Tenerife Beaches
Tenerife has a reputation for sun, sea and sand, so it may be surprising to learn that there are very few natural Tenerife beaches. The natural beaches there are, are formed of black volcanic sand, pebble and volcanic rock. Many visitors are disappointed that the golden sand of the Mediterranean are absent.
Tenerife has worked hard to counteract this natural shortcoming by importing a massive amount of sand from the Sahara desert to create artificial beaches and have created seawater pool to swim in safety.
Playa de las Teresitas is the undoubtedly the best on the island. It is entirely manmade for sand imported from the Sahara desert in the 1970’s. A manmade stone reef protects the beach from storms and ensures safe swimming. The beach is 2km long and has plenty of facilities including palm trees to provide shade, beach bars, pedaloes and a wind surfing school.
The land behind the beach is so far undeveloped, but this is likely to change as over 30 proposals have been applied for to build. The beach is the premier blue flag beach on Tenerife and can get busy at the weekends as the dwellers of Santa Cruz come out to play. Playa de las Teresitas is situated North of Santa Cruz.
Playa de las Americas has three small manmade beaches of sand imported from the Sahara desert that are well kept and clean. Backing the beaches is a palm tree lined promenade with cafés, bars and restaurants, many serving excellent food. The beach at Playa de las Vistas is very impressive and has an off shore fountain.
El Médano has the best of the natural beaches on Tenerife and is comparatively wild and empty. The beach here catches the full force of the trade winds and has become a haven for windsurfers.
There are some glorious Tenerife beaches but they are few in number and the best ones are manmade.
