10 days in Tenerife: Teide National Park

You cannot come to Tenerife without crossing the centre of the island and touring Teide National Park! A UNESCO World Heritage Site, this huge park contains the highest peak in Spain: the Teide volcano (3,718 m). You might picture a rocky, dull expanse, but the parque nacional del Teide has far more to offer! We were surprised by the great variety of landscapes that unfolded before our eyes: pine forest, canyon, sea of lava, groves, red, black and ochre earth… You could even think you were crossing several parts of the world, like the American West or Réunion… The park is also known for the clarity of its sky and therefore for stargazing: it is home to one of the largest solar observatories in the world!

Note that it is also possible to reach the summit of the Teide, by cable car. We did not go up, but we know that you have to book several weeks in advance and that the ticket is quite expensive (around thirty euros per person).

If you want to drive every one of the roads that cross the park, allow two days to see it in full! Especially if you want to hike on one of the many trails in Teide National Park. So here are our suggestions for spots not to miss in the park!

Via the TF24 – from La Esperanza (north-east)

From our accommodation in La Matanza de Acentejo, we joined the very beautiful TF24 at La Esperanza. Right from the start of the drive, the road crosses a pine forest where you can stop quite often to admire the viewpoints. The miradores along the road:

• Mirador de Montaña Grande
• Mirador de Ortuño
• Mirador de Chimague
• Mirador de Chipeque, the unmissable one. Set at the end of a road, it gives an uninterrupted view over the pines and the Teide. It is also where you can admire the sea of clouds at sunset, when conditions are right.
• Mirador de Ayosa
• Mirador de la Crucita

From the mirador de la Tarta onwards, the setting changes: more mineral and volcanic. A little further on the left is the road that climbs to the observatory (closed when we went), but the road is still worth a look.
At the junction with the TF21 is the El Portillo visitor centre, which has a reception for hikers, a small museum and a rather pleasant botanical garden (toilets also available). Do stop there to learn more about the park!

Via the TF21 – from Vilaflor (south)

From the El Portillo visitor centre, we followed the TF21, which is the main road of the park because it comes closest to the Teide volcano. Our first stop on this road was at the San José mines, a magnificent (and windswept!) and spectacular place. The road then carries on, passing beneath the Teide and close to the entrance for the cable car.

It is along the long straight stretch just afterwards that you get a magnificent perspective on the Teide. We then parked in the car park of the mirador de la Ruleta – which draws a lot of people but is worth a look for the panorama. From there, we took trail 3 to admire the Roques de Garcia, astonishing needle-shaped rock formations. It is a very simple, accessible walk of a few kilometres. It is definitely a place not to miss!

The road that follows reminded us a lot of the landscapes of the American West and its national parks. Vast rocky expanses, always with an uninterrupted view of the Teide. Many viewpoints punctuate the route: Llano de Ucanco, Boca Tauce… feel free to stop at whichever you like! The road that drops down towards Vilaflor is different again, greener, with pine forests.

Via the TF38 – from Chirche (west)

At Boca Tauce, turning right you take the TF38, which leads to the west of the island, towards the village of Chirche and the TF1 motorway. This road gives yet more different viewpoints over the Teide: it too is worth a look. A few miradores not to miss:

• Las Narices del Teide (where you can see the volcano’s last lava flow, dating from 1798)
• Mirador de Sámara, the start of a trail (13) that makes a loop
• Mirador de los Poleos, with a more reddish landscape

Via the TF336 – from La Orotava (north)

It is also possible to reach Teide National Park from the north, via La Orotava. That is the road we took on our second visit to the park. Given the choice, we preferred the TF24, which comes from the north-east and from San Cristobal de la Laguna. That does not stop this stretch from also offering fine viewpoints such as the Mirador de Mataznos.

What we thought of Teide National Park

The parque nacional del Teide is a must for anyone coming to Tenerife! The volcano is the island’s main attraction, especially for lovers of nature and hiking. We were lucky enough to tour it over two days in the sunshine and under a beautiful blue sky that brought out the colours of the landscapes. Although the Teide attracts a lot of people, we did not feel the crowds on the road and were often alone at the viewpoints. So allow two days to discover the Teide if you have the time during your trip to Tenerife!

Read the article on our ten-day road trip in Tenerife to plan your next trip!