Tenerife.

Tenerife, a Spanish island, is the largest of the seven Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. Tenerife has an area of 2034.38 square kilometers, and 886,033 inhabitants, which make it the most populated island of the Canary Islands and Spain.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital of the island and the head of the island government (cabildo insular). It is the second largest city in the Canary Islands after Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and is capital of the autonomous community of the Canary Islands alongside that city, sharing governmental institutions such as Presidency, Parliament and ministries.

The island is home to La Laguna University, which was founded in 1792. La Laguna (World Heritage Site) is the second city of the island and the third one of the archipelago. El Teide is also a World Heritage Site.

Climate

Tenerife is known internationally as the “Island of Eternal Spring” (Isla de la Eterna Primavera). The island, being on a latitude of the Sahara Desert, enjoys a warm, all year round climate with an average of 22° – 24°C in the winter and 26° – 28°C in the summer and sunshine all year round. On Tenerife, there are no periods annually even during the winter months of cold, but neither are there periods during the summer of unbearable heat as there are in some of the Greek islands of the Mediterranean. The moderate climate of Tenerife is controlled to a great extent by the tradewinds, whose humidity, principally, is condensed over the north and northeast of the island, creating cloud banks that range between 600 and 1,800 meters in height. The cold sea currents of the Canary Islands, also have a cooling effect on the coasts and its beaches and the topography of the landscape plays a role in climatic differences on the island with its many valleys.

Tourism

Tourism is more prevalent in the south of the island, which is hotter and drier and has many well developed resorts such as Playa de las Americas and Los Cristianos. More recently coastal development has spread northwards from Playa de las Americas and now encompasses the former small enclave of La Caleta. After the Moratoria act passed by the Canarian Parliament in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, no more hotels should be built on the island unless they are classified as 5 star-quality and comprise different services such as Golf Courses or Congress facilities. This act was passed with the goal of improving the standard of tourism service and promoting environmentally conscious development.

   

The area known as Costa Adeje (Las Américas-Los Cristianos) has many world-class facilities and leisure opportunities besides sea and sand, such as quality shopping centres, golf courses, restaurants, waterparks, animal parks, and a theatre suitable for musicals or a Congress Hall. In the more lush and green north of the island the main development for tourism has been in the town of Puerto de la Cruz. The town itself has kept some of its old-harbour town charm mixed with northern European influences. Still, the tourist boom in the 60’s changed the outlook of the town, making it cosy and cosmopolitan at the same time, and a favourite for the more mature traveller (notably the German and Spanish tourist).

 

As indicated in the previous paragraphs, the economy of Tenerife, like the other Canary Isles, is based on tourism. In the 19th and most of the 20th century large numbers of foreign tourists came, especially british, showing interest in the agriculta of the islands. Much later, with the world wars, this sector weakened, but the start of the second half of the century brought new forms of tourism. At first emphasis was on Puerto de la Cruz, for the kindness of the climate, and for all the attractions that the Valle de la Orotava concentrated, but following the attraction of the sun and beaches, around 1980 was born the tourist boom of south Tenerife, where emphasis was on cities like Arona or Adeje, shifting to tourist centres like Los Cristianos o Playa de Las Americas, that today house 65% of the hotels that were on the island. Tenerife receives more than 5,000,000 tourists every year, of the canary islands Tenerife is the most popular. The Torres de Santa Cruz, are at 120 m (394 ft) high ,the tallest sky-scrapers in the archipelago, and residentially are the tallest towers in Spain..

History

The oldest mountain ranges in Tenerife rose from the Atlantic Ocean by volcanic eruption which gave birth to the island around twelve million years ago.  The island as it is today was formed three million years ago by the fusion of three different islands, with the mountain ranges of Anaga, Teno and Valle de San Lorenzo. Volcanic activity from Teide was responsible for this movement and the islands became one, Tenerife. The volcano is visible from most parts of the island today, and the crater is 17 km long at some points. The earliest known settlement in the islands date to around 200 BC, by a tribe known as the Guanche.  They were characteristically tall, powerfully built Scandinavian-looking people with blue eyes and long, fair hair. They were an uncivilised people, even by Stone Age comparison and dressed in animal hides and lived in caves on the island.  According to legend, many islands in the chain, among them Tenerife, were believed to be the uppermost peaks of Atlantis, which catastrophically sank under the ocean leaving only the highest mountains above sea level.

Playa de las Américas

is a purpose-built holiday resort between the Municipio of Arona, and Adeje in the south of Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands. It was built in the 1960s beside the town of Los Cristianos and stretching northward to the Costa Adeje. The resort area features numerous bars and nightclubs, as well as a number of beaches, most of which are man-made from imported sand from Africa due to the darkness of the native volcanic sand. Playa de las Americas is well known for being the nightlife epicenter in Tenerife and has a vibrant and varied assortment of bars, clubs, restaurants and attractions. Nightlife is spread around the resort although the most famous areas are the Veronicas strip, Starco Commercial Centre and the Patch.

