Tenerife

Any suggestions for what to do in Tenerife itself and how far is it from where the ship docks?

How far is what?

How far is what?

:) I'm guessing the OP means the town ????

The island of Tenerife has plenty of beaches( mostly black sand though) so personally wouldn't fancy trying to clean off before getting back on ship.

I don't know how far it is to the town from the ship, sorry.

other options which are good (IMHO) are Mount Teide, you will need warm clothes if going up there , but good views on clear day.

Loro Parque is very good, look it up and see if its your thing. both these options would need a hire car or local tour.

Check out my post on the other active Tenerife thread:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47910341&postcount=3

Tenerife is the name of the island. Its capital, which is the town where the cruise ships dock, is Santa Cruz.

you can walk easily from the cruise ship to the town of Santa Cruz, and the town is pleasant to walk around with gardens and an interesting fish market.

If you want to stay in town it is all walkable (for good walkers). But we really enjoy just renting a car and driving up to the top of the mountain (Teide). On our last visit we drove up to the mountain by the most direct route (the same route used by very expensive cruise ship excursions) but later drove down the other route which took us to La Orotava from where we gradually worked our way back to Santa Cruz via the Northern route.

Hank

The port is in the town. If you want to go to a beach then the bus goes from outside the dock to Las Teresitas, about 15 minutes away, a yellow sand man made beach with lots of restaurants.

Personally, I would hire a car and drive up to Teide, Spain's highest mountain. CICAR is a reliable car hire company and has an office at the port.

We were in Santa Cruz for a couple of days late last year. The town is at the head of the pier, but it was quite a long walk to get there, (a good ten minutes if I remember correctly) and you could be docked further away than we were.

We went to La Laguna one day, which is about a half hour tram ride inland (and uphill) from Santa Cruz. It is a very old town with lots of museums, churches etc. I suggest you look for photos on Google Earth to appreciate what I mean - it is like a living museum. We had a very good meal there as well. Just one point though is that it was a lot colder there than at sea level. We intend to return this November, but will take jackets with us.

We asked at the tourist info stall (just across the road from the port exit) and were given a map and told were to get the tram and where to get off - it was not far away and trams were quite regular (approx every ten minutes). They are modern trams and you need to get tickets from machines at the tram stop - we do not speak (or read) spanish but managed to do so.

On arrival at La Laguna we went to the tourist information there and we were given a really detailed map of the town and told what was open that day, and even what was free of charge on that day - it varies day by day.

We also liked Sant Cruz a lot and went into the town in the evening for a drink. Christmas lights were on in Nov/Dec and it was really atmosperic.

It was our favourite port in the larger Canary Isles.

Yes, La Laguna is a nice town worth visiting. It has a lot of old Canarian Colonial architecture and the university.

But we really enjoy just renting a car and driving up to the top of the mountain (Teide). Hank

Hank,

I've read some recommendations for Cicar. We plan to use them. Am curious about insurance. I have good CDW via my credit card and know that Cicar also provides comprehensive insurance, but I'm not sure about Liability (my auto insurance does not cover international rentals, and my travel insurance does not cover liability, either). Do you know if they provide liability insurance? Would you recommend them or another rental agency?

THANKS!

Looking into renting a car also!!

Just looked and office is closed the day we are there 12/24. So we will either do a ships tour or just walk around Santa Cruz!!

Syesmar

CICAR Re a very reputable car hire company and have been around for years. Car hire and petrol are cheap in the Canaries and yes, you can have the car fully insured. Look on their website and you will find full details there.

Thanks, LondonTowner, for the info and recommendation! It's much appreciated. I am awaiting an email response from Cicar. I do see their quote includes full insurance, I just want to make sure it also covers anything I might accidentally do.

Thanks again!

I heard back from Cicar and they assured me that they have adequate Liability insurance. I'm just not used to renting cars in Europe, and as I now understand it, in Europe the rental agency is the responsible party to have Liability insurance to cover any damage their car may do.

Happy Travels!

