Ignored for decades by visitors to Spain in favour of its bigger siblings, Madrid and Barcelona, Valencia is going through an extraordinary revival, in part boosted by the 2007 hosting of the America’s Cup.

Unpretentious Valencia is a vibrant, friendly and mildly chaotic place, offering the visitor several attractions: a cosy “undiscovered” city centre, littered with fabulous period properties, galleries and stylish clothes and ceramic shops; spectacular contemporary architecture to rival any major city, including an outstanding fine arts museum; an accessible ‘Old Quarter’, rich in restaurants and bars boasting one of Spain’s most exciting nightlife scenes; Europe’s newest cultural and scientific complex; and, of course, kilometre after kilometre of sandy beach.

For those who like the outdoors you are never more than a 30 minute drive from the beautiful hills of Morella or the vineyards in Requena.

An increasing number of Britons are discovering Valencia and Costa Blanca in favour of the over crowded and overpriced Costa del Sol, where prices are on average 30% higher. In 2003, some £3.5 billion worth of property changed hands among UK expatriates in Alicante alone. And this number continues to grow.