Items filtered by date: June 2026

Tenerife and the other Canary Islands are about to lose UK free to air TV channels received via satellite during November 2013. The launch of the Astra 2E satellite on 30th September, after a 10 week delay to its launch, means that services currently on the Astra 1N satellite, which will be relocated, will be moved the Astra 2E satellite.

UK TV channels will only be transmitted on a UK spot beam from Astra 2E to improve reception in the UK. The loss of service affects all BBC channels, ITV, Ch4, Ch5 etc. and BBC radio stations operating on the Sky platform. We believe Sky services are unaffected as they are broadcast on the pan European beam.

The BBC has confirmed their services are moving to Astra 2E UK spot beam and will not be transmitting on the pan European beam. This loss of service will also affect the Spanish mainland.

Satellite TV is provided by several satellites a few miles apart in geo stationary orbit that are now coming to the end of their life after over 15 years of service. New satellites are being commissioned to replace this ageing satellite fleet.

Other ways of accessing free to air channels could be via the internet, but some of these services may not work with an IP address that is not from the UK.

A tapas route (Ruta de la Tapa) involves a number of participating bars, cafes and restaurants offering a tapa and a drink for about 2.50 euros. Many of these routes are organised throughout the year in various towns on Tenerife.

There is normally a booklet issued that can be collected from the participating establishments or local tourist office, containing a map showing the location of the tapas route eateries.

This booklet will also have a photo and description of the tapa on offer at each place, so you can choose the ones you like the look of. Each restaurant will offer a speciality, so they are quite different, some are traditional, and some are very modern and fancy, and some are even deserts.

You can have your booklet stamped when you visit one of the restaurants as a record of your visit, and after collecting ten stamps you can vote for your favourite tapa if you wish. The restaurant with the most votes for the best tapa wins.

These tapas routes are great fun and an excellent way to try the cuisine and alcoholic beverages of Tenerife.

easyJet have announced new flights to Tenerife from Southend airport with tickets going on sale from today. The service will operate twice a week on a Tuesday and Friday, with the first flight out of Southend to Tenerife south opertating on December 13th,  with one way flights starting at £33.49 just in time for the Christmas and new year holiday period.

Over 11.000 passengers a year are expected to use this new route.

This is easyJets 16th destination from Southend and is the one that has been requested the most by customers. easyJet now operate four aircraft out of Southend and the airport has just had its busiest summer with over 230,000 passengers flying out.

Hugh Aitken, easyJet's UK Commercial Manager said: “We have doubled the number of easy and affordable destinations available from London Southend since we launched at the airport in April 2012 to ensure that there really is an ideal destination for everyone whether travelling on business or for leisure, all year round.”

Gareth Davis from The Travel Channel was surprised what he found when visited tenerife, and discovered that there is a whole lot more to this stunning island than your average tourist realises.

There is a possibility that this weekend could be windy and rainy with thunder storms and rough seas as Tenerife feels the effect of hurricane Humberto over the next few days.

The tropical storm has been forming over the last few days and has now been ungraded to hurricane force 1. The storm is currently off the North West coast of the Cape Verde islands and south west of the Canaries.

The storm is not expected to pass directly over the Canary Islands but will be at the very edge of the hurricane.

The storm is expected to move off across the Atlantic where it will in gain strength as it moves towards Bermuda and the US.

Update: Humberto has now been down graded to a Post-Tropical Cyclone

National Huricane Centre

Spanish Met Office AEMET forecast

Another really nice time lapse video of the Tiede volcano and the Las Canadas caldera areas, showing how the clouds around the mountain behave just like the waves on the sea.

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.

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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