Filled with volcanic peaks, primeval laurel forests and Atlantic-washed shorelines, soulful Tenerife tempts with far more than its balmy climate and beach-vacation buzz.

On the biggest island in Spain’s Canary Islands, you may meander round vigorous neighborhood markets and linger at low-key terrace cafes earlier than diving into forward-thinking artwork, brightly painted structure or cliff-hugging climbing trails. And it is all set towards a spectacular pure backdrop that feels in contrast to wherever else on earth. 

From the cultural thrills of the dynamic capital Santa Cruz de Tenerife to tricky-to-find foodie delights and otherworldly hikes, right here’s our decide of the highest issues to do in Tenerife. 

Uncover Canarian flavors at Mercado de Nuestra Señora de África

Settle into Tenerife life at Mercado de Nuestra Señora de África, the capital’s contemporary produce market. The scents of cinnamon, cumin, paprika and different spices waft via the air as you wander previous subtropical vegetation, mountains of colourful fruits, towers of Canarian cheeses and counters piled excessive with contemporary seafood. The peach-orange constructing was constructed again in 1944 with Islamic-style arches and a sky-reaching clocktower. 

Delectable native treats vary from olive oils and wines to toffee-colored palm honey, specialty espresso from La Orotava and tubs of almogrote (a cheese-based paste from La Gomera). Don’t miss the possibility to purchase your fish on the market after which have it cooked up at one of many cafe-bars dotted round its edge.  

Get artistic at Santa Cruz’s Tenerife Espacio de las Artes

Swiss architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron – in collaboration with Canarian Virgilio Gutiérrez – are behind the boundary-pushing design of Tenerife Espacio de las Artes, the island’s unmissable artwork gallery housed in a daring concrete-clad constructing impressed by the encompassing volcanic landscapes. The free expert-led excursions supply an in depth introduction to the TEA’s wonders, which embody works by the Tenerife-born surrealist Óscar Domínguez, an astonishing assortment of Twentieth- and Twenty first-century Canarian artwork and a 24-hour glass-walled library. 

Proper reverse stands one among Tenerife’s oldest church buildings, the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Concepción (constructed within the 1490s and later transformed), and a 10-minute stroll south takes you to the sweeping wave-shaped Auditorio de Tenerife, designed by Santiago Calatrava. 

Hike via age-old laurel forests within the Anaga mountains

Welcome to the oldest (and arguably most spectacular) a part of the island. Shrouded in mist and historic laurisilva (laurel forest), the remoted Anaga mountains stretch throughout the northeasternmost tip of Tenerife, protected as each the 144-sq-km (56-sq-mile) Parque Rural de Anaga and, since 2015, as a Unesco Biosphere Reserve. One of the best ways to discover this pure paradise is on foot, climbing between clifftop hamlets alongside the 400km (249 miles) of pathways, which you’ll be able to be taught extra about on the Centro de Visitantes Cruz del Carmen. Standout routes embody the PRTF3 via the laurel forest and willow timber (8km/5 miles spherical journey) and the PRTF8 linking Afur, Taganana and Tamadite seashore (14km/8.5 miles spherical journey). 

On the south aspect of the vary, gold-sand Playa de las Teresitas is one among Tenerife’s most lovely seashores, excellent for cooling off post-hike. 

Cool off within the Atlantic sea swimming pools

One among Tenerife’s biggest joys are its twinkling pure sea swimming pools, the place you may be part of the tinerfeños for a dip within the emerald Atlantic. Tough climate and excessive tides could make swimming harmful, so time your go to for low tide. 

On the north coast, Bajamar has a duo of calm, restored salt-water swimming pools set right into a concrete terrace proper by the waves, and so they’re excellent for households. Venturing southwest, you’ll discover wilder north-coast swim spots at Charco de La Laja and Charco del Viento, positioned between Puerto de la Cruz and Icod de los Vinos. And you then attain Garachico, one among Tenerife’s most fascinating historic cities, with a string of tempting rock swimming pools created by an 18th-century volcanic eruption. 

