If you want to use the time to the maximum and you want to know what to see in Tenerife in 3 days because you only have this time on the island, maybe because also you visit any of the other Canary Islands or just make some short vacation, we offer a guide of what to do on a 3-day visit to Tenerife.
Sunset from Punta del Hidalgo
If you are going to be only 3 days in Tenerife, we assume that your vacation will not only focus on beach and relax and that you want to take advantage of your short stay on the island to see the most beautiful and characteristic places.
In that case, we recommend that you stay in the northern part of the island, either in the capital Santa Cruz de Tenerife, or in Puerto de la Cruz, where you will have very close some of the most beautiful places of the island.
However, if your flight is international, you will arrive at the South Airport, therefore, you will have a few kilometers until arriving at your final accommodation. On the way you can take advantage to visit some characteristic places.
As you will have your luggage in the car, we assume that your intention will not be to go to the beach until at least you have not arrived at your hotel or apartment. So on your way south, if you have time before sundown, you can take the opportunity to visit the tourist town of Los Cristianos, very close to the Airport, or very characteristic villages in the south, such as El Medano or El Porís, two towns full of joy in the summer months.
El Médano also has one of the most beautiful beaches on the island, Playa de La Tejita. You will have to take a dirt road and walk a few minutes until you arrive, but surely this will not be the best plan for the day of your arrival.
Your first full day in Tenerife, and taking into account that you will probably be tired because of the flight and the drive to get to your accommodation, it is recommended that you first know a little better the city where you are going to stay, either Puerto de la Cruz, or Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Another interesting option to stay could be the university city of San Cristóbal de La Laguna. But we warn you that this city, due to its particular location and unlike the rest of the island, has a much more unstable climate, being more likely cloudy or rainy days.
Puerto de la Cruz is a city that you can visit just walking through its streets and you will not need to be continually picking up the car to move between its most characteristic places. On this first day you can visit places such as the Botanical Garden (very close to our Ambassador Apartments), Loro Parque, El Castillo de San Felipe, located at one end of Playa Jardín, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de Francia, Paseo de San Telmo, Plaza del Charco and a long list of emblematic places of Puerto de la Cruz that you can consult in detail in our blog.
In addition, you can leave this first day with beach clothes, if the weather accompanies, to make a stop in between and take a bath in one of the three beaches that make up Playa Jardín.
If you have some time left in the afternoon, you can consider visiting the neighboring city of Puerto de la Cruz, La Orotava. Here you will find a very cozy atmosphere with its cobbled streets and magical places to visit, such as the Victoria Gardens.
In the evening you can relax in one of the pubs that are in Puerto de la Cruz and see in detail the life of the city, where tourists and citizens of Puerto intermingle.
On your second day in Tenerife you can take advantage to visit the National Park of the Cañadas del Teide, and feel the majestic highest mountain in Spain.
You can not leave Tenerife without having visited this incredible place, within which you can find Martian landscapes like the Llano de Ucanca. In addition, it is advisable to arrange the trip so that when you are returning you can watch the sunset.
If you really want to take advantage of the day, we recommend to leave early. On the way to Teide you can also visit other places.
Leave early in the morning, heading towards San Cristóbal de la Laguna, and make an intermediate stop in the pretty village of El Sauzal. From here you have wonderful views of the Valley of La Orotava with the Teide in the background, on viewpoints like the Mirador de la Garañona.
Continue to San Cristóbal de La Laguna to visit this emblematic university city, with a special charisma. Here you can find a great historical heritage and wide pedestrian streets in its historical center.
After visiting San Cristobal de La Laguna, you can take at its main roundabout the road to the town of La Esperanza, where you will begin your ascent to El Teide.
Once you are on this road you can´t get lost, you will have to continue straight ahead along its main road and you will always ascend. You will find first the town of La Esperanza and after it you will enter the mountain of Las Raíces where you will be able to enjoy the beauty of the road. Several kilometers later you find yourself at increasing altitude, surpassing the Sea Of Clouds and with the Teide closer than ever.
Once at the Teide, you can take the opportunity to visit its visitor center, and reach emblematic places where you can make memorable snapshots such as the viewpoint of Llano de Ucanca.
