Beach Train Trips from Valencia — Sun, Sand, and No Car Needed
- May 6
- 8 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
Valencia sits at the heart of one of the most beautiful stretches of Mediterranean coastline in Europe. North and south, the beaches change character dramatically — from the quiet lagoons and rice paddies of the south to the dramatic castle-topped headlands of the north and the crystalline coves of the Costa Blanca below Alicante. All of it reachable by train. Here are ten of the best beach destinations you can get to from Valencia without renting a car.
Cullera — 45 Minutes | The One Locals Actually Go To
If you ask a Valencian where they go to the beach on a summer weekend, a significant number of them will say Cullera. It's easy to see why. The town sits where the Júcar river meets the Mediterranean, creating a landscape of dunes, lagoons, and beaches that's genuinely varied and beautiful. The castle on the hilltop above town offers panoramic views up and down the coast. The old quarter is quiet and unhurried.
The beaches here are excellent — Playa de San Antonio is the main town beach, wide and well-organized. Playa de la Devesa, south of the river mouth, is backed by a protected natural park of pine forest and dunes, one of the finest natural beach settings in the Valencian Community. The seafood restaurants along the port serve some of the best arrós a banda — the Valencian rice dish cooked in fish stock — you'll find anywhere outside the city.
Come on a weekday in June or September and you'll feel like you've discovered a secret. You haven't — Valencians just don't talk about it much to outsiders.
Train: Cercanías C1 from Valencia Estació del Nord. About 45 minutes. €4–6 return. Frequent departures.
Xeraco — 50 Minutes | The Small Beach Town of Your Childhood
Xeraco sits just north of Gandia and is almost entirely unknown to foreign visitors — which is exactly its appeal. The beach is wide and clean, backed by a beautiful wall of sand dunes covered in natural vegetation that gives it a wild, undeveloped feel increasingly rare on this stretch of coast. The most visible beachfront infrastructure is a waterfront campsite that does it right: bungalows to rent for the night, and paella reservations for lunch if you plan ahead. It's the kind of place where you eat well, nap in the shade, and forget what day it is.
Away from the beach, Xeraco has lovely plazas and small parks with mountain views in the background — a reminder that the interior is always close here. The town is unhurried and genuinely local, with the kind of atmosphere that makes you feel like you've stumbled into the Mediterranean of a few decades ago, before the world discovered it. This is the small beach town of your childhood — Valencian style.
Train: Renfe from Valencia Estació del Nord toward Gandia. About 50 minutes. €5–7 return.
Gandia Beach — 55 Minutes | A Real Town with a Real Beach
Gandia earns its place on any beach list and any day trip list — it does double duty beautifully. The town has the Palau Ducal dels Borja, the beautiful Calle de Germanies, and the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. But the beach — Playa de Gandia — deserves its own spotlight.
It's one of the widest, cleanest, and best-organized beaches on the Costa del Azahar — and one of the most accessible beaches in Spain. The promenade and beach infrastructure are fully wheelchair and stroller friendly, making it an excellent choice for families with young children or anyone traveling with mobility considerations. Take bus line 1 from the town center directly to the beach — it runs every 15–20 minutes in summer and drops you right at the sand.
Train: Renfe Media Distancia from Valencia Estació del Nord. About 55 minutes. €5–7 return.
Benicàssim — 1 Hour | Festival Town and Fine Beaches
Benicàssim is best known internationally as the home of FIB — the Festival Internacional de Benicàssim — one of Europe's great summer music festivals, held every July. But outside of festival week, it's a genuinely pleasant beach town with a long stretch of fine sandy beach, a charming old village separate from the modern resort area, and the dramatic backdrop of the Desert de les Palmes mountains rising directly behind the coast.
The beaches here are some of the finest on the Costa del Azahar — wide, clean, with shallow water ideal for families. The Passeig Marítim promenade is long and well-kept. And the old village, just inland, has good restaurants and a local atmosphere that survives the summer crowds surprisingly well.
Train: Renfe from Valencia Estació del Nord. About 1 hour. €8–12 return.
Oropesa del Mar — 1 hr 15 min | Quieter, Prettier, Worth It
Oropesa del Mar sits between Benicàssim and Peñíscola and is often overlooked by travelers moving between the two. That's a mistake. The coastline here is varied and beautiful — a mix of sandy beaches and rocky coves, with the medieval castle of Oropesa visible from the water. The main beach, Playa de la Concha, is a well-protected bay with calm, clear water.
The town is low-key and relaxed, with a good selection of seafood restaurants and none of the overdevelopment that affects stretches further south. If you want a beach day without the crowds of Gandia or Benicàssim in high summer, Oropesa is the answer.
Train: Renfe from Valencia Estació del Nord. About 1 hour 15 minutes. €10–15 return.
Peñíscola — 1.5 Hours | Castle on the Sea
Peñíscola earns its spot in both the long weekends post and here — the beach and the town are inseparable and both are exceptional. The medieval walled city rises from a rocky peninsula like something from a film set — because it actually was one, with Game of Thrones filming several scenes here.
The beaches split north and south of the peninsula. Playa Sur is the most popular — sheltered, calm, and ideal for families. Playa Norte is longer, wilder, and considerably less crowded. The old walled city above is cooler than the beach and worth an evening wander when the day-trippers leave and the golden light hits the stone. In December, one of Spain's most magical Christmas markets fills the castle walls.
