Hiking in Tenerife
Trekking the contrasts of the South of Masca and the north of Anaga in Tenerife
La isla de Tenerife belongs to the Canary archipelago which is located in the Atlantic ocean. Tenerife is the most populated island and the most touristic one so many villages are overcrowded. The best way to know the island is hiking in Tenerife with our help!
Generally, is much more beautiful for those who want to hike in the island to explore the north and central area. In this last area, it is located the National Park of Teide, where the geology is exceptional. Though being a small island, it has a maximum altitude of 3718m and offers many different types of hikes and difficulty. Hiking in Tenerife is a great option to avoid the touristic resorts.
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Panoramic view of Anaga Natural Park
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Hiking path to the mountain pass
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Teide 3718m
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Sunset from Montaña de la Negrita
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Path to Teide
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Panoramic view of the National Park
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Roques in Anaga Natural Park
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Teide at night
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Sunrise in the summits area of Tenerife
Best trails of Tenerife
Tenerife has the longest Footpath Network of the Canary islands and it means that there are many routes that one can hike. The best trails of Tenerife are located in the Rural Park of Anaga, in the National Park of Teide and in the south canyons of Masca and many others that can be explored.
-Anaga Rural Park: The Rural Park of Anaga is the best area to hike in Tenerife without the massive amount of people that visits Teide Mountain for example. Anaga is located in the north of tenerife and has a lot of trails through canyons and the area contains the most beautiful roques of the Canary Islands as Roque de Taborno, Roque de las Ánimas…
-Teide: the most known hike in Tenerife is the hike to the highest mountain of Spain, Teide. Teide is an active Volcano of 3718m that is known for the incredible sunrise that draws the shadow of the volcano into the ocean making a perfect triangle. To reach to the top of Teide is needed a permit or to sleep in the Mountain hut at 3200m and wake up early to see the sunrise without having to take the permission.
-Masca: at the south of Tenerife, there are many ravines with incredible walks that leads to unspoiled beaches.
hiking trails in tenerife
Tenerife Walking Guide – Practical Information
How to get
With Trasmediterranea and Naviera Armas there are connections from Cádiz and Huelva.
The better option to take to fly to the island may vary depending from the place of departure. The southern Airport is the one that has more connections with Europe. The northern Airport has more national and regional connections.
From UK, Germany, Ireland and Spain, Ryanair is one of the airlines that have really cheap connections with Tenerife and other Canary Islands.
In Spain and France, the Spanish airline Vueling have daily connections from different cities and offer as well low prices.
From France, Switzerland and UK can be interesting to have a look to Easy Jet.
In the Scandinavian countries Norwegian and SAS have direct flights and for those who are under 26y.o can be interesting to check out the prices because in the price is already included a 23kg baggage. From Spain, Norwegian can be a good option as well.
How to get around
Renting a car in Tenerife can be a good option for travelling around the north coast and the summit area if the costs are shared. Cars can be rented for less than 15 euros per day and petrol is really cheap (below 1€/l in 2018).
In Tenerife, there are different roads where is not allowed to do hitchhike, those that the signal is in blue colour (motorways and dual carriageway. Anyways is possible to do it in the entrances of this roads always before the traffic signal that notices you are getting on the motorway. Can be really useful to go and ask directly to drivers in touristic parking lots or in petrol stations. Is maybe the hardest island to hitch-hike.
Public transport in Tenerife
There’s a good public transport network in all the island. The north and summit area are the parts where is harder to get with public transport of Tenerife. On the northern coast, there are only a few lines running and some of them once a day. For going to the National Park, there are only 2 different lines running from Orotava and Costa Adeje. The prices of the buses are not as cheap as expected, especially in the south where the tourism is focused. Google Maps works perfectly with the public transport option and shows the fastest way to go and schedule.
Notice that every time you change the bus you need to buy a new ticket, so for going from A to C stopping by B you will need to buy a ticket in the bus for going from A to B and from B to C afterwards. In case you can avoid changing lines is going to be cheaper cause every time you pay for a ticket you are already paying more than 1 euro for getting in. In the following link can be found the prices of the bus and the different routes that run the island. Prices – Lines
Accomodation
Wild camping or bivouac in Tenerife is regulated, as in other regions of Spain, by every town and rural municipality and it’s hard to know all the regulations but in general, is NOT allowed. Here we are not going to tell you where we stayed without being caught, we will post only the legal places to pitch your tent. In Tenerife, there are 13 camping areas where having a permission is completely free to stay with your tent for a maximum of a week. You can fill the form (only in spanish). These areas are equipped normally with toilets and drinking water.
In the hiking areas, there are a few hostels you can find in Hostelworld that can be a great option after some days doing wild camping.
Airbnb can be as well a good resource in those cases where there’s not a hostel or when you are a group of 3 or more. You can get 25€ off for your next trip here!
Using Couchsurfing can be easier than in other islands due to the amount of population is living in Tenerife. At the north and in the summits area is almost impossible to have the experience.
What to see and do in Tenerife
Discover the wild north coast of Tenerife and the Natural Park of Anaga, the must be hiked area.
Explore the National Park of Teide and hike to the top of the summit or to the best viewpoint Alto de Guajara. Is possible to hike to the top of Teide only with a permission.
Delve into deep canyons of the south and east part of the coast. Try to avoid the ones that must be paid as Barranco del Infierno.
The south-west area has very impressive hikes around Masca and Los Gigantes. Hikes that cross the mountains through tunnels and showing the stunning views.
Weather
When to go
In the rainy areas can be very rainy during winter. If you are thinking about going to hike to the summit of Teide or to the north of the island, avoid going from the end of November to February. It doesn’t have to be raining during all days but is the season when the storms come and go.
Dangers and tips
Be aware of the weather conditions while hiking and driving. Heavy rain causes flash floods in the steep valleys and rockfalls may occur, especially in the canyons of the south of Tenerife.
In general, Tenerife is safe but if you are hiring a car, be careful with your belongings because there might be some thieves that try to steal the stuff that you carry on the car.
Protect your skin from the sun, all year round. Know when you will be able to refill your reservoir. Carry enough water, more during summer when temperatures can reach 40ºC. Avoid hiking during the midday.
There’s no danger of being attacked by animals. Only jellyfishes can hurt you while swimming especially during winter. Several beaches have very strong currents.