Tenerife by Nancy Bagnall

The island of Tenerife isn’t just sea sand and sangria! It is a fascinating mixture of volcanic mountains, desert, green fields and forests – and beaches too of course, all of which are public!
In May I joined a group with Prestige Holidays to visit the island and had all of my previous stereotype opinions of Tenerife completely overturned.
We were extremely fortunate to stay at the Gran Hotel Bahia del Duque resort. This beautiful 5* hotel, built in landscaped grounds sloping down to the beach, offers a wide variety of accommodation and excellent facilities. We also visited several other outstanding hotels, among them the Abama Golf and Spa Resort, in Guia de Isora, set in a large private estate with its own golf course, spa and beach.
Mount Teide National Park dominated by the mountain with its giant caldera, is stunning; a vast unspoiled – even by all the tourist coaches – wilderness of volcanic rock formations, pine forests and fields of wildflowers. Our guide related the colourful and fascinating history of the island as we drove through the park to visit the Parador from where we had a wonderful view of the caldera. Although having a hire car to explore the park would give one more freedom, I found the commentary from our guide really brought the place to life.
Although the south of Tenerife is, traditionally the preferred destination for those seeking the sun, visiting the north of the island is a must. The north tends to be much greener and, in my opinion, much more interesting. From the cliffs of Los Gigantes in the north west, to the volcanic mountains and dense forests of the Anaga Hills in the north east, to the fascinating towns of San Cristobal – a World Heritage site – and the capital Santa Cruz, the possibilities for exploring are endless.
A highlight of our trip was whale and dolphin watching. Setting out in a “schooner” from Puerto Colon we were lucky enough to see several dolphins very close to the boat and many pilot whales. A wonderful, if rather queasy, experience!
Truly a new perspective on one of our most popular holiday destinations.

Click on the photo to see my other pictures.
For our other blogs scroll down or use the archive on the right.
Contact us via www.travel-stop.co.uk for experienced travel advice.