Train: Renfe from Valencia Estació del Nord to Benicarló-Peñíscola station, then short taxi or local bus. About 1.5 hours total. €15–25 return.
Vinaròs — 1.5 Hours | Lobster, Local Life, and No Tourists
Vinaròs is the northernmost point of the Valencian coast and one of the most genuinely local beach towns on this entire list. The seafood here is the main event — particularly the langosta de Vinaròs, a locally fished lobster served simply in the port restaurants with olive oil and lemon. The fish market by the port is one of the most authentic on this stretch of coast.
The beach is wide and sandy, the old town is pleasant and unhurried, and the crowd is almost entirely Spanish. International tourists essentially don't come here — which is part of the appeal. It's a working fishing town that happens to have a beautiful beach, and it wears both identities with equal comfort.
Train: Renfe from Valencia Estació del Nord. About 1.5 hours. €15–20 return.
Alicante — 1.5 Hours | City Beach with a Castle Above It
Alicante is the jumping-off point for the Costa Blanca and a destination in its own right. The Postiguet beach sits right in the heart of the city, with the 16th-century Castillo de Santa Bárbara rising dramatically from the rock directly above it — one of the most striking urban beach settings in Spain. You can take a lift through the rock face to reach the castle and look down over the bay.
The Explanada de España — the palm-lined marble promenade along the waterfront — is one of the most elegant public spaces in the region. The old quarter, the Santa Cruz neighborhood with its colorful houses climbing the hillside, and the excellent tapas bars of the city center make Alicante a full day destination rather than just a beach stop. Use it as a base and the whole southern Costa Blanca opens up from here.
Train: Renfe Avant direct from Valencia. About 1.5 hours. €15–25 return. Frequent departures.
Villajoyosa — 2 Hours | Painted Houses, Chocolate, and Clear Water
Villajoyosa is one of the most visually distinctive towns on the Costa Blanca — a row of tall, brightly painted fishermen's houses in fuchsia, ochre, turquoise, and yellow running right along the seafront, their reflections falling into the clear water below. The story goes that the colors were originally chosen so that fishermen could identify their own house from out at sea.
The town is also the home of Valor — one of Spain's great chocolate makers — and the Museo del Chocolate is a genuinely interesting stop. The beach in front of the painted houses is spectacular. There are quieter sandy beaches just outside the town center.
Train: Renfe to Alicante (~1.5hrs), then FGV metro/tram northward to Villajoyosa (~30 min). Total about 2 hours. FGV tickets inexpensive and separate.
Altea & Calpe — 2 Hours | The Costa Blanca at Its Most Beautiful
No beach train post from Valencia would be complete without these two. Take the direct train to Alicante, then pick up the FGV metro-tram line that hugs the Costa Blanca northward — one of the most scenic rail journeys in Spain, running close to the sea through tunnels and along clifftops.
Altea is arguably the most beautiful village on the entire Costa Blanca: a whitewashed old quarter climbing a hilltop above the sea, a blue-domed church at the top, galleries and restaurants along the promenade below. The beaches here are pebbly and crystalline — the water is exceptionally clear. Calpe, just north, is dominated by the Peñón de Ifach — a 332-meter rock jutting straight from the sea that you can hike for views stretching to Ibiza on clear days. The beaches on either side of the rock are wide, sandy, and beautiful.
Base yourself in Altea. You won't want to leave.
Train: Renfe Avant to Alicante (~1.5hrs, direct), then FGV metro/tram to Altea/Calpe (~30–45 min). Total about 2 hours. FGV tickets inexpensive and separate.
The Valencian coast is one of Europe's great underrated stretches of coastline — varied enough to keep coming back to, accessible enough to make every beach day effortless. Pick one for your next free weekend. The train is waiting.
This post is part of our Travel-Casa Spain Series — a region-by-region guide to one of the world's most diverse and rewarding countries. Whether you're planning a vacation, a sabbatical, or a permanent move, we go deep on each region so you can find the part of Spain that fits your life. From the green mountains of the north to the sun-baked plains of the south, no two corners of Spain are the same — and that's exactly the point.
To book trains in Spain: Renfe is Spain's national rail operator — use it for AVE high-speed, Avant, and Media Distancia routes. Trainline aggregates all operators including Renfe, Ouigo, and Iryo in one search — useful when you're comparing prices or booking across multiple operators.
The beach towns from Cullera to Altea are part of Valencia Province.
On summer nights these coastal waters are some of the best for bioluminescent beaches in Spain.
The Comunitat Valenciana has some of Spain's best stargazing — a clear night at the beach is something else.
Considering a car instead? Read this before you drive in Spain.
To book trains in Spain: Renfe is Spain's national rail operator. Trainline aggregates all operators including Renfe, Ouigo, and Iryo — useful for comparing prices.
Written by Sherri: an American who spent years traveling solo, including time living in Peru, before settling into a full-time digital nomad life with her husband and young kids for over four years. She's now been in Europe for 3.5 years, most of it in the Valencia area of Spain. Everything on Travel-Casa is written from firsthand experience or knowledge picked up along the way.
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