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| Tenerife | ||
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| Location | ||
Tenerife is a spectacularly located and beautiful island off the Arfican coastline where you will never be short of something to do. The wonderful scenery that Tenerife offers as well as the beaches and the vast amount of entertainment in Tenerife, Tenerife really is the place to be. |
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| Places of Interest | ||
The most visited place of interest on Tenerife is the Mount Teide National Park. When you see this magnificent mountain, particularly if it is your first visit to the Canary Island, there is an invisible magnetism that just draws you to it. Whether you explore the national park by yourself, or as part of an organised excursion, you cannot fail to be impressed by your surroundings. It does not matter which of the four roads you take to Mount Teide, all of them wind their way through thickly wooded forests of eucalyptus, chestnut and pine trees and then level out at about 2200 metres above sea level and meet at two main junctions. As your journey progresses through the Las Cañadas, you will be awestruck at the different rock formations that have been weathered over millions of years. The new road that eventually takes you to the base of the cable car, winds its way through the centre of what was the actual 'la caldera' cauldron of activity. Try to imagine a huge basin with a circumference of 45 km, and a minimum width of 10 km belching tons of lava miles into the atmosphere, because that it what you are now driving through. The lave flows that are still present at the side of the road, are from the volcano that is called Mount Teide. With a population of around 250,000, Santa Cruz de Tenerife provides many places of interest for any visitor to the island. In many instances, it is similar to any other capital city in Europe, but recently there has been a tremendous amount of redevelopment and improvements to the infrastructure. Apart from the financial and government sections of the city, there is a very active port dealing with cargo, ferry and cruise traffic. Museums and art galleries abound, ancient churches remind us that Spain is a catholic country, and you will not be disappointed by your surroundings if you sit at any of the small kiosk bars that trade on the wide pedestrian way in the middle of the Rambla, and take in the architecture from different ages. The original seat of government on Tenerife was in La Laguna, and this is a place of great interest with magnificent churches, museums and narrow streets with 200-year-old buildings. One on the best, or at least most interesting museums on Tenerife is the Museum of Science and the Cosmos. This museum is a hands-on walk around exhibition hall that has some 100 interactive experiences that will appeal to everyone. | ||
| Tenerife Scenery | ||
Visible from the surrounding islands that form the Canary Islands Archipelago, Mt. Teide majestically rises to 3,718 metres above sea level, and forms part of the highest national park in Spain. There are four main access roads to the park from Chio, Vilaflor, La Laguna and La Orotava, and it may surprise many to hear that during the winter period, heavy snowfalls often cause the park to be closed due to roads being blocked by snowdrifts. Mount Teide National Park was created as recently as 1954; it covers an area of some 18,900 Hectares and is home to a wide variety of flora, fauna, birds and mammals. In much of the lower parkland, and from around 1,600 metres altitude, the hillsides are clothed in pine and laurel forrests, and even though the air is thin and there are extreme temperatures, plant and animal life thrives. The park is very person-friendly. There are several bar-be-que sites and visitors’ centres, nature trail maps are readily available and guided tours are arranged on request. There are of course many restricted areas and these are necessary to ensure conservation for future generations. The more than 160 plant species that flourish within the National Park create a habitat for in excess of 20 different variety of bird and several small mammals. The most commonly seen bird is the Berthlot’s Pipit that spends most of its time on the ground, but others include Blue Chaffinch, Wild Canary, Swift, Kestrel, Owl and Woodpecker. Rabbits, mice, feral cats, hedgehogs and bats also abound in this somewhat desolate wilderness. It is possible to climb almost to the summit of Mount Teide, permission is mandatory, but for the more sedate traveller, there is a cable car that operates during the daytime, subject to no adverse weather conditions. It is not possible to enter the crater proper, and the approach paths only allow limited foot traffic. The cable car itself is able to carry 35 passengers at a time, and climbs 1,200 metres in about 10minutes. Situated just outside the boundary of the National Park on the road to La Laguna, The Observatory Astronomico del Teide has some of the most powerful telescopes in the world. The night skies above the Canary Islands are among the clearest in the world, and the observatories here are world-renowned. Amateur stargazers often spend the whole night at this high altitude watching the stars and planets as they travel across the Universe. In summer, there are annual cosmic displays that everyone should see at least once, and almost anywhere within the park will be the best seat in the stadium. |
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| General information | ||
Full name: The Canary Islands |