Bike route through the Turia Gardens
The Turia Gardens is the old riverbed, diverted after the 1957 flood and turned into the urban park that now crosses Valencia from west to east. For anyone on a bike it means one very concrete thing: a continuous path, almost free of traffic crossings, linking the Bioparc to the City of Arts and coming out a short ride from the port.
The route
From Guadalaviar 3 you're on the riverbed path in under a minute. The full route end to end and back is 23.3 km and about 104 minutes of unhurried riding; the elevation gain is 220 metres, which is another way of saying the ground is essentially flat.
To the west the park narrows between the old bridges and passes the Bioparc; to the east it opens into sports areas, playgrounds and palm groves as far as the Palau de la Música and, beyond it, the City of Arts. The bridges are crossed underneath, and the ramps up to street level are short and signposted.
Which duration to book
The whole route fits comfortably into 4 hours (€8.99 on a city bike, within opening hours). If the plan includes lunch or combining it with the City of Arts, the full day (€12.00 on the city bike, €21.00 on the electric) gives you room and no clock-watching: it's due back that same evening, before we close — 19:00 Monday–Friday; no full-day rentals on Saturdays.
Which bike to take
For this route the city bike Elops 520 is more than enough: the ground is flat and the surface is good. The electric city bike P275 SE makes sense if the group rides at different paces or if you plan to continue on to the beach afterwards. With small children, the cargo bike LE20 lets you do the whole ride without depending on them pedalling.
With children
It's the most comfortable route in Valencia for riding with kids: the path is separated from traffic, there are fountains and play areas along the riverbed, and you can always cut across any bridge to get back to the street. Kids' bikes come in 20" (ages 6–9) and 24" (ages 9–12) and are booked online on the kids' bike page; if you're unsure about the size, call us on +34 960 730 497.
Stretches of the park
Going west to east, the riverbed changes character several times. The western end is the greenest and most wooded part, next to the Bioparc and the Cabecera park. The middle stretch, at the height of our shop, is the historic-bridges section: you pass underneath them, with the Serranos and Quart towers off to one side of the street. Further east come the sports areas, football pitches and the Gulliver park, and the path ends at the City of Arts and Sciences.
Every stretch has exit ramps up to street level, so the route can be shortened at any point and continued above.
Practical tips
There are drinking fountains along the riverbed; in summer that's the difference between an enjoyable ride and a short one. The surface is asphalt or packed gravel depending on the stretch, and neither gives a city tyre any trouble. On weekend mornings the park fills with runners and families: in the shared sections, an easy pace is what works for everyone.
Helmet and lock are included. Adult bikes also include a basket and rear rack; kids’ bikes do not have a basket. You collect it at Guadalaviar 3 with your booking confirmation and a valid ID document. Full rates on the 
Which direction to start in
Our shop sits roughly in the middle of the riverbed, which means you get to choose. Heading west first puts the quiet, wooded half at the start, when legs are fresh, and leaves the busier city stretch for the way home. Heading east does the opposite: the landmarks come early — the historic bridges, the Palau de la Música, the Gulliver park — and the return is the calmer part.
There’s a practical argument for east if the day is windy. Sea breeze in Valencia usually blows inland during the afternoon, so riding towards the coast in the morning and back later often means the easier leg comes when you’re already tired.
Where this route can take you next
The riverbed is the spine that the other three routes hang off. Ride it to the eastern end and you’re already at the start of the route to Malvarrosa beach; stop just short of it and you’re at the City of Arts and Sciences. Carry on south past the port and the bike lanes join the road towards the Albufera. That is the reason we usually suggest the full day rather than four hours when someone says "we'll see how we feel": from the riverbed, changing your mind halfway costs nothing.