La Vall d’Uixó: Coves de Sant Josep, Iberian Settlement and Water Path

La Vall d’Uixó is an inland town of about 32,200 people in the province of Castellón, roughly 9 km in a straight line from the nearest beach. It suits a day trip built around the Coves de Sant Josep, a cave you tour by boat on an underground river, plus an Iberian settlement and a guided old-town walk. Sleep on the coast and drive in, or stay if you want a working Valencian town. It is part of our Costa Azahar guide.

Quick facts

• Where: La Vall d’Uixó, comarca of Plana Baixa, province of Castellón (Comunitat Valenciana).
• Residents: 32,242 (1 January 2025, INE municipal register).
• Beach: none in the town. The nearest sand is at Moncofa and Xilxes, about 9 km in a straight line east (measured from OpenStreetMap coordinates). The road distance is longer.
• Nearest airports: Castellón Airport (Benlloch) and Valencia Airport. Neither has a direct link to the town; see Getting there.
• Language: Valencian and Spanish are both used; Spanish works everywhere.
• Main sight: the Coves de Sant Josep, under 2 km from the town hall in a straight line, with a 40-minute visit that includes 800 m by boat.
• Tourist office: at the Paraje de Sant Josep next to the caves, phone +34 964 660 785.
• Market: the regional tourist board mentions a town market; ask locally for the days.

Where to base yourself

The town is compact, and the real choice is between the old centre, the caves area and the coast. Most visitors will not sleep in La Vall d’Uixó at all.

The town centre

The centre around the town hall on Plaça del Centre has the historic core, the market, chapels, towers and churches, and the contemporary art gallery that the regional tourist board lists. The guided Water Path walk starts here, at the Aigualit aqueducts. Choose this if you want to see a normal Valencian town and eat where residents eat.

The Paraje de Sant Josep

The Paraje de Sant Josep is the green area around the caves, with the tourist office, a free car park, cafes, picnic areas and a play area. It is the best base for a day built around the caves and children. The official cave site lists cafes and restaurants here, plus picnic areas.

On the coast

If you want a beach every day, stay at the seaside in Nules or on the Moncofa and Xilxes coast and treat La Vall d’Uixó as an outing. That is why we treat the town as a day trip rather than a holiday base.

Things to do

Coves de Sant Josep

The caves are the reason to come. The regional tourist board describes an underground river with stalactites and stalagmites, and the official site ranks the river among the longest in Europe that you can travel by boat. The visit lasts 40 minutes: you walk 250 m through a dry gallery and then travel 800 m by boat, steered by the boatmen, through chambers with names such as the Bat Room and the Blue Lake. The official site says the temperature inside is a constant 20 °C.

The cave is the longest in Castellón province and the second longest in the Valencian Community, according to the official history page. It formed in limestone in the Middle Triassic, and people have used the cave mouth for about 17,000 years. It is a Bien de Interés Cultural (BIC) and a protected natural monument.

Ticket prices, including reduced tickets for over-65s, students and people with a disability, are on the official price page. Check in at the cave 10 minutes before your slot. The site recommends buying tickets online ahead, especially in high season, because daily numbers are limited. For current visiting times the site tells you to phone +34 964 69 05 76.

Skip the boat tour if you have claustrophobia, agoraphobia or severe lung disease, which the operator advises against. There is also a caving-kayak experience on the same river (about 2 hours; recommended for children from 8 with an adult in a double kayak; bring shoes that can get wet), and an “Origin” version that the operator rates for ages 12 and up. Both need advance booking and are not recommended above 110 kg.

Poblado de Sant Josep

On the hill above the caves stands an excavated settlement, listed as a Bien de Interés Cultural. The regional board says occupation starts in the late Bronze Age and runs through Iberian and Roman phases to Al-Andalus. The cave operator dates the Iberian village to the 6th century BC. Visits are by guided tour only and last about an hour. The tours are usually in Spanish, and English must be requested before you buy. From the free car park next to the tourist office it is about a 15-minute walk up a staircase at the end of Carrer del Tenis.

The Water Path and the old town

The Water Path (Camí de l’Aigua) is a guided walk of 1.5 km through the town centre along an old ditch of Roman origin that the cave river feeds. It starts at the Aigualit aqueducts and ends with a climb up the bell tower of the church of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, 49 m high. On the way you see the church of Santo Ángel and the Palacio de Vivel. It needs at least 10 people and advance booking through the tourist office on +34 964 660 785. For walkers, the regional board also points to the San José and La Alcudia aqueducts as trail starts.