Puerto de la Cruz

(which in English translates as and was formerly known as “Crossport”, although nowadays it is usually known in all languages by its Spanish name) is a municipality located in Spain, on the north coast of Tenerife island, in the Orotava Valley. It is located 4 km (2 mi) west of La Orotava, and 37 km (23 mi) W of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and 25 km (16 mi) from Tenerife North Airport both on the TF5 Motorway. In Spanish the inhabitants are known as portuenses. The municipality is the smallest in Tenerife.

The population is 31,830 (ISTAC, 2003), its density is 3,646.05/km² and the area is 8.73 km2 (3 sq mi). The elevation is 9 m (30 ft) MSL. The lowest point is the coastal Atlantic zone, the highest is Las Arenas, a volcanic cone with an elevation of 249 m (817 ft). Farmland is tucked into the valley areas and within the Atlantic coastal zone; urbanisation covers much of the area and the terrain rises rapidly to the south. Prior to the development of hotels and buildings, much of the area consisted of agricultural land. Considerable fiscal pressure led to the land being developed and the population shifted from rural to urban and tourism. The population is mainly urban today. Tourism is an important industry in Puerto de la Cruz, as evidenced by the number of large hotels on the skyline. Puerto de la Cruz is frequented by the Northern European during the winter months, due to its mild climate, and is particularly popular over Christmas and the new year periods. The Western European tourist contingent to Puerto de la Cruz tends towards more mature couples, in comparison to resorts such as Playa de las Americas Puerto also has a modest gay scene centred around Generalisimo Avenue. The summer months sees more Spanish tourists, particularly during the very hot month of August on the Spanish mainland.

Los Gigantes

is a resort town in the Santiago del Teide municipality on the west coast of the Canary Island Tenerife. Its main feature are the giant rock formations that rise from the sea to a height of 500-800 metres (1,640–2,625 ft) after which the town has been named. Los Gigantes means “The Giants”.

The town has a marina which is completely surrounded by concrete walls to dampen the effect of the rough seas around the area. A small black sand beach lies between the rocks and the marina. The marina has a boulevard with many restaurants. Close to the harbour is a public swimming pool. Los Gigantes is one of the island’s major tourist attractions, and it has many small shops servicing the tourists that visit the area, especially near the marina. As can be expected of a town resort, Los Gigantes has a high ratio of hotels and apartments compared to regular residences.

 

Los Cristianos

is a town in Spain, situated on the south coast of the Canary Island of Tenerife. Located in the municipality of Arona between the cone of Montaña Chayofita and the imposing Montaña Guaza, the town centre is around the bay of Los Cristianos, but is rapidly expanding inland with modern development. The town is a popular tourist resort and an important ferry port.

Unlike its bustling neighbour, Playa de las Américas, this pretty town has a history that predates the tourist boom of the 1970s and ’80s. For many years this holiday hub was a quiet fishing village and if you look hard you can still see evidence of its humble origins in the typical Canarian architecture of the older buildings.

Nowadays however, the town offers a vibrant holiday experience with its two golden sand beaches, multitude of bars and restaurants and its year round sunny climate. There is a wealth of accommodation to suit all budgets including hotels, self catering apartments and timeshare resorts. There are also a wealth of excursions focused around the town’s busy port including dolphin and whale watching as well as game fishing trips and party cruises.

Los Cristianos is home to two world-class beaches: The main beach (Playa de Los Cristianos) is a sandy beach sheltered by the Harbour and boasts a number of facilities including watersports, beach volley ball, showers and a children’s play area. Las Vistas Beach is located in the next bay beyond the harbour and is man-made, protected by break-waters, it also boasts a number of facilities including watersports, showers and a tourist information site.

There is also a rocky, black-sand beach in the “Rincón” area of Los Cristianos, (between the headland near the Puerto Viejo and the cliffs of Montaña Guaza.)

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

is a city and a municipality on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. The city is the capital of the island, the second most populous in the Canary Islands, and the 21st largest city in Spain. In 2008 it had a population of 221,956. The population of the metropolitan area was 573,825 (the 13th largest metropolitan area in Spain).

Santa Cruz is the state capital of the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and a co-capital of the autonomous community of the Canary Islands. The city is home to the Parliament of the Canary Islands, the Canarian Ministry of Presidency (shared in a 4-year terms with Las Palmas), one half of the ministries and boards of the Canarian Government, (the other half being located in Gran Canaria), the Tenerife Provincial Courts and two courts of the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands. There are also several facilities of the La Laguna University in Santa Cruz, including the Fine Arts School and the Naval Sciences Faculty. Its harbour is one of Spain’s busiest; it comprises three different sectors. It is important for commercial and passenger traffic, as well as for being a major stopover for cruisers en route from Europe to the Caribbean.The main landmarks of the city include the Auditorio de Tenerife (Auditorium of Tenerife), the Santa Cruz Towers and Church Counterfoil of the Concepcion.The main landmarks of the city include the Auditorio de Tenerife (Auditorium of Tenerife), the Santa Cruz Towers and Church Counterfoil of the Concepcion.