I’m in a parking lot, looking up at a huge mural called “She Never Came.” Created by famed Polish artist Betz, it uses the side of the building, the light and space to pull the viewer into its narrative. It’s breathtaking.

I just had an amazing, authentic Greek breakfast at Yoleni’s, and this mural is just one of many on my roster for a self-guided art tour of the city. I’m here for a weekend that will include art, food, live music, special events, a riverboat tour of the city and more.

Where am I? Like many folks, I’ve driven through this place countless times, but turning off the highway and exploring it showed me one thing: Providence is truly world-class. For someone willing to travel the world to find cities rich in all these things, it’s a real delight to find it all just down the highway a bit.

With Boston as our hub and New York City an easy jaunt, one can miss Providence. But we shouldn’t. The city’s revitalization — including art programs, a foodie scene, culture of all kinds and great places to stay — is all but complete.

We drove to Providence and left our car with the valet at the Omni Providence Hotel (1 W. Exchange St.; omnihotels.com), which would be our home base for the weekend. When we asked the valet if our car would be easily accessible, he answered with a laugh. “Yes. But, why?” We soon understood.

Providence is a brilliantly walkable city. With its 25 “official” neighborhoods, you can find an atmosphere to fit your mood. There are standouts though — Federal Hill, West End and downtown among them.

We started with the mural tour. Thanks to The Avenue Concept (theavenueconcept.org), Providence’s open-space, free art scene is sublime. The murals are fascinating, and once you check out one up close, you’ll start noticing them peaking out at you from different spots in the city. Some of the artists are from around the world and some from right there. After all, Providence is home to Rhode Island School of Design, one of the world’s premier art institutes (and home to a great museum as well).

Dining in Providence is like a food art scene. We loved the new Sarto (86 Dorrance St., sartoprovidence.com), where the owners have fused Italian and classic Rhode Island into amazing meals. At the Dorrance (60 Dorrance St., thedorrance.com), we dined in architectural splendor and savored fresh local seafood and creative cocktails. And we tested and compared creations at Knead Doughnuts (32 Custom House St., kneaddoughnuts.com) and PVDonuts (79 Ives St., pvdonuts.com), both “must stops” on a Providence visit. It’s a tie. For a casual late lunch one afternoon we tucked in at the cozy Murphy’s Providence (100 Fountain St., murphysprovidence.com), a truly Irish pub.

Our river tour on a slow moving motorboat, with a captain who knows not just the sites to point out but the history and lore behind them, was wonderful. There are actual gondolier rides, too — we witnessed a marriage proposal on one.

We loved strolling up and down streets (the old homes along Brown University’s section are not to be missed) and getting different looks at the city, which is walkable and clean from one end to the other. That, with the art and food, would be enough. But Providence likes to celebrate.

Our weekend there was the last “WaterFire” of the season. Thousands lined the riverbed to take it in. A military band played and, as volunteers lit the hundreds of fires on platforms along the river, it was like a giant celebration of all the city has become. Created by former RISD student Barnaby Evans, who mingles in the crowd each WaterFire, it’s a city highlight. And while usually one must wait until May to see it again, Evans whispered a little something to me: They may have a surprise showing this winter, so stay tuned.

The holidays are also embraced. These coming weeks you’ll find Ice Bumper Cars at the Alex and Ani City Center (2 Kennedy Plaza), boat rides with Santa on Dec. 8, a tree lighting celebration weekend Nov. 30-Dec. 1, which includes a Winter Lights Market in Burnside Park (40 Kennedy Plaza) with two days of live performances, special giveaways and an artist marketplace. There’s more too, with performances of “The Nutcracker” and beautiful holiday light displays to name a few.

It’s amazing I’ve not spent overnights there more often. An easy drive from most suburbs — and $12 each way on Amtrak from Boston, Providence is vibrant, fascinating and ready to entertain. The Omni Providence Hotel was an easy walk to just about every spot in the city we wanted to explore. Ubers are plentiful too should you prefer.

A solid weekend packed with art, food and fun behind us, we headed home mapping out our next visit.

For more information, go to goprovidence.com.