This short video was taken way back in November 1987 in the small north Tenerife town of Garachico. It shows huge Atlantic rollers crashing in over the rocks and onto the houses of the town.

Here is a nice video taken in the sea off the coast of Tenerife showing a Green Sea Turtle getting close up and personal with a couple of divers.

It shows how curious these animals are of humans and shows no sign what so ever of nervousness of the divers.

There is a growing problem of Graffiti in Tenerife’s historic old town of La Laguna, which is also a World Heritage site.

The local authorities are concerned at the level of the vandalism despite there being a  €900 fine to deter first time offenders, rising to 2700€ and 4500€ for repeat offenders.

The main targets appear to be the doors and walls of businesses in the main shopping streets.

Javier Abreu, the deputy major, has said it is the duty of the public to report acts of vandalism and graffiti.

Read More Here

This year is the 28th Pinolere Craft Fair where more than 30 000 people are expected to visit over the weekend of 30th August – 1st September. Pinolere is a village of 700 inhabitants in the hills above La Orotava on Tenerife’s northern flank, 800 meters above sea level, set in the pine forests. Below is the coast and the town of Puerto de la Cruz.

The villagers have for generations made their living from the land and from traditional crafts. The craft fair brings all the local crafts people together to showcase the best of Tenerife’s craft products. The fair also attracts international artisans from across Europe and South America.

This year’s theme is ‘Con la caña a tres trozos-5 Bienal de Cestería’, which is a reference to basket making. On show will be handmade items of glass, wood, leather, metal, and wicker and much more including carpets, clothes, furniture ornaments and art.

There will also be local food on offer including, wine, cakes, cheeses, honey, bread and jams to name but a few. There will also be a barbecue with beer and wine available from the terrace.

The fair is located in the Pinolere Ethnographic Park, just off the road between La Orotava and the Teide National Park. There are expected to be about 30 000 visitors over the weekend, so traffic will be heavy and parking can be difficult. But there are free busses running from La Orotava and the fair between 10am and 8pm.

The fair opens daily between 30th August and 1st September 10am – 9pm.

Entrance fee €2.50

jetXtra have announced new flights to Tenerife from Humberside airport this winter. The services will operate to Tenerife over the Christmas and New Year period on Fridays. This is the first time flights have been offered to the island from Humberside since 2008.

jetXtra have confirmed if the route proves popular then they will look to operate a regular service in the near future.

Flights began in May 2013 with flights to Majorca in the Balearic Islands and Alicante on the Costa Blanca on the Spanish mainland.

Humberside airport expect to see an increase in passenger numbers by about 20,000 next year, the first increase in passengers since 2006.

jetXtra charter Boeing 717 aircraft operated by the Spanish low cost airline Volotea.

A coach excursion to Santa Cruz, Tenerife's capital city, is often offered as a ‘shopping trip’ by travel reps to take advantage of the tax free status of the city. As the shops close a 1pm, as they do on mainland Spain, these executions are usually a half day affair.

Santa Cruz has much more to offer than just is shops, there are museums, restaurants and tree lined plazas to stroll along.

If you have a hire car it is an easy 50 minutes or so journey along the TF1 motorway from the major southern tourist resorts. Simply follow the signs to Santa Cruz. The main problem is parking the car in the city, but if you arrive early you can park in one of the underground car parks under the Plaza de España.

Travelling to Santa Cruz by bus is also an easy option with the frequent bus service route 111 from Playa de las Americas and Los Cristianos to the bus station (Estacion de Guaguas) at Santa Cruz, which is about a 10 minute walk from the city centre.

The bus routes 102 and route 103 (route 103 is the express service) also operates from the northern resort of Puerto de la Cruz to Santa Cruz and takes about 40 minutes.

TIP: Bus fares are very reasonable and you should take advantage of the ‘Bono’ cards on sale at the bus stations and some shops, as using these for your bus journeys will make your fares even cheaper.

Join in the last of this summer’s big dance and music festivals, the Summer Jam Tenerife 2013. This bash is hosted in the amphitheatre at one of Europe’s premier waterparks, Siam Park in Playa de las Americas, south Tenerife.

Date: 14th September 2013
Times: 3pm - midnight

Tickets can be bought here.

The official Facebook page has a bit more info here.

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Update: AEMET have now increase the weather warning for Tenerife to danger level orange, with temperatures expected to exced 38°C this week.

The Spanish met office (AEMET) has issued an important weather warning starting this Sunday for extreme temperatures in the southern areas of Tenerife. The northern coast is unaffected by this alert and temperatures here should remain normal for the time of year.

Temperatures for the south are expected to reach 36°C on Monday and the heat wave is expected to last at least until the end of the week. The forecast currently suggests the temperatures will get even hotter at the end of the week with temperatures predicted to be up to 38°C.

Tenerife is normally cooled by the trade winds coming from the north, but tomorrow the winds are expected to shift bringing hot winds from Saharan Africa.  Tenerife is only approximately 270 miles west of the Sahara desert and easterly winds can bring extremely hot wind, sometimes carrying sand.

These hot weather conditions are known as ‘sirocco’ and temperatures in the south of the island can soar into the mid-30s, carrying dangerously low levels of humidity that can cause respiratory problems.

Sanidad, the Canarian health authority, have warned people who could be at a higher risk of heat stroke include the young, elderly and people with chronic illness. You should drink water regularly to keep the body temperature down, so make sure you carry a bottle of water with you during the heat wave and avoid drinking alcohol.

Symptoms of heat stroke include heart palpitations, nausea, light headedness and fainting.

The authorities are also extremely concerned about the risk of forest fires after huge fires destroyed large areas of forest, livestock and private property on Tenerife and La Gomera  last summer, and urge the public to take extreme care to void fires i.e. Do Not throw cigarettes out of car windows.

Fires, firework and BBQ’s have been banned from the forest areas as the conditions are like a tinderbox.

On the nights of 12th– 13th August 2013 the Perseid Meteor Shower reaches its peak as the earth passes through the Perseid cloud which is a stream of debris from the Swift-Tuttle comet.  If you are on Tenerife, there will be a great opportunity to view this from the Teide national park, where the skies are clear of cloud and light pollution.

The best time to observe the meteor shower is between 10:30pm and 4:30am. The meteor rate will start out low before midnight, and will increase as the night wears on, peaking before sunrise.

This event known as the Perseid Meteor Shower produces spectacular fireballs across the sky as the meteorites hit the upper atmosphere at 132,000 mph. This shower is most visible in the northern hemisphere after midnight towards dawn.

Already this year huge fireballs have been observed in the skies above Alabama in the USA from this meteor shower. The earth enters the meteor cloud during mid-July and reaches its peak of activity normally between August 9th – 14th.

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