12/06/2026
A SECOND GULLIVER IS COMING TO VALENCIA AND THIS TIME HE’LL BE SITTING DOWN!
Valencia is getting a new Gulliver. Not a replacement for the famous giant lying in the JardĂn del TĂşria, but a second, smaller, seated version that will become the centrepiece of a new children’s park in the northern part of the old riverbed. The project has been confirmed by Valencia City Council and will be called El Lilliput de Gulliver.
The new park will be built between the Pont de les Arts and the Pont de les Glòries Valencianes, in tramos 4 and 5 of the JardĂn del TĂşria. This is an important detail because it places the new attraction much further north than the original Gulliver Park, which has been one of Valencia’s most loved family spaces since the early 1990s. The idea is not to copy the old park exactly, but to expand the “Gulliver universe” across different parts of the Turia Gardens.
The main feature will be a seated Gulliver measuring 8.3 metres high. Unlike the original giant, who lies flat on the ground and is used as a huge climbing and sliding structure, this new Gulliver will be vertical, sculptural and immersive. Children will be able to climb around him, move through tunnels inside the structure, cross different levels, use elevated walkways and come down integrated slides. In other words, this will not just be a statue to look at. It will be a giant piece of playable architecture.
The new space will cover around 6,700 square metres, with about 2,300 square metres dedicated to the play area itself. Around the seated Gulliver there will be other elements inspired by Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, including giant books, towers, fantasy architecture, walls and gates. The aim is to create a themed adventure space, where children feel they are entering the world of Lilliput rather than simply visiting another playground.
The council has said that the current trees and garden areas will be preserved, and that no direct impact on the existing woodland is expected. The park will also be fenced, illuminated and closed at night, with a controlled capacity of around 250 people. Nearby picnic areas are also expected to form part of the wider project.
The financing is one of the most interesting parts of the story. The new park will be paid for by the FundaciĂłn Instituto Valenciano de OncologĂa as part of an urban agreement connected to the expansion of the IVO hospital. Once completed, the park will be handed over to the city.
Of course, not everyone sees the project in exactly the same way. Supporters describe it as a gift to Valencia’s children and a new landmark for the JardĂn del TĂşria. Critics have raised concerns about the broader urban deal behind it and the loss of green space connected to the IVO expansion. That debate will continue.
But one thing is clear: Gulliver is no longer just lying down in Valencia. Soon, he will also be sitting up, watching over another generation of children in the city’s most famous garden.
