The festival, officially based at The Terminal Hub, runs from October 24 to 26, with visits to 71 buildings and 20 urban routes. The Valencian Community’s most important architecture festival, Open House Valencia, celebrates its seventh edition with an intense programme of activities presented this week at The Terminal Hub. It includes guided tours of 71 public and private buildings to learn firsthand about their history, heritage, and architectural value. The list includes, for example, the Silk Museum, the Church of San Nicolás, and the Hortensia Herrero Art Center; residential areas such as Finca Roja, Espai Verd, and Santa María Micaela; and emblematic works of the city such as the Guadalaviar School, Espai Vives, the Roig Arena, and a surprising visit to the interior of the central figure of Gulliver Park. As every year, there’s no shortage of architectural firms and studios joining the festival by opening their doors to the general public, such as Madergia, Cubicup, and Viccarbe, winner of the 2025 National Design Award. Leading Valencian architectural studios are also participating, with the participation of Ramón Esteve Estudio, Fran Silvestre Arquitectos, ERRE, Viruta Lab, and Montoliu Hernández, among many others.

The programme encourages visitors to follow the trail of the city’s past and present with around twenty themed routes, known as Open Walks, which require prior registration and feature architects and historians specializing in each subject to discover layouts and corners steeped in heritage interest. Roman Valencia, the Muslim walls, Maritime Valencia, the squares of the historic center, the Nolla mosaics, and Modernist Valencia are some of the proposed routes.

OHV25 has its official headquarters in The Terminal Hub, the former passenger terminal building at the Port of Valencia, now rehabilitated as a technology center. Nearly 140 people, including representatives from sponsoring and collaborating institutions and companies, gathered here to welcome the new edition and learn the details of a program whose primary objective, according to Sara Portela, festival director, is “ Valencia is experiencing a moment of cultural effervescence. The city exudes vitality and shows a growing interest in cultural initiatives in recent years. This trend has led the Open House Valencia architecture festival to transform into a much more ambitious outreach project, with a two-month programme offering activities and events for both the public and businesses and professionals .”

For his part, Francesc Pons, director of The Terminal Hub, stated that “it is a true honour to have become the official headquarters of OH 2025 in our first year of operation. A benchmark in architecture, but above all, a vibrant community of entrepreneurship, talent, technology, innovation, and investment in disruptive and emerging projects. A headquarters that opens globally and has a vocation to embrace the city of Valencia as a meeting point.”

Once again this year, the city of Valencia becomes a showcase for the finest architecture, showcasing its most emblematic public and private buildings to the public through Open House Valencia. “This festival, which the Valencia City Council supports and highly values ​​for its commendable contribution to promoting and disseminating our heritage, has become an essential event on our city’s cultural calendar for all lovers of urban planning and architecture,” declared Juan Giner, Councilor for Urban Planning and Housing.

Last year, 15,000 people participated in Open House Valencia, a must-see event on the city’s cultural calendar that continues to grow year after year. To facilitate access to visits and routes, this year the organization has introduced a free OHV card, which can be obtained online.

The festival’s growing scale and impact are highlighted by the Guest Municipalities and the so-called Satellite Activities. OHV25 has become a dynamic cultural platform that aims to bring the values ​​of architecture and the passion it inspires among the public and professionals to other corners and through other formats. This year, four municipalities are part of the program: Xàtiva, which celebrated the event for the first time last weekend; Cocentaina, which will do so on October 3 and 4; Llíria, which will host the event on October 18 and 19; and finally, Manises, which will also debut on November 8 and 9.

Among the more than 40 Satellite Activities taking place during the months of September, October, and November, the highlights include children’s workshops, Open Premium tours, Open Talks, which include lectures and tours on topics of architectural interest, along with children’s workshops, exhibitions, and showcookings.

On November 6, the city of Catarroja will host a roundtable organized by the festival to reflect on the effects of the DANA and the approaches that architecture and urban planning must address in reconstruction. This year, the fourth volume of the OHV Architecture Collection will be presented, with a book dedicated to the Cabañal area. The presentation will take place on October 30th at the L’Escorxador Centre.

Report by ‘24/7 Valencia’ team

Article copyright ‘24/7 Valencia’

More info: https://www.openhousevalencia.org/