Tenerife, Canary Islands

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Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain | © Ryan Lalani

Tenerife: tourist information

The island of Tenerife is the largest of the Canary archipelago - 2,053 square kilometres - and it has the shape characteristic of a triangle. The island of eternal spring because of its peerless climate is full of huge contrasts and has a great variety of scenery in the different regions. A mountain chain runs through its centre fro Anaga to Teno and on both of its slopes there are large, exuberantly fertile valleys, among them especially La Orotava and Gumar. In the heart of the chain there is a gigantic, natural crater, called Las Cañadas del Teide, which is about 29 km across and has officially been declared a National Park. It lies over 2,000 m above sea level. North of the crater stands El Pico del Teide, a 3,718 m high mountain, which is the highest point in Spain. It is snowcovered in the winter and marks the island with its unique silhouette.

Tenerife has an extremely varied plant life, large, wooded mountains, extensive areas where banana, tomato, potato and other agricultural products are grown. Its coast is rocky and lined by cliffs in some places, while in others there are beaches with soft, clean sand, which are sometimes black and sometimes golden.

The capital of the island and of the province is Santa Cruz de Tenerife, which has 220,000 inhabitants. It is a cheerful, light-filled, modern city on a gentle slope and it is open towards the wide plains in the south. It is the seat of the military headquarters, La Capitanía General de Canarias, and Santa Cruz is known as a hospitable, cordial city. Beautiful gardens, especially García Sanabria, the Municipal Park, and busy streets make it easy for the visitor to feel at home there.

The port in a large bay surrounded by the steep cliffs of the Anaga mountain chain is an important sea traffic and communications centre between Europe, Africa and America. It is visited by ships from all kinds of countries and numerous tourist cruises make it their port of call throughout the year. It is the busiest Spanish port as regards the movement of goods and it is among the most important regarding the number of ships.

The whole city deliberately moves down towards the port and comes to rest, though full of bustling activity, in the nearby España and La Candelaria Squares. Around the latter there are some of the important official buildings, such as El Cabildo Insular, the island government building, where the Archaeological and Anthropological Museum is found; Carta Palace - a curious example of regional architecture and decoration, dating from the 17C and today officially a Sight of Interest to National Art and Architecture -, the Casino Principal, the Monument to the Fallen and El Triunfo de la Candelaria are also found in this area.

La Concepción's is the most important church. Its nave and four aisles shelter interesting Baroque works of art and most valuable reminders of Canary history. There La Cruz de la Conquista, the Cross of Conquest, is kept together with the flags taken from Sir Horace Nelson, the British admiral, on the occasion of his unsuccessful attack on the fortified city. Carta Chapel and the beautiful choir stalls, which are found in the presbytery today, are also of interest to art. Another church worthy of special mention is San Francisco's, which is 18C Baroque next to a beautiful square.

On El Principe Square with its lush laurel trees, there is the Municipal Museum of Paintings and Sculpture, with important paintings by Ribera, B. Brueghel, Madrazo, Van Loo, etc., as well as a department especially dedicated to Canary painting.

On Anaga Avenue, a beautiful, broad thoroughfare skirting the port area of Santa Cruz, there is Paso Alto Castle and its Military Museum - where objects reminiscent of the past are kept -, a peaceful place for a walk near the Royal Yacht Club of Tenerife, which lies in the vicinity of the Nautical School and close to La Casa del mar. There is a magnificent view of the bay.

The Provincial Public Library and the Provincial Office of Records are found in La Casa de la Cultura, comodoro Rodin St.

Near the city centre, there are two Places of Interest to National tourism: las Teresitas, with a 1,500m long, artificial beach of golden sands, and Las Gaviotas. Especially noteworthy is the picturesque Taganana are, with the El Roque and Almáciga beaches of black sand.

The Reina Sofía International Airport - Tenerife Sur - lies 60km from Santa Cruz and the Tenerife Norte Airport is nine kilometres away. The capital is the point of departure of the great southern motorway of the island, which links Santa Cruz with the different places and tourist centres of that area, and of the northern motorway, which leads to the important tourist centre of El Puerto de la Cruz; 22km from the capital lies Mount La Esperanza, covered with extensive Canary pine forests. There is a road crossing over it leading to Las Cañadas del Teide. On the way there are observation platforms with breathtaking views of the islands.