Tenerife Family Adventure

Flight to Tenerife. Transfer from the airport to the accommodation.
Meals: Dinner

We begin our Family Adventure week exploring Teno Rural Park, in the northwest of Tenerife. The road crossing this Protected Natural Area offers us views from numerous lookouts over deep ravines, such as the spectacular Masca Ravine, with almost vertical walls several hundred meters high. Teno is one of the oldest territories in Tenerife, about 7 million years old, so here we will discover how the island began to form. On our way to the start of the trail, we’ll find the popular Masca Hamlet, where we will walk through its cobbled streets, trying to understand how its residents survived in such an isolated place for centuries.

Our trail crosses the ridges of the Teno Massif, where we can appreciate the marked differences between the north and south slopes in their vegetation and microclimate. We will also learn what those beautiful stone dikes are, which seem to emerge like dragons from the bowels of the earth. On our route, we’ll reach the Teno Alto Plateau, where goats still roam, whose milk is turned into delicious cheeses by local shepherds, which we will get to taste.

The island’s goat herders have practiced for generations a very peculiar activity that allowed them to move across the mountains with great skill following their herds thanks to the use of a pole—called "Salto del Pastor" (Shepherd’s Leap). We will give you a demonstration and challenge your skills and dexterity with this activity! A stop in the Hamlet of Los Bailaderos will allow us to taste local cuisine. We finish our walk in the El Palmar Valley, a fertile agricultural valley marked by its characteristic volcano. Return to our accommodation, and you can enjoy a swim before dinner.

• Distance: 11 km
• Duration: 5 hours
• Elevation Gain/Loss: +700m / -700m
  Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

We leave our accommodation climbing to 1,400 meters above sea level. Our second adventure of the week takes us on a mountain bike route, first through the Canary Pine Forest and later the Laurel Forest, following simple trails, mostly flat or downhill.

The first part of the itinerary crosses the lava flows of the last volcano to erupt in Tenerife, the Chinyero Volcano (1909). The landscape and color contrasts are magnificent. Later, another volcanic cone emerges in the middle of the forest, opening beautiful panoramas: the Arenas Negras Volcano (1706), whose eruption destroyed part of the town and port of Garachico, then the most important in the island.

We will learn the impact these eruptions had on the local population. We continue pedaling to a more rural area with fewer trees, where we will visit the Tanque Ecomuseum, where we can get closer to how local people lived until recently. After a lunch break in the village of Erjos, we begin the second part of our journey through Monte del Agua. This forest houses a good example of laurel forest, vegetation that thrives on moisture and water from the sea of clouds that often sits on it most of the year. We will take the opportunity to identify some plant and animal species that live in this tertiary-origin jungle, a true natural treasure of the island. Our last kilometers take us to the Hamlet of Las Portelas, from where we return to our accommodation for a well-deserved rest.

• Distance: 26 km
• Duration: 5 hours
• Elevation Gain/Loss: +350m / -1,100m
  Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Ready for a new adventure day, today we propose two water activities—sea kayaking and paddle surfing—and a visit to one of Tenerife’s most awarded artisan cheese dairies in recent years. We start by discovering Montesdeoca Cheese Dairy, a family farm dedicated to livestock care, especially goats, and producing delicious cheeses.

Next, we head to Los Gigantes Cliffs for kayaking and paddle surfing. These cliffs rise up to 600 meters vertically above the Atlantic Ocean. This area, usually sheltered from northeastern winds and sea currents, is ideal for these water sports. On board an open two-seater kayak, supported by a zodiac, we will paddle along the cliffs enjoying the scenery and the sea. We will have time for fun, jumping into the water, trying to spot fish, and taking pictures both above and under the water. We approach caves and coves where we can swim. After returning to the dock, we’ll rest, have lunch, and swim at Los Guíos Beach.

In the afternoon, we’ll do paddle surfing, using a large board where we’ll train our balance and quietly navigate the waters near Los Gigantes. Return to accommodation.

• Distance: 6 km
• Duration: 4 hours
  Meals: Breakfast, Picnic, Dinner

We head to Teide National Park for our fourth adventure of the week. Today we’ll discover one of the most amazing territories on the island of Tenerife. At the center of the island, inside a 16-kilometer-diameter caldera, is the highest peak in Spain—Mount Teide, which rises to 3,715 meters.

At its base lie dozens of volcanoes, lava flows, and volcanic materials of the most curious shapes and varied colors. Our exploration of the Teide Caldera will take us to see the famous Roques de García or the San José Mines, a filming location for many movies due to its pumice stone terrain.

To fully appreciate this emblematic place, we’ll hike one of its trails—this is the best way to understand why it’s been protected as a National Park since 1954 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2007. For the occasion, we’ve chosen one of the most beautiful routes, with the best views toward the west of the island, seemingly flying over the pine forest and often above the Sea of Clouds, before the imposing volcanoes of Pico Viejo and Teide.

Starting from the Samara Volcano, we climb to Montaña Reventada, leaving the pine forest behind and exceeding 2,000 meters altitude. The volcanic landscapes will transport us to moonlike scenes or even other planets. We pass by Las Cuevas Negras, volcanic tubes created during eruptions that were used by the island’s ancient inhabitants as shelter during their migrations across Tenerife’s summits.

We’ll also introduce you to the plants and animals along the way, discovering how they have adapted to the harsh conditions of the high mountains and how they survive in these landscapes. Return to the accommodation.

• Distance: 9 km
• Duration: 4 hours
• Elevation Gain/Loss: +475m / -475m
  Meals: Breakfast, Picnic, Dinner

A new adventure day, this time in the north of Tenerife. We travel to La Orotava Valley to enjoy the descent of a beautiful ravine—Barranco de Los Arcos.

We start with an approach trail to its head, through the pine forest. Before starting the descent, our canyoning guide will give instructions about the necessary equipment and the basic techniques to begin practicing this activity.

One by one, we’ll calmly and safely navigate the 11 rappels and down-climbs offered by the ravine. Its channel, which has been eroded over thousands of years, now gives us the chance to be amazed by narrow, enclosed sections, high walls, whimsical shapes, and magnificent coloring.

After finishing the route, we walk down to the La Caldera Recreation Area, located inside the crater of an ancient volcano. On our return to the accommodation, we stop at Playa del Socorro to end the day with a swim and enjoy this picturesque black sand beach, typical of the island’s north, located at the foot of a cliff.

• Distance: 6 km
• Duration: 5 hours
  Meals: Breakfast, Picnic, Dinner

Our last day of adventures first takes us to visit a farm dedicated to banana cultivation—probably the most popular agricultural product of the Canary Islands.

The staff at the banana farm will show us how they work, the care banana plants require, and how they harvest and process the delicious Canary Bananas for export. We’ll learn since when they’ve been cultivated on the islands and what conditions are necessary for them to grow.

Afterward, we head to the Los Gigantes Pier to embark on a fun and educational adventure in search of pilot whales, bottlenose dolphins, and any other cetacean, turtle, or bird we might be lucky enough to spot on our crossing.

For three hours, we will sail the seas surrounding our island of Tenerife, observing the behavior of these formidable animals. Some of them undertake long migrations, while others have found the ideal conditions here to live all year round.

We will have time to jump into the water and enjoy the sun and sea breeze; also, to enjoy a meal on board with magnificent views of Tenerife and, to the west, the neighboring island of La Gomera. We return to port and to our accommodation to enjoy some free time before our farewell dinner, which marks the end of a fantastic week of Family Adventure full of emotions and experiences.

• Duration: 3 hours
  Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast, enjoy the accommodation and the beach until the scheduled transfer to the airport.
Meals: Breakfast