina is the tomato fight. During 1 hour, people can throw tomatoes to each other in the streets. If you would like to get an impression of this impressive festival in Buñol, see

Rules

The municipality made some rules for during the Tomatina festival in Buñol, namely:

1)    You cannot bring any bottles or other objects which can cause accidents;

2)    You are not allowed to destroy t-shirts or to throw with t-shirts;

3)    Before you want to throw a tomato to someone, you first have to squeeze the tomato. This rule exists in order to prevent that no one hurts or injures each other;

4)    If a truck with tomatoes wants to pass, you have to watch out;

5)    When you hear the second bang, everybody needs to stop with throwing tomatoes.

Recommendations of the municipality

The municipality gives as well some recommendations for if you want to join the Tomatina festival:

• Don’t wear slippers and don’t wear shoes with high heels, better wear for example sport shoes;
• Don’t wear clothes you would like to wear after the Tomatina festival;
• Goggels wouldn’t be a bad idea, given that the tomatoes can quite irritate when they are thrown into your eyes;
• You might want to bring some dry and clean clothes with you for when you return home/holiday destination;
• In case you don’t live in Buñol, the best option to find accommodation is in Valencia. There is a good connection between Valencia and Buñol. Accommodation can be quite hard to find in Buñol;
• If you would like to make some pictures, make sure you bring a water consistent fotocamera with you;
• Never climb onto a pole, a window or whatever to have a better overview, than you are becoming the target of more than 40.000 people;
• Enjoy!
• If you want to join the Tomatina 2012, than it is really recommendable to book an accommodation in time. The prices of hotels, apartments and hostels etc. rise fast and many people book an accommodation in Valencia, due to the good connection between Valencia and Buñol.

Transport

There are various options to reach Buñol from Valencia city. One possibility could be, to rent a car. Another option would be to take the train to Buñol.

You also could take the bus in Valencia, to Buñol. The bus leaves from “Estación del Norte”, the central trainstation in Valencia at 08.30 hour on Wednesday the 29th of august 2012. Then the bus will return to Valencia (from the football field in Buñol) at 15.00 hour. The price of this bus ticket is €30,-. The ticket for the bus, you need to book online. For more information click on Tomatina.

Tips

• If you want to join Tomatina 2012, than it is really recommendable to book an accommodation in time. The prices of hotels, apartments and hostels etc. rise fast and many people book an accommodation in Valencia, due to the good connection between Valencia and Buñol.
• Would you like to learn more about some typical Spanish traditions? You book our Flamenco dancing class or our Paella cooking class.

Feria de Julio 2012

Are you going to stay Valencia in the month July? You might want to enjoy the “Feria de Julio” 2012, or July festival. During this month there are many things to do and to see in this wonderful city.

As soon as the program of the Feria de Julio 2012 is published you will find an overview of the program on this page. In order to get already an idea of various elements of this festival, you could have a look at the program of 2011.

Program Feria de Julio 2011

There are during the feria de Julio in Valencia among others various concerts, the “Conciertos de Viveros” with performances of:

• Wednesday the 6^th of July – Malú
• Thursday the 7^th of July – Pablo Milanes
• Friday the 8^th of July – Maldita Nerea
• Saturday the 9^th of July – Iggy Pop and the Stooges
• Sunday the 10^th of July  – Bob Esponja (Sponge Bob)
• Wednesday the 13^th of July – Sergio Dalma
• Friday the 15^th of July – M Clan
• Monday the 18^th of July – Seal (The Commitment tour 2011)
• Tuesday the 19^th of July – Pablo Alborán
• Thursday the 21^st of July – Andrés Calamaro
• Saturday the 23^rd of July – Vetusta Morla

Furthermore it is definitely worthwhile having a look at the Batalla de Flores if you’re staying in Valencia. The Batalla de Flores is a parade with carriages decorated with flowers and there is always a flower fight. As soon as the date of the Batalla de Flores will be published you will find the information on this page. In order to get an impression of the Batalla de Flores, you can have a look at:

Costs & extra information

Many activities and performances are for free, but there are also some concerts and other activities where you have to pay for. The concerts in Viveros and the bull fighting are examples of events where you have to pay for. For more information about the bull fighting during the Feria de Julio you can have a look at Plaza de toros Valencia

During the Feria de Julio, there is also a fair in the Turia Parc, close to the metro stop “Alameda”. The fair has got various attractions, among others a Ferris Wheel, a haunted house, a shooting range, various merry go round’s and a Viking ship.

Tips

- We also offer great tours, excursions and workshops, like tapastour, flamenco workshop, paella cooking class and much more. Click on tours & workshops for more information.

- Book a delicious luxurious Picnic package and have a great picnic on the beach. In the month July, there are also some firework spectacles on the beach. For more    information about the picnic packages have a look at Picnic Package.

- If you are looking for a great selection of places to stay with discount prices, visit Valencia Hotel for more information.

- For more information about Feria de Julio you can find at Feria de Julio 2011.