Tenerife Canary Islands

Tenerife, Canary Islands

Scattered 300 miles across the Atlantic Ocean lie Spain's Canary Islands. This volcanic archipelago is quite diverse due to the age difference among the islands. The largest of the seven Canary Islands is Tenerife. It is approximately 790 square miles in size and dominated by Mount Teide, the highest peak on Spanish territory. Called the "Island of Eternal Spring" by the locals, Tenerife offers idyllic weather, fragrant fruit trees and charming locals.

The One Thing You Don't Want to Miss

When visiting Tenerife, don't miss its mysterious pyramids. Enjoy a panoramic city tour of Santa Cruz and visit Pyramid Park, an area discovered by the world-famous adventurer Thor Heyerdahl. No one knows where the pyramids came from, but no one who sees them can forget these strange formations.

Local Currency

As part of Spain, the Canary Archipelago's official currency is the Euro (EUR), the official currency of the European Union. Many stores and restaurants also accept major credit cards, which usually offer you a good exchange rate. When shopping, remember there is a Value-Added Tax added to most purchases.

The island of Tenerife is the largest of the Canary Islands at 2,053 square kilometers - and it has the shape characteristic of a triangle. It is called the island of eternal spring because of its wonderful climate .

The island is full of huge contrasts and has a great variety of scenery in the different regions. A mountain chain runs through its center fro Anaga to Teno and on both of its slopes there are large, 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.

Temperature chart, Tenerife South, Canary Islands

.	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Day (°C)	21	21	22	23	24	27	29	30	28	26	24	22
Day (°F)	70	70	72	73	75	81	84	86	82	79	75	72
Night (°C)	15	15	16	16	17	19	21	21	21	20	18	16
Night (°F)	59	59	61	61	63	66	70	70	70	68	64	61
Water (°C)	19	19	19	19	20	20	22	23	22	22	21	20
Water (°F)	66	66	66	66	68	68	72	73	72	72	70	68
Sun (hrs)	6	7	7	8	10	11	11	11	9	7	6	6