Línea XYZ

The Línea XYZ was a defence line built in 1938 in the Spanish Civil War, stretching from Cuenca to Almenara. Around La Vall d’Uixó you can see trenches and other defensive structures from it.

AquaCoves water park

AquaCoves sits a few metres from the caves, with 2 pools, 3 water slides and a small children’s area. The park’s own page said in October 2026 that it was closed until its next season, so confirm before planning a day around it.

Beaches and places nearby

La Vall d’Uixó has no beach of its own. The nearest sand is at Moncofa and Xilxes, about 9 km away in a straight line from the town hall (OpenStreetMap coordinates). The regional tourist board describes Moncofa’s Belcaire beach as a small pebbly beach just 500 m long, so check the beach type before you go.

Bigger towns along the same coast have their own CostaMap guides: Nules, Burriana, Almenara and, inland, Onda.

Other town guides nearby: Canet d’en Berenguer (about 16 km in a straight line), Castellón de la Plana (about 25 km in a straight line), Benicàssim (about 36 km in a straight line).

Food and drink

The regional tourist board names two local dishes. Manjòvena is a sweet, and arroz empedrat is a rice dish. We found no official list of restaurants worth naming, so we do not recommend specific places. The Paraje de Sant Josep has cafes and restaurants, and picnic areas if you would rather bring your own food.

Where to stay

The regional tourist board lists hotels, campsites, country houses, tourist hostels and apartments across the Comunitat Valenciana, and its search tool lets you filter by town. We did not find official price figures for La Vall d’Uixó, so we give none. If you want a beach as well, stay on the coast and drive to the caves for a morning.

Getting there and around

By air: Castellón Airport at Benlloch has a bus, timed to flights, to Castellón bus station, which is next to the train station. Valencia Airport has Metrovalencia line 3 and Metrobus line 150 into the city (Aena). We did not find an official road distance from either airport to La Vall d’Uixó, so check your route before you book.

By bus: Autos Vallduxense runs a Castellón to La Vall d’Uixó service (phone +34 964 69 79 00, avsa.es), listed by the Benicàssim tourist office. Ask the operator for current timetables.

By train: Renfe’s Castelló de la Plana station has Cercanías lines C3 and C6, and the regional board recommends train trips to Burriana, Nules and Almenara. We did not find a train station in La Vall d’Uixó itself, so plan a bus or car for the last leg.

By car: the caves are at Passeig de les Grutes, 12600 La Vall d’Uixó. There is a free car park at the Paraje de Sant Josep next to the tourist office. The caves and the water park are a few metres away, and the Poblado is a 15-minute walk, so one parking spot covers a whole day.

Best time to visit

The cave is open all year, according to the regional board, and stays at a constant 20 °C, so the visit works in any season. The official site says daily tickets are limited, so book ahead in high season.

For the weather outside, the nearest AEMET standard values (1981 to 2010) are from the Castelló-Almassora station at 43 m, not from the town itself. July averages a high of 30.0 °C and a low of 20.6 °C; January averages a high of 15.3 °C and a low of 5.8 °C. September (71 mm) and October (70 mm) are the wettest months of the ones we checked, and July the driest at 9 mm, with about 467 mm of rain a year. For the Poblado walk the regional board advises comfortable shoes, a hat and water, especially in hot weather.

FAQ

How long does the Coves de Sant Josep visit take?

The guided visit lasts 40 minutes: 250 m on foot through a dry gallery and 800 m by boat. Arrive 10 minutes before your time slot.

Do I need to book the caves in advance?

You can buy at the ticket office, but the official site recommends booking online, particularly in high season, because daily tickets are limited.

Is the cave suitable for children and wheelchair users?

Yes for children. Children get reduced tickets and the youngest are free; see the official price page. The operator offers an adapted boat visit for people with reduced mobility and asks you to email info@covesdesantjosep.es with any special needs when you book.

Does La Vall d’Uixó have a beach?

No. It is inland. The nearest beaches are at Moncofa and Xilxes, about 9 km away in a straight line.

Is it cold inside the cave?

The official site gives a constant 20 °C inside, with some damp areas on the floor, so wear comfortable non-slip shoes.

Sources and freshness

Last checked: October 2026. Sources: Turisme Comunitat Valenciana, La Vall d’Uixó; Coves de Sant Josep listing; Poblado de Sant Josep tour; Water Path; AquaCoves; Moncofa; Coves de Sant Josep official site (prices); INE, population of Castellón municipalities; OpenStreetMap (coordinates and distances); Benicàssim tourist office, transport; Castellón Airport; Aena, Valencia Airport metro; Renfe, Castelló station; AEMET, Castelló-Almassora normals.

Main photo: Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.