These two, in my view, are awful, and visitors going there for the first time expecting something with a foreign feel will be disappointed by the usual rash of "See Leeds v Barcelona live tonite on Sky" cafes and bars. What they do have is beaches. It’s not just us either. The Germans are catered for in a similar way. I suppose Tenerife is like the best and the worst of southern Spain in that respect. Los Christianos does have one saving grace - it’s the ferry port to La Gomera, one of the other islands, which makes for a fascinating day out in itself.
Puerto de Santiago hasn't got much of a beach but the pools in the hotels & apartments are usually fine. It has a good selection of restaurants to all tastes & pockets. Grilled Sea Bass with spicy new potatos and salad….mmmmm.
Los Gigantes (the Giants) are 2000’ cliffs that rise vertically out of the Atlantic immediately along for the resort of the same name. They can be visited by boat.
The inland scenery is equally spectacular, assuming you apply the G.O.Y.A. principle and hire a car. The centre of the island is a national park with Spain's highest mountain (c 13000') + cable car, from where you can see the other islands. You may even see some snow up here. It is almost guaranteed to be sunny at this height, whatever the weather elsewhere.
You do have to bear in mind that the western side of the island is prone to cloudy afternoons (with some rain), what with the prevailing wind and the honking great ridge of mountains down the middle which halt the cloud’s progress.
This affects towns like Puerto de la Cruz, the original resort. By the same token, the eastern side is more likely to be sunny. Unfortunately, but logically, this is where the major “Benidorm-clones” are. Most of the genuine beaches are of black volcanic "sand" - not the most appetising colour, although some have been covered in Sahara sand - I expect it can spare some.
The main attraction is the all-year climate, making it the only "European" destination with almost guaranteed warm weather at Christmas - probably because it's part of Africa really.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital with a distinct South American feel - the Canaries were a replenishing point for the Conquistadores and modern day pillagers arrive by cruise liner. The whole island is duty-free, so like the Channel Islands, normal international allowances apply.
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Hotel - Calle Gran Bretana - Urbanización San Eugenio, Costa Adeje, 38660 Tenerife, Gran Bretaña, s/n, 38660 Playa de las Americas, Spain - 4 Stars - 404 Rooms
Hotel - Quinto Centenario, 7, Playa de Las Américas, Adeje, 38660 Tenerife, Avenida V Centenario 7, 38660 Playa de las Americas, Spain - 2 Stars - 165, 147, 115 Rooms
Good op, though I think it's fair to say that southern Tenerife is a place for young pissheads. I feel too old to go back now and wouldn't suggest it to anyone over 30 as the partying is the only attraction. We went there for a fortnight in '94 and caught Beijing flu. I developed a penecillin allergy that nearly killed me but still managed to have a lot of good nights out and visit the rest of the island. If you're a young 'een hit Veronicas in Playa - it was mingingly full of cheap drink and drugs if thats your thaang.
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Dec 16th, 2000
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