Zona Juan Llorens: Overview (Nightlife in Valencia)

A short walk from the centre of Valencia, Zona Juan Llorens is an ultra-compact cluster of pubs, bars and nightclubs, offering a vibrant mainstream / trendy nightlife on weekends.

While Carmen is the smoking den of the alternative and Canovas is a mass container of general nightlife, the street of Juan Llorens immediately strikes with an impression that nightlife here is a serious affair. You know that most people here have spent hours getting ready to go out and they won't let the night pass away without making the most of it. It is a place where people go to party, not to have a few drinks.

The bars of Juan Llorens tend to attract mainly 20s - early 30s. While there are a couple of more alternative bars, it is mostly the area of fashion trends, both in appearances and in music. There is more Latino music here, but the majority will be commercial house.

With the exception of the avant-guard Loco Club, which really belongs in Carmen, Juan Llorens is very much Spanish, with a very distinct Valencian nightlife ambience. Not many foreigners get here, bar a few ex-pats and Latin Americans. Somewhat secluded - not really on the way to anywhere else - Juan Llorens feels like a self-contained nightlife village. Many here will be regulars, perhaps living around here, and there is a certain vibe in the bars that a lot of people know each other here.

The nights in Juan Llorens are vibrant, sexy and lively, with by far the biggest emphasis on dancing in the many disco-bars. While it is one of the smaller nightlife areas in Valencia, it has more than enough for one night and it will give you a full-on mainstream weekend till dawn, not to mention a genuine cultural glimpse into the real Valencian nightlife.

Layout

Juan Llorens is a 15-20 min walk from the centre to the West. It's not the whole street that holds the nighlife, only the southern part, where it crosses Calle Calixto III. While on maps it may look like somewhere stupid, in reality from the centre it is about the same amount of walking as from Carmen to the Bullring / Train Station. See location on PaginasAmarillas.es

Ultra-compact, the area is basically two blocks of bars next to each other on Calle Juan Llorens, surrounded by a few places in the nearby backstreets.

Venues

The main drag (Calle Juan Llorens) is two rows of disco-bars where people dance until 4am. All those bars are free entry, most are of medium size. In addition there are a few interesting bars / pubs in the adjacent streets. There is one late night-club right on the street to finish off the night.

Music

Juan Llorens nightlife is generally mainstream, meaning commercial music. Here, however, commercial music is not as much pop and Spanish pop (although a lot of that too) as commercial dance and house. House is all the rage in the bars here but when the locals say "house" don't expect anything underground - they generally mean either commercial dance or a very basic and commercial type of house. It is bizarre but that music has become a staple here even for grannies. Some bars, e.g. Musical, Haboob and Pacagarse, will attempt to be even cooler than others and venture a little off the usual, but generally not too far.

The lovers of pop will find a few popular bars for themselves too, such as Akuarela or Cafe Carioca.

Juan Llorens is also famous for having Latino music - there will be more than usual tracks per night of reggaeton, latin pop and salsa, with places like Chevere running almost totally on that. However, Juan Llorens is still not the authentic Latino area (even though it will have a proportion) - the real place to go is either near Plaza Espana or to one of the Latino night-clubs outside of the area. It is perfect, however, for someone who likes a bit of Latino music but wouldn't want to hear it all night long.

People

Juan Llorens is mostly full of trendy locals. The commercial / house culture here brings the latest fashions with it. You won't see any urban wear or alternative gear. Those who want to be seen will come dressed to the latest mainstream trend, and those who dont will come neat and casual smart. Both men and women will spend hours before to make themselves look like a model on an ad-board. While this does carry a certain pretence, generally Juan Llorens is suprisingly easy-going and friendly, a place where people are quite open and welcoming and where you can easily strike a conversation with a stranger.

While there is the usual proportion of youngsters and older weekenders, the average age tends to be 25-30.

You will notice that the bouncers greet many people in an informal and personal manner, and so do the waiters. Here many people do know each other. This gives Juan Llorens a certain charm, a feeling of a village community. For the same reason, on the other hand, you will be wise to behave yourself (although after all those visits we at VV.com are yet to see a single incident in Juan Llorens).

A few pubs around the main drag are actually fairly off the mainstream. Tango y Truco plus Cafe L'Espill are both well on the bohemian streak, while Chinaski offers an anarchic rock hangout and Sioux Bar a cosmopolitan quirky meeting point.

Hours

Juan Llorens starts waking up at 11-12 in the pubs / bars around the main drag. There isn't much point in hitting the main drag itself until at least 1 am.

The whole palce will be heaving with activity until 4am. Getting into some bars after 3.30 might be problematic, although no problem whatsoever in others.

Havana-Valencia is a medium-sized nightclub right on the same street. It will pick up all the survivors until 7am, and is therefore absolutely full.

Juan Llorens is very much a weekend place. It gets deliciously noisy and lively on Fridays and Saturdays, and pretty much dead during the week, although the pubs will still have a few regulars and Thursdays will bring a fair few people too.

Prices

The bars of Juan Llorens are relatively a good deal. 6€ for spirit / mixer and 3-4€ for a beer is the norm. Some bars will do it for a little less, but no bar will charge more. Normally there are also a few promotions - the bar staff trying to lure people from the street with free shots, discounts, free night-club entry etc.

Entry is free in all bars apart from Havana-Valencia night-club.