In 195,7 Valencia experienced a tragic flooding of the river Turia which caused widespread human and material losses in the city. Following the incident, it was decided to re-route the river around the city, leaving twelve miles of the riverbed free for other urban uses. This is now the Turia Garden, the largest green area in Valencia.

Between the puente del Mar (Sea Bridge) and puente del Angel Custodio (Guardian Angel Bridge), next to the Paseo de la Alameda, lies the most interesting stretch of the old river. The architect Ricardo Bofill designed the area as an Arcadian garden. Residents and visitors can enjoy a space laid out following neoclassical architectural criteria with lodges and colonnades, sheets of water that reflect the buildings and Mediterranean vegetation distributed symmetrically around groves of mulberry trees and pines. The rows of cypress trees and palm-lined avenues are complemented by groups of orange trees and oleander hedges.