I´ll start right away by telling you that you can´t miss Valencia´s Bioparc!
When you walk around a big city you usually count the trees on the fingers of one hand, maybe in rare cases we even add our toes, the fact is that there is little, very little green.
Fortunately, there are exceptions, and this is the case in Valencia. With the Bioparc and the 11-kilometer Turia Gardens carved out of the bed of the old river, this city shows great interest in the well-being of its citizens and tourists as well.
If you are planning a vacation or even just lookinf for the things to do in Valencia, I definitely recommend that you include Bioparc in your itinerary.
The Bioparc in Valencia
The Bioparc is a newly designed park that was opened in 2008 replacing the old structure, namely the classic zoo. As far as I am concerned it was a wonderful experience, I did not expect to be able to see this coexistence between man and animal.
Basically the whole Bioparc has been structured in such a way that animals can feel at home and between animals and humans there is not that classic division dictated by barriers. If anything, the division is made by studying the characteristics of the animals using the zoo-immersion technique.
This technique does not allow the barriers to be seen, they are “hidden” from the view of the visitor who thus gets the feeling precisely of being immersed. 
To give an example: in the case of the chimpanzees, rocks were simply used that have no handholds to be climbed, despite the fact that the image of the place traces the one really present in nature.
Basically, whoever built the Biopark simply used the gourd (meaning the brain). He studied the characteristics of the animals and used them to his advantage. The whole Bioparc was created with these prerogatives in mind.
It should be noted that it was not only the animals’ environments that were designed. The planning of Bioparc Valencia was done in such a way that the whole park is in harmony. The same route that visitors take is part of the design.
Where is the Bioparc located?
Bioparc is located in Cabecera Park, at the end of the Turia Gardens northwest of the city.
What is it? How is it structured?
Bioparc is also called“a piece of Africa,” in fact the owner wanted to recreate the African environment by structuring the park into 4 zones: Savannah, Equatorial Forest, Madagascar and Wetlands. It is spread over 100,000 square meters and there are about 250 animal species with a total of 4,000 specimens.
From the ticket office, to enter the park area, you have to cross the long 154-meter bridge, and the first area is Madagascar-related. In this area there is even a chance to do a stretch in full contact with the lemurs, you enter their habitat and walk surrounded by the lemurs that like splinters pass around you looking at you curiously.
It is also a good feeling because they are very friendly animals. Continuing into the Bioparc you come across the area where there are panthers, cheetahs, baboons, you also pass through the Kitum cave reconstruction.
And then off to the Savannah with its arid terrain, unstoppable predators and mammoth animals such as rhinos and elephants.
The Biopark undoubtedly represents an attraction that if you are in Valencia you absolutely cannot miss. If you have children and go there with them, I am sure they will enjoy it so much and you will really make them happy.
I was happy as a child myself, I can imagine them. I would also like to point out that inside the park there is a cafeteria and also a restaurant where you can linger for a well-deserved break.
How to get to Bioparc Valencia?
Of course, there are the normal means of transportation to get there:
- By Bus with lines 29-61-67-81-95
- By Metro with lines 3 or 5 getting off at the Nou dOctubre stop
If you go to Bioparc you are choosing eco-sustainable, ethical tourism for a day. So what better way than biking through the Turia Gardens!
From 1957 onwards the city changed its face following a river flood that caused a lot of damage. To make sure this did not happen again, the course of the river was diverted and Valencia was left with nothing but the riverbed.
Instead of building new neighborhoods, the people of Valencia were far-sighted and used the riverbed to create a huge park where all citizens and even tourists can relax and enjoy sports activities. The space between one bridge and the other was designed by different designers, so even the spaces themselves are conceived differently. The fact is that this park called the Turia Gardens is the green lung of the city and Valencians are very proud of it.
So, dispassionate advice: I made use of the bicycles from Passion Bike. You get yourself a nice bike, immerse yourself in Valencia’s greenery and enjoy this beautiful bike ride to the Bioparc where there are even places to tie your bike with a padlock.
The Passion Bike store has the special feature that once you rent the bike, you can write your dedication or greeting on the wall. See if you can find our greeting.
For me it was a wonderful experience and the Turia Gardens are very well cared for.