Tenerife Travel Guide

Welcome to our Tenerife travel guide - the best place to find out everything you need to know before you travel.

The largest and one of the most popular of the Canary Islands - Tenerife is more than just endless sunshine and beach resorts. Our team has travelled the island end to end, looking for the best attractions, hidden gems, and of course, the best beaches.

What we cover in our Tenerife Travel Guide

• Getting to Tenerife
• Practical Info
• Getting Around Tenerife
• Top Places To Visit
• Best Beaches
• Tenerife For Families
• Accessibility In Tenerife
• LGBTQ+ Travellers

Getting to Tenerife

As a top destination among UK travellers, it's easy to find affordable flights to the island. Tenerife has two airports, North and South - with South being the bigger of the two and where most visitors will arrive.

The easiest was to get from the airport to your hotel or resort is to pre-book an airport transfer. Prices will vary depending on how far it is to your destination and whether you choose a shared or private transfer.

If you haven't pre-booked an airport transfer, then you can either grab an airport taxi or hop on a public bus. A taxi from Tenerife South to Playa de las Americas will set you back around €30 for 4 people. There a number of bus routes which run from the airport, whether you are staying in the south or need to go north, prices range from €3 to €15 per person.

Practical Info

Tenerife is the largest and most populous of the Canary Islands - an archipelago off the west coast of Africa.
Time zone: GMT +1
Currency: Euro
Power adapter: Tenerife uses type C & F adapaters.
Language: Spanish
Flight time: Avg. 4 hours 30 minutes
The weather: The temperature is quite stable throughout the year, usually averaging somewhere between 15ºC and 25ºC.
While culturally Spanish, Tenerife and its neighbouring islands are actually on the same latitude as part of the Sahara Desert – which goes some way towards explaining the year-round warmth.
And just like the desert, Tenerife can get a bit chilly during the night if you visit during winter months – so be sure to pack light layers.

Getting Around Tenerife

There are great options for public transport in Tenerife - with buses that serve the whole island and trams that run between certain locations. Our top tip is to buy a Ten+ card - for €10 a day or €50 for 7 days. With this, you can make unlimited trips on buses and trams across the island. There's also an app you can use which makes it even easier.

If you want real freedom though, we recommend hiring a car for your stay - they are available for as little as £11.99 a day. With a hire car you can go where you like, when you like and don't have to worry about crowding or waiting for public transport.

Top Places To Go

An explosive volcanic origin, centuries of history and some quite incredible scenery all combine to make Tenerife an exciting place to visit, wherever and whenever you go.

Volcan El Teide

Set in the centre of Tenerife, Teide National Park is a far cry from the bustling beach resorts of the island's coast. This spectacular volcanic landscape covers an area just shy of 200 square kilometres and is home to Spain's highest peak - the active volcano of Mount Teide.

The park is also home to the caldera from a much larger volcano called Las Canadas. This volcano imploded and you can see the remains here. Explore the lava fields, lift the super-light lava rocks and take a moment to appreciate the vast view. There's a cable car ride that will take you close to the summit. When you reach the top see if you can spot the other Canary Islands.

Siam Park

Siam Park frequently tops Trip Advisor's Travellers Choice lists. It's just outside of Costa Adeje and is easily accessible via public transport. This outdoor water park is Thai themed and has a number of slides for thrill seekers and families, as well as swimming pools and a beach. It's a great place to hang out for the day with the family.

Anaga Rural Park

Although many people visit Tenerife for the year round sunshine and great beaches there's a lot more to the island than that. One of our favourite places to visit is Anaga Rural Park.

Found in the highlands at the very north of the island, Anaga Rural Park is a UNESCO biosphere reserve, home to an ancient laurel forest. A million miles away from the sandy beaches and busy resorts of the south, it's the perfect place for a hike, with many trails weaving through the trees.

Best Beaches

Thanks to the year round sun Tenerife is a beach lover's dream - and there's plenty of beaches to choose from!

Playa de Benijo

Want a beach a little of the beaten track? Then check out Playa de Benijo, found at the northern tip of the island. This is a wild black sand beach popular with surfers. As it's in the Anaga region, we recommend heading here for sunset after a day exploring the forests.

Playa el Médano

Enjoy windsurfing or kite surfing? Or maybe just watching other people do it while you relax on the sand? This beach is found in southern Tenerife, near to the most popular resorts. Due to the wind it's not as busy as some of the resort beaches - so it makes for a nice change of pace and a bit of quiet.

Los Gigantes

It may not be the most famous beach on Tenerife, but if you're looking for the most spectacular views and best selfie spots on the island, Los Gigantes is certainly not to be missed. Backed by magnificent cliff faces soaring to peaks of up to 800 metres, coupled with mesmerising volcanic black sand, there's nowhere quite like this unique slice of Tenerife.

The imposing cliff faces aren't just for show either. They protect the beach (and adjoining town) from prevailing winds, ensuring that Los Gigantes enjoys what could be the best climate on the whole of Tenerife.

Tenerife For Families

Tenerife is a wonderful destination for families. Whether you want a fully catered resort holiday, or to get out and about exploring nature there are some great option for your family.

The most popular resorts are found in the south of Tenerife, making them a nice short hop from the airport. Playa Las Americas, Los Cristianos and Costa Adeje are all great choices, with white sand beaches and some excellent family activities nearby. Each have their own quirks, so do your research before you go.

Playa las Americas is a great choice if your kids are slightly older as it has more of a energetic scene - there's water sports, karaoke and a great beach.

Los Cristianos is a bit quieter and calmer, and is really popular among families. There's a great beach (of course!) with lots of activities for kids and lots of resturants to choose from at night.

Costa Adeje is a newer resort and the best choice if you're looking for exciting days out - it's near the famous Siam Park which we know the whole family will love!

Accessibility in Tenerife

Tenerife is excellent when comes to accessibility. The island's government has taken great efforts to ensure that there are no barriers to society and they classify areas of the island as to whether they are: accessible, practicable or inaccessible.

Getting around Tenerife is easy, with fully accessible public transport - the trams in particular are set up to be accessible throughout the whole journey. There are also kneeling buses with continuous flooring and plenty of reserved spaces for wheelchairs. As always if you prefer to get around at your own pace, then you can hire a car for your stay.

If you want to head to the beach the number one choice is Los Cristianos as the entire 7km stretch of beach has an accessible promenade - there are accessible toilets and changing rooms as well as aquatic chairs and support for getting into the water. There are lots of beaches throughout Tenerife that are accessible however, so don't worry about getting bored of the same bit of sand!

Even Mount Tiede and the outdoor areas of Tenerife are accessible - so you don't have to miss out on the full Tenerife experience. At Mount Tiede the Roque de Caramujo Path is completely accessible and there are other areas that are accessible but you may require a little extra assistance.

LGBTQ+ Travellers

Although Gran Canaria may be the more famous Canary Island among the LGBTQ+ community, Tenerife is equally friendly and laid back in their attitudes. There's a big nightlife scene in Playa de las Américas, so you'll find a number of bars and nightclubs to check out there - and even if a venue isn't exclusively for LGBTQ+ people you'll find yourself welcome wherever you choose to party.

If you're heading to the beach there's a section of the popular beach Los Cristianos that is a popular spot with gay men.

But if you're just looking for a laidback place to spend time with your partner, rest assured Tenerife is an excellent choice and as laidback as the rest of Spain. It gets a thumbs up from us!