Getting around in Tenerife – Lonely Planet

Tenerife is an island, nevertheless it’s an enormous one, notably once you enterprise off the autopista (freeway) and onto the slender roads that rollercoaster into the distant mountains rippling throughout the north. 

If you happen to’re planning a highway journey, you’ll be in your component on Tenerife, breezing by way of otherworldly landscapes with the volcanic peak of Teide hovering on the horizon, or feeling your abdomen flip as you profession alongside cliff-edge roads with the Atlantic raging far under. 

Renting a automobile makes it simpler to succeed in off-the-radar locations, however you will get round Tenerife in loads of different methods. Buses sprint between the massive cities and resorts for small change, and cheap shuttles make airport transfers a breeze. If you wish to go greener, hire a motorbike or an e-bike to see the island in wonderful gradual movement. 

Listed here are eight of the very best methods to get round in your go to to Tenerife.

Hire a automobile to succeed in the seashore and Tenerife’s volcanic heights

With its cinematic volcanic landscapes and coastlines, Tenerife generally is a pleasure to discover by automobile, however twisty roads and tailgating buses within the mountainous north can put even essentially the most assured drivers on edge.

The island is fairly straightforward to navigate, particularly if you happen to stick with the massive roads. The TF-1 freeway hyperlinks the capital of Santa Cruz de Tenerife within the northeast to Costa Adeje within the southwest, whereas the TF-5 freeway connects Santa Cruz to Puerto de la Cruz within the north. However extra enjoyable – and gear-crunching, camera-grabbing drama – awaits on the roads that swing round hairpin bends as much as Teide National Park (TF-21), Masca (TF-436) and the Anaga Rural Park (TF-12). Keep away from peak season if you happen to don’t need to be harassed by impatient bus and coach drivers. The highways can also get jam-packed at rush hour. 

Discovering a free parking house, notably close to the seashore, generally is a headache, particularly in excessive season when roads are stuffed with vehicles attempting to cram into too few areas (ensure you don’t park on any yellow traces). Paid parking typically prices round €1.80 an hour, which provides up over the course of a trip, so it’s value seeing in case your lodging supply parking. By no means depart valuables in vehicles, as petty thieves have been recognized to pounce rapidly in cities and resorts.

All the main automobile rental firms have desks at Tenerife South Airport, with automobile rental costing an inexpensive €15 a day on common. If you wish to up your eco recreation, Cicar rents out electrical vehicles, and Chargemap lists e-vehicle charging factors across the island.

Take the fast path to your resort in a taxi or shuttle

Trip-hailing companies like Uber have but to succeed in Tenerife, however official white taxis with meters are available at airports, in resorts and at taxi ranks in greater cities. If you wish to name one, good choices embrace Servitaxi Tenisur within the south and 24-hour Official Taxi island-wide. Be sure to get an estimated value on your journey earlier than hopping in. A brief 15-minute experience – from Tenerife South Airport to Playa de las Americas, for example – will set you again round €26.

If you happen to’re touring solo or as a pair, it’s cheaper to leap aboard one of many many shuttle buses that ply the island, doing the airport and door-to-door resort rounds. Some additionally supply reasonably priced personal transfers. Respected firms embrace Holiday Extras and Hoppa. You may anticipate to pay as little as €4.50 for a 45-minute switch from Tenerife South Airport to Costa Adeje.

Hop on a public bus for a budget-friendly spin across the island

No need to drive? You don’t should: Tenerife has an environment friendly bus service that covers a large chunk of the island. Titsa runs guaguas – pronounced wa-was – or public buses. You will discover timetables, routes and a useful journey planner on the web site. 

If you happen to intend to journey rather a lot by bus, spend money on a Ten+ each day or weekly journey cross, which value €10 and €50 respectively. You should buy contactless variations at ticket machines and bus stations or use the ten+Móvil app. 

Trip the tram from the previous capital to the brand new

Essentially the most thrilling strategy to get from La Laguna to Santa Cruz is by tram. The journey takes 40 minutes, and at €1.35, one-way tickets value subsequent to nothing. The tram runs from 6am to midnight Monday by way of Friday, and across the clock on weekends. Tickets may be bought at machines and repair facilities, and refilled at newsstands and kiosks.

Get in your bike to breeze alongside the coast or climb to Mt Teide

Tenerife has taken off as a biking vacation spot just lately, with routes crisscrossing the island and a gentle local weather making it potential to get in your bike yr spherical. Professional highway cyclists typically practice right here within the winter, limbering up on the exceptional climbs to Mt Teide.

You may simply hire highway bikes, mountain bikes and e-bikes in all the principle resorts and cities. Anticipate to pay between €15 and €35 per day, relying on how fancy the wheels are. On the south coast, Free Motion and Bike Point are each good bets; the latter has put collectively an excellent collection of GPS routes and affords guided bike excursions, each on and off-road. Cycling in Tenerife’s excursions swing from a road-bike tour to Masca to a downhill MTB journey at Teide.

Stretch your legs on seafront promenades and mountain trails

Whether or not it’s to be a sundown stroll alongside a wave-hammered seafront promenade or a hike into the fantasy laurel forests of the north, Tenerife is a terrific island for strolling. Sure, you’ll want wheels to get from A to B, however you may break up the journey by stretching your legs on the paths threading alongside the coast and into the mountains.

For day or multi-day hikes, Rother and Cicerone publish strolling guides that may level you in the fitting course. The Tenerife Topo Maps app can be useful if you happen to plan to stray past the overwhelmed monitor.

Accessible journey in Tenerife

Tenerife has made nice progress to develop into extra accessible lately. Trendy south-coast resort cities have typically been designed with mobility wants in thoughts, together with well-equipped resorts with ramps, wheelchair-accessible rooms and traffic-free seafront promenades.

Shuttle firms similar to Vacation Extras and cab firms like Official Taxi Tenerife supply wheelchair-accessible transport at no further value. Newer public buses are geared up with ramps, and the tram between Santa Cruz de Tenerife and La Laguna is accessible. If you wish to hire a wheelchair or mobility scooter throughout your go to, attempt Active Mobility Tenerife.

For extra journey ideas, obtain Lonely Planet’s Accessible Travel eBook.

Why e-bike is my favourite strategy to journey in Tenerife

Tenerife is an island with a heck of a whole lot of altitude, with roads whipping up from the coast to 2000m (6562ft) above sea degree, the place the stark, rocky, pink desert–like landscapes of Teide Nationwide Park make you are feeling such as you’ve landed on Mars.

You may blaze up right here by automobile, however to essentially see the panorama unfold – from ocean to pine forest to rugged, barren mountain – an e-bike is the best way to go. It’s potential to highway bike up right here if you happen to’re tremendous match, however for everybody else, an e-bike takes the sweat out of the grueling climb to the highest, permitting you to give attention to these sensational views.