When the sun begins to descend, you can return by the same road on which you arrived. Stop at one of the viewpoints over the sea of clouds to watch the sunset in an incomparable place.
Depending on the time and your moods, you can even expect to enjoy the stars at the Teide, if the moon is not very full. At this altitude the light pollution is very low which has allowed Tenerife to receive the designation of Starlight Destination.
If you plan to stay until nightfall at the Teide, do not forget to bring a coat and food.
In case that your return is before sunset you also have the option to return by another access route to Teide. So by the way you can visit some other towns, something that you can enjoy only in case you have decided to return before sunset.
On your last full day of stay in Tenerife you surely will not want to leave without having seen the capital.
Head towards Santa Cruz de Tenerife and enjoy a stroll through some of its most iconic places.
Park the car at one end of the city, in the area where the Auditorio de Tenerife and the Maritime Park are located, as well as the Tenerife Fairgrounds. Enjoy the sea breeze and the majesty of the Auditorium, in whose walkway near the sea, you will see rocks painted with caricatures of some of the stars of music and culture of all history.
If you do not want to walk too much, head with the car towards the historic center of the city. Here you must see the García Sanabria Park, the shopping area of Calle Castillo, and Plaza de España, as well as La Noria Street. And if you like to culturiarte a little, you can also visit the TEA (Tenerife Space of the Arts), which has a very modern and characteristic structure.
Very close to the TEA is also the “Mercado Municipal Nuestra Señora de África”. It normally is open, except on special days, until 2:30 in the afternoon, which is also worth knowing.
Most likely you will miss a beach in the center of the city, and this is one of the flaws that the capital has. To reach a large beach, you will have to head towards the town of San Andrés, a few kilometers from Santa Cruz, where the beach of Las Teresitas is located.
Depending on your tastes and your organization, once you are at the beach of Las Teresitas you can opt for 2 main options.
a) Enjoy the beaches of the area, continue to see more interesting places around and make a walk.
b) Rent a boat that leaves from Las Teresitas to the Beach of Antequera, and spend the day in this beach far from the civilization. You can only accede it by boat or walking a difficult path.
The beaches that you can enjoy in the area are:
If you take the bifurcation just before entering the beach of Las Teresitas, on the road that climbs the mountain you will find interesting places like a viewpoint from which you can see the entire length of the beach and you can take beautiful photographs. Also the beautiful town of Igueste de San Andrés of very few inhabitants, where you can embark on a path to the “Semáforo de Anaga”.
This trail is advisable to do in the late afternoon as you will hardly find shade during the ascent towards the Semáforo. From here you can also see the paradisiacal beach of Antequera.
Option B is recommendable if you would like to spend the day on a beautiful beach away from civilization. With the boat that you can hire and if the sea allows, you will enter in some aquatic caves between Beach of La Teresitas and Beach of Antequera.
The trip can last between 15 and 20 minutes, so you will have to be prepared to withstand the waves and the speed of the boat. It will leave you at a small stone pier at the Beach of Antequera, to which you can accede by a staircase that connects the boat with the dock.
This option is not recommended for older people, or those that have physical difficulties or get very dizzy on a boat.
An itinerary that will at least help you to not leave the island without having known some of the best experiences you can live on the island, and the most emblematic places such as Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Puerto de la Cruz, San Cristóbal de La Laguna and the wonderful Teide.
Depending on your taste, you may prefer to switch these experiences for others, such as strolling along one of the longest volcanic tubes in the world at Cueva del Viento in Icod de los Vinos, or visiting other paradisiacal beaches that you can find in Tenerife.
From what we are sure, is that if you are only going to spend 3 days in Tenerife, you will be left wanting more and will return very soon.
For your stay in Puerto de la Cruz, consider the option of staying in our newly renovated Ambassador Apartments. Here we will provide you with the necessary rest and all the amenities to recharge energy and be able to undertake a new adventure the next day and make the most of the 3 days that you are going to spend in Tenerife.
You can book now and write down these ideas about what to see in Tenerife in 3 days, to not forget them for your future trip.
We hope to get to know you and help you with these ideas.