Over within the west, soar in at Charco de la Jaquita in Alcalá (which has views of La Gomera), Charco de Isla Cangrejo (overlooking the Los Gigantes cliffs) and hidden-away Playa Abama. On Tenerife’s less-touristy jap shoreline, low-key Radazul has ladders plunging into the Atlantic beneath hovering magma-molded cliffs.

Discover Spain’s most beloved nationwide park, El Teide

Few guests can resist the pull of Spain’s highest peak, 3718m (12,198ft) El Teide, which rises on the core of the eerily lovely, Unesco-protected Parque Nacional del Teide, the nation’s most-visited nationwide park. Sidestep the crowds by hitting the rewarding strolling trails that plunge throughout a silent lava-shaped valley or observe up near-deserted volcanic cones.

When you’re planning to hike as much as El Teide’s summit, you’ll must book permits and (if wanted) cable automobile tickets as far forward as potential. It is round 40 minutes to the highest from the higher cable automobile station at 3555m (11,663ft) alongside the Sendero Telesforo Bravo path or 5 hours (9km/5.5 miles) for those who hike all the way up from the foot of Montaña Blanca at 2349m (7707ft) with out utilizing the cable automobile. 

However there are countless different exhilarating (and permit-free) trails via this astonishing lunarscape, together with hikes up 3135m (10,285ft) Pico Viejo and across the Roques de García. 

Be part of the winter Carnaval

Rivaled solely by Cádiz as Spain’s greatest Carnaval city, Santa Cruz bursts into riotous, sequin-clad enjoyable for 3 weeks every February, with avenue events, colourful parades, style competitions and galas spilling out throughout city. With roots within the sixteenth century, Tenerife’s Carnaval was banned throughout Franco’s dictatorship however powered on by recasting itself as a “winter pageant.” E-book lodging far upfront. The dates change every year relying on when Easter falls. For individuals who can’t make it through the festivities, Santa Cruz’s Casa del Carnaval provides a taster. 

Trip the waves in El Médano

With rainbow-colored kitesurf sails rippling throughout the waves and a sprawling golden Blue Flag seashore, bohemian-feeling El Médano ranks amongst Europe’s prime kitesurfing locations. Nicely-established 30 Nudos Kite School runs two-hour kitesurfing classes for rookies, together with extra in-depth three-day programs for a wide range of capability ranges. They provide traditional surf lessons too. The perfect months are November to March and June to September, although circumstances are good virtually year-round. Don’t miss refreshingly undeveloped Playa de la Tejita missed by the Montaña Roja volcano, each a part of a protected nature reserve.

Style volcanic Canarian wines 

Tenerife’s distinctive climates and abrupt geology imply wine-making right here is all about uncommon, autochthonous pre-phylloxera grapes, equivalent to malvasía, negramoll and listán negro. Historic vines have been grown throughout the mineral-rich, lava-flow slopes since no less than the fifteenth century, and most are nonetheless harvested by hand within the island’s 5 Denominaciones de Origen (DOs; Denominations of Origin). 

Drop in for a tour and tasting on the award-winning Bodegas Insulares Tenerife, a 660-member cooperative within the northern DO Tacoronte-Acentejo or (with advance reserving) at family-owned Suertes del Marqués within the DO Valle de La Orotava, which prioritizes conventional, sustainable manufacturing methods. For a deep-dive into small, artisan tinerfeño vineyards, Tenerife Wine Experience provides personal bodega-hopping excursions. 

Feast on Tenerife classics at a guachinche

Beloved by tinerfeños, Tenerife’s guachinches are easy, great-value meals spots specializing in conventional home-cooked delicacies, sometimes set in repurposed garages, backyard shacks or nation fincas (estates) whose homeowners make and serve their very own wine. 

The perfect space to hunt one down is northern Tenerife, notably round La Orotava, the place you’ll be digging into garbanzas (chickpea stew), grilled meats, ultra-fresh fish, ropa vieja (a meaty stew), Canarian cheeses and different favorites. It’s greatest to get suggestions regionally, however you will discover a couple of on-line guides.

