Tenerife
navrig2
Posts: 1,851
In September (2015) a bunch of us went to Tenerife for a week's cycling. I thought it might be a good idea to share what we experienced.
Weather - was great as you might expect in September but the thing to note is that 6 frost hardened Scots managed to spend hours in the saddle with temperatures ranging between 28 and 36 degrees and all loved it. If you keep yourself hydrated and well fed the heat seems to work for you rather than against you. Your muscles don't cool down as much as they do at home meaning when you start again it doesn't hurt (so much).
Accommodation - I booked us a villa via AirBnB and it worked out brilliantly. Split 6 ways it was very good value for money. We chose to stay away from the tourist areas in a little place called San Miguel in the south-eat quadrant of the island about half way up the climb from sea to sky. Close enough to get to the motorway if we wanted to get anywhere but plenty far enough from the business of Los Christianos etc.
Riding generally - On the quieter roads we had no issues with traffic at all. The drivers all gave us plenty of room ,even the tourists. The locals were friendly and welcoming. We had to venture into Los Chriastianos on our first day after one guy blew a hole in the sidewall of his front tyre. We navigated to the nearest bike shop who were very helpful and then tried to escape out of the melee of the tourist hell hole. Keep in mind that we live in a rural corner of Scotland where, on a Saturday morning, we regard it as a busy morning if we are passed by 20 cars. Los Christianos was simply horrible. As we headed east/northeast it got a bit better but it didn't become nice again until we cross the motorway and climbed well away from the motorway and the coastal strip. After that we only went near the motorway by car.
Getting around - we took our own bikes and knew we would probably have to drive to get to some rides after we had a play on the southern sloes of Teide. We hired two Berlingos and they were brilliant. One car took 5 bikes with wheels off and back seats down, the bikes all lined up facing the forwards with some padding between them. Two guys in the front. The other car took the sixth bike crossways in the boot plus a pile of wheels etc. Four guys in the car. Great wee cars and ideal for this sort of stuff. We used google maps and 4G for sat nav - Vodafone signal is excellent nearly everywhere. I also bought a Marco Polo map off Amazon for about £6 - well invested as it allowed us to work out where we were at any given time- mobile phones were difficult to see due to the bright sunshine and the sweat and sun cream caked screens.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/3829770286?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00
Routes - we didn't overly plan our routes other than Teide. We did plan to do the sea to sky but our first day adventure to below the motorway put us off so we avoided it. There are plenty of routes on the island for a week of cycling. You may have to cross over some routes but o the whole there is adequate variety. Our routes were:
https://www.strava.com/activities/388363537
https://www.strava.com/activities/388363500
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824690
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824705
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824670
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824672
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824608
The south side of Teide has some variety but once you get to Villaflor it is one way up. We didn't manage to try the road which enters the crater from the west - that's for another day.
In the west there is Buenavista which has a couple of ways in. We used the TF-436 which is a stunning route travelling east to west but looked horrendously challenging west to east.
In the north the scenery is much more lush and green but the routes are mostly out and back with one loop via the TF-12 but that has a long section of cycle path which seems to be partially shared with walkers.
We didn't get to the west side this time round.
Overall the tarmac condition was excellent. The route from the crater edge on Teide down to Grenadilla was fabulous with hardly a pothole and very few switchbacks but plenty of sweeping bends. The roads in the west nd north were very good condition. The worst stuff was between Villafor and Arona. This road had surface ripples going ito the corners which was a nightmare when braking.
Other stuff - there are loads of supermarkets scattered all over the place, a huge Decathlon in the north and a couple (I think) of decent bike shops in the south. There are loads of cafes even away from the tourist areas. Most were good but a couple were pretty iffy. If you stop at Villaflor on the way up or down Teide do not be tempted to stop at the cafe next to the garage on the junction, take a few minutes and go into the village where there are better cafes. On the way up Villaflor is the last stop for water so refill there. The next water is the Parador in the middle of the crater.
All in all Tenerife is a great cycling destination.
Weather - was great as you might expect in September but the thing to note is that 6 frost hardened Scots managed to spend hours in the saddle with temperatures ranging between 28 and 36 degrees and all loved it. If you keep yourself hydrated and well fed the heat seems to work for you rather than against you. Your muscles don't cool down as much as they do at home meaning when you start again it doesn't hurt (so much).
