Tenerife Guide · 5 articles
Tenerife by day: the volcano, the coast and the west
This is the island in daylight, between one night out and the next. The volcano comes twice: the Teide cable car and the permit for the summit by day, and stargazing above the clouds once the sun has gone down. On the coast, you'll find the southern beaches that hold the Blue Flag and the whale-watching trips from the south, with the rules licensed boats have to follow. For a full day out, there's Masca's gorge, the Los Gigantes cliffs and Garachico, with the buses that bring you back in time for the night. Hours, fares and rules come from the national park, the cable car, the Cabildo, the island's tourist board and the Canary Islands Government. When the sun sets, the clubs in the south are a bus ride away.
By day
The best beaches in Tenerife South, measured by the Blue Flag
Calling a beach the best needs a yardstick, and the Blue Flag is the official one: water rated excellent the season before, lifeguards, toilets and safe access, checked by an independent jury. These are the southern beaches that hold it now, what Tenerife's tourist board publishes about each, and where they sit next to the club nights.
By day
Masca, Los Gigantes and Garachico: Tenerife’s west in a day, back south for the night
The west of Tenerife fits into one day from the south: the hamlet of Masca and its gorge, the Los Gigantes cliffs and the lava-made pools of Garachico. The gorge now runs on fixed rules, a booked slot, a compulsory bus and a boat out, so here is how they fit together, and how the buses bring you back to Costa Adeje and Los Cristianos in time for the night.
By day
Teide stargazing: Tenerife's other night out, above the clouds
Not every night in Tenerife ends in a club. Above 2,000 m, in the national park around the volcano, the sky has carried the Starlight Foundation's label since October 2013, and when there's a sea of clouds you look at the stars from above it. Here's what makes that sky so dark, how to get up there after sunset and how cold it gets.
By day
Teide cable car: hours, fares and the permit for the summit
The cable car lifts you from 2,356 m to 3,555 m in Teide National Park, and the summit, at 3,718 m, is left for the last stretch, on foot and with a permit. This is the volcano by day: the hours and fares the cable car publishes, what the ticket does and doesn't include, the walks from the top station and how to get there without a car.
By day
Whale watching in Tenerife: resident pilot whales and how to pick a licensed boat
Between a late night and the next one, a morning at sea is one of the island's surest outings: two species of cetacean live in the channel towards La Gomera all year round. Here is where they are, which harbours the boats use, how to recognise a licensed boat and what the Canary Islands' rules say about getting close.