Who designed the City of Arts and Sciences?

Santiago Calatrava designed the master plan and the primary structural axis, while Felix Candela designed the oceanographic park.

Which venues make up the complex?

The complex contains the opera house Palau de les Arts, the planetarium L'Hemisferic, the science museum, the promenade L'Umbracle, the multifunctional space L'Agora, and the oceanographic park L'Oceanografic.

What role does water play in the layout of the complex?

Reflecting pools run parallel to the structural axis, serving as mirrors for the concrete architecture.

What architectural finish covers the exterior surfaces?

The exteriors of the concrete structures and promenade elements are finished with ceramic tile mosaics known as trencadis.

Why was the opera house built instead of the planned telecommunications tower?

The autonomous government cancelled the telecommunications tower project and built the opera house, Palau de les Arts, upon the existing foundation.

Valencia · Spain

City of Arts and Sciences: what's nearby, how to get there and when to go · 2026

Residents run and cycle past the sunken reflecting basins every morning, treating the open promenades as a routine thoroughfare rather than an exhibition ground.

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Around here4

Exchange rate€0.89per 1 $EUR — the local currencyas of Nov 3, 2026

Within two hours

V-21≈ 30 min Ciudad Deportiva de Paterna≈ 35 min Torres dels Serrans≈ 45 min

About the place

Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela shaped the complex as a monumental linear district of white concrete, reflecting pools, and shattered tile mosaics.

Santiago Calatrava organized the complex along a central longitudinal axis connecting the opera house, bridges, planetarium, and oceanographic park. Broad shallow pools run parallel to this spine, using standing water to mirror the architecture across the dry coastal basin. Curved concrete shells carry trencadis, a regional finish of shattered ceramic tile mosaics, while raised promenades integrate open pedestrian passages.

Read on

Initial blueprints called for a communications tower, a planetarium, and a science museum before governmental shifts altered the concept. Planners cancelled the tower and adapted its original foundation contract to construct the opera house. Adding Félix Candela to design the marine park expanded the site into an integrated cultural district, though the prolonged construction left the city with heavy public debt.

Associations

Santiago CalatravaDesigned the master layout, primary venues, and sculptural concrete bridges.
TrencadisBroken ceramic tile mosaics coat the curving outer concrete surfaces.
Félix CandelaDesigned the oceanographic park at the eastern terminus of the complex.
Municipal debtRepeated project expansions and cost overruns accumulated heavy public debt.
Treasures of SpainRanked among the recognized national architectural and cultural treasures.

Facts

The opera house stands on the foundation originally built for a cancelled telecommunications tower.
Santiago Calatrava aligned the complex along a continuous central axis connecting the major buildings and bridges.
Félix Candela designed the oceanographic park located at the eastern end of the complex.
National surveys designate the complex among the official Treasures of Spain.

Updated September 13, 2026Source: Wikipedia

City of Arts and Sciences: what's nearby, how to get there and when to go · 2026

What is around4

Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela shaped the complex as a monumental linear district of white concrete, reflecting pools, and shattered tile mosaics.

Getting there and staying

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