Take pleasure in watersports and whale-watching in Los Gigantes

Plunging into the Atlantic from 600m (1969ft) above, northwestern Tenerife’s basalt cliffs of Los Gigantes make up one of many Canaries’ most spectacular coastal landscapes. The dreamiest views are from out on the cobalt-blue water, which suggests kayaking and paddle-boarding are a delight, particularly at sundown. It’s additionally Tenerife’s high spot for diving and snorkeling, with stingrays, barracudas, sea turtles, endangered Canarian lobsters and different creatures bobbing across the cliffs.

In 2021, a 2000-sq-km swath of ocean surrounding western Tenerife and neighboring La Gomera was declared Europe’s first Whale Heritage Site, recognizing native efforts to develop accountable whale-watching tourism and the world’s distinctive populations of short-finned pilot whales, bottlenose dolphins and 27 different cetaceans. Ensure you e book with an ethical, low-impact operator that prioritizes the animals’ welfare, limiting numbers and all the time holding a long way.

Marvel at Canarian structure 

Lush inexperienced inside patios await discovery behind the candy-colored facades, wood-carved balconies and shuttered home windows of La Laguna’s Canarian mansions, simply north of Santa Cruz. This city was the island’s authentic capital till 1723, with a lot of the palatial houses dotted round its Unesco-listed previous city constructed between the sixteenth and 18th centuries, notably alongside Calle San Agustín. Many stay personal residences open solely to guests on free guided tours. It’s an identical scene over in La Orotava, the traditionally affluent city clinging to northern Tenerife’s slopes; right here you may discover the 1632 Casa de los Balcones, a jewel of Castilian-style Canarian structure. 

Sort out the Barranco de Masca hike

One among Tenerife’s most thrilling hikes threads via the sheer-walled Barranco de Masca gorge, protected by the 80-sq-km (31-sq-mile) Parque Rural de Teno within the rugged northwest of the island. Following restorations, this spine-tingling path reopened in 2021, linking Masca (amongst Tenerife’s most scenic hill villages) with a wild volcanic seashore on the mouth of the ravine. It’s a 10km (6.5-mile) spherical journey, walkable in about seven hours. To assist with preservation efforts, the barranco is open to the general public solely on weekends and there’s a each day cap on customer numbers (presently set at 125) – you’ll must book a permit far upfront. 

Dine among the many stars

Over the previous few years, Tenerife has stormed onto Spain’s gastronomic stage, shining a highlight on the Canary Islands’ fabulous produce, on-the-up wines and distinct culinary heritage. The island now hosts 4 Michelin-star eating places, together with the Canaries’ solely two-Michelin-star enterprise: M.B. by high Basque chef Martín Barasategui on the luxe, Morocco-inspired Ritz-Carlton Abama lodge. Additionally on the resort is Japanese-inspired Abama Kabuki, with one Michelin star. La Caleta’s Canarian-fusion spot El Rincón de Juan Carlos (by the tinerfeño brothers Juan Carlos and Jonathan Padrón) and close by Italian-Chilean Nub (on the five-star Bahía del Duque lodge) joined the membership in 2022. 

Stars (and value tags) apart, you’ll dine properly everywhere in the island, whether or not you fancy a lunch of contemporary fish at a no-fuss chiringuito (seashore bar) or a gomero-cheese tapa with a glass of Tenerife-made crimson.

Roam round blissful Canarian gardens

With their unparalleled lava-molded geography and massively assorted microclimates, the Canary Islands are an astonishingly biodiverse pure wonderland, with 500 endemic kinds of flora. Tenerife alone has round 140 plant species that exist nowhere else on this planet. Get a style on the peaceable Palmetum in Santa Cruz, a 12-hectare (30-acre) landfill now ingeniously reborn as a one-of-a-kind botanical backyard dedicated to palms from everywhere in the globe.