Puerto de la Cruz is the old resort town on the north coast, built on the edge of the La Orotava valley with Mount Teide behind it. It is the smallest municipality on the island at 8.7 km² and was the first tourist destination in the Canary Islands, which explains the historic quarter with more than 140 protected buildings (Tenerife tourist board, read 7 November 2026). It is the base for Loro Parque, and temperatures stay between 15 and 22 °C all year according to the same source.
Highlights
Playa Jardín and the castle
The Playa Jardín complex, with Playa Chica and Punta Brava, is one of the town's Blue Flag beaches; the San Felipe castle stands beside it.
Lago Martiánez
The seawater lake complex holds 27,000 cubic metres of water in eight pools (one lake, four other adult pools and three children's pools). It was created by a team led by the artist César Manrique, and the address is Avenida de Colón 1.
The historic quarter
The Church of San Francisco dates from 1599 and is described as the oldest building in town. The Casa de la Real Aduana was founded in 1620, the San Telmo chapel in 1780, and Plaza del Charco is the central square.
La Orotava Botanical Garden
Created by royal order on 17 August 1788. It is open from 9:00 to 18:00, costs 3 euros, and is closed on 1 January, Good Friday and Christmas Day (read 7 November 2026). The address is Calle Retama 2.
Puerto Street Art
Since 2014 an open-air exhibition in the La Ranilla fishing district, with murals by 13 artists. The full walk takes about an hour and a half.
Practical info
Tips
- Loro Parque has its own page: see Loro Parque tickets. If you plan to spend most days on the south coast beaches and in Siam Park, a hotel in the south is more practical; the comparison is in where to stay in Tenerife. For an evening in town, a flamenco show is listed on Tiqets as Puerto de la Cruz: Flamenco Pasión Show, rated 4.5 out of 5 from 30 reviews (read 7 November 2026), so it is an evening option that does not depend on the weather.
How to get there
Bus line 348 links Puerto de la Cruz to Teide National Park. Santa Cruz de Tenerife is 30 to 40 minutes by car (tourist board).
Opening hours
Nearby
See on the map →
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