We ended up booking a tour that goes to Tiede and parts of the island Thanks

I heard back from Cicar and they assured me that they have adequate Liability insurance. I'm just not used to renting cars in Europe, and as I now understand it, in Europe the rental agency is the responsible party to have Liability insurance to cover any damage their car may do.

 

Happy Travels!

As one who routinely rents cars throughout Western Europe we would advise a little caution and doing your own homework. And yes, we have happily rented from Cicar on a couple of trips. While there are mandatory insurance coverage requirements provided with rentals, these can have relatively high "excess" or deductables....or NOT. So you need to look at the details. Keep in mind that many major credit cards do include coverage for this excess (except in Italy, Ireland and perhaps some other countries) so one should check with their own credit card issuer prior to their trip. Ask for the current coverage info (get it in writing) and read the fine print. Personally, we felt comfortable renting from CICAR with just our excess Credit Card coverage, but this does vary depending on your own credit card agreement and the current CICAR

coverage.

AND ONE IMPORTANT WORD OF CAUTION! The norm in much of Europe is to still rent cars with standard (stick shift) transmissions. Automatics may not even be available..or might cost a lot more then a standard. So folks not comfortable driving a stick should be careful to check this out and make sure to reserve an automatic (if available).

Hank

Thanks, Hank, for the info!

According to Cicar's terms, they have -0- excess. I like that. I emailed them because I was concerned about the Liability aspect, as neither my credit card nor personal auto insurance covers this. I asked if it was included or for an additional fee. They responded that they have 50 million Euros of Liability Insurance and that the car was fully insured. I emailed them a second time, just to make sure I understood that even if I accidentally did something to the vehicle, I would be covered. They assured me I was. The more research I did, I see that in Europe the rental agency is responsible for the liability of the car. Just not used to that here in the U.S.

We want to go to Teide National Park. Do you recommend a specific route and is there anything I need to be careful of when driving on the island?

Thanks so much!

Hi again!

I have a couple more questions about the route from the Cruise Port (Cicar Office) to Teide National Park.

When I use Google Maps, I'm showing 2 main ways to get there (one primarily on the T-24 looks more straightforward but curvy, and the other on the T-5 to T-21 goes through La Laguna and Orotava), and they both state they're approximately 1 hour, 45 minutes. Wanted to ask those who have driven there if these times are accurate? We will probably go in one way and back the other to see more of the island. (We are there 8am-5pm). Anything I need to be mindful of?

Thanks in advance for your advice!

We hired a taxi driver who came recommended to us. He speaks excellent English and is VERY knowledgeable about the Island. Drove us all around so we could focus on the scenery and not worry about the driving. We had a group of 6. He also recommended a local restaurant where we had a delicious meal. It was a perfect way to see the island with someone who knew the roads and out of the way places. Highly recommend this method. His name is Ignacio and he can be reached a nachosvipservice@gmail.com.

We have been to Tenerife twice, and both times ended up on Patsy Little tours! She is a great guide, and is more than willing to customize her tours. Highly recommend her.

Hi!

We just disembarked this past Sunday from HAL’s Canary Islands Adventure aboard the ms Rotterdam. I wanted to report back how our day in Tenerife went. It was absolutely fantastic!

We were in port from 8am-5pm (could have really used more time here). We were docked behind another vessel; it took us about 20 minutes to walk from our ship to the Cicar Office located on the upper level of the port building. They had just opened and we were the 7th couple in line. They were turning those without reservations away. We were leaving town with our car about 9am. I had printed off directions using Google Maps and they were accurate except for how to get back to the port (but we just used common sense and were fine on the first attempt).

We drove to Teide National Park via the TF-24 route both ways. It was such a beautiful day and gorgeous drive! We kept pulling over and stopping for photos on the way there. With the time we had, we drove as far as the parking lot by the Roques de Garcia. This drive and this park is so unique, so beautiful! We thoroughly enjoyed our time there and loved every minute of our day. At 1:30pm, we reluctantly decided to head back to Santa Cruz.

We stopped for a few photos on the way back, but not nearly as many as on the way there, for time’s sake. Would visit this island again in a heartbeat!

Happy Travels!