Accommodation - I booked us a villa via AirBnB and it worked out brilliantly. Split 6 ways it was very good value for money. We chose to stay away from the tourist areas in a little place called San Miguel in the south-eat quadrant of the island about half way up the climb from sea to sky. Close enough to get to the motorway if we wanted to get anywhere but plenty far enough from the business of Los Christianos etc.
Riding generally - On the quieter roads we had no issues with traffic at all. The drivers all gave us plenty of room ,even the tourists. The locals were friendly and welcoming. We had to venture into Los Chriastianos on our first day after one guy blew a hole in the sidewall of his front tyre. We navigated to the nearest bike shop who were very helpful and then tried to escape out of the melee of the tourist hell hole. Keep in mind that we live in a rural corner of Scotland where, on a Saturday morning, we regard it as a busy morning if we are passed by 20 cars. Los Christianos was simply horrible. As we headed east/northeast it got a bit better but it didn't become nice again until we cross the motorway and climbed well away from the motorway and the coastal strip. After that we only went near the motorway by car.
Getting around - we took our own bikes and knew we would probably have to drive to get to some rides after we had a play on the southern sloes of Teide. We hired two Berlingos and they were brilliant. One car took 5 bikes with wheels off and back seats down, the bikes all lined up facing the forwards with some padding between them. Two guys in the front. The other car took the sixth bike crossways in the boot plus a pile of wheels etc. Four guys in the car. Great wee cars and ideal for this sort of stuff. We used google maps and 4G for sat nav - Vodafone signal is excellent nearly everywhere. I also bought a Marco Polo map off Amazon for about £6 - well invested as it allowed us to work out where we were at any given time- mobile phones were difficult to see due to the bright sunshine and the sweat and sun cream caked screens.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/3829770286?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00
Routes - we didn't overly plan our routes other than Teide. We did plan to do the sea to sky but our first day adventure to below the motorway put us off so we avoided it. There are plenty of routes on the island for a week of cycling. You may have to cross over some routes but o the whole there is adequate variety. Our routes were:
https://www.strava.com/activities/388363537
https://www.strava.com/activities/388363500
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824690
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824705
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824670
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824672
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824608
The south side of Teide has some variety but once you get to Villaflor it is one way up. We didn't manage to try the road which enters the crater from the west - that's for another day.
In the west there is Buenavista which has a couple of ways in. We used the TF-436 which is a stunning route travelling east to west but looked horrendously challenging west to east.
In the north the scenery is much more lush and green but the routes are mostly out and back with one loop via the TF-12 but that has a long section of cycle path which seems to be partially shared with walkers.
We didn't get to the west side this time round.
Overall the tarmac condition was excellent. The route from the crater edge on Teide down to Grenadilla was fabulous with hardly a pothole and very few switchbacks but plenty of sweeping bends. The roads in the west nd north were very good condition. The worst stuff was between Villafor and Arona. This road had surface ripples going ito the corners which was a nightmare when braking.
Other stuff - there are loads of supermarkets scattered all over the place, a huge Decathlon in the north and a couple (I think) of decent bike shops in the south. There are loads of cafes even away from the tourist areas. Most were good but a couple were pretty iffy. If you stop at Villaflor on the way up or down Teide do not be tempted to stop at the cafe next to the garage on the junction, take a few minutes and go into the village where there are better cafes. On the way up Villaflor is the last stop for water so refill there. The next water is the Parador in the middle of the crater.
All in all Tenerife is a great cycling destination.
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Comments
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Yes, Tenerife is fantastic for cycling, but some of the roads are shocking. The lovely drivers make up for that, and I always try to climb the bad ones, descend the good surfaces.
I have cycled in Scotland, France ( northern and southern Alps) Italy ( beautiful Liguria) and Spain (Mallorca) this year, all have been great in their own ways, BUT I cannot wait to go back to Tenerife. I love the area around Santaigo del Teide.
I really like your refuelling advice - last year, I made the mistake of doing Teide on one banana assuming there would be somewhere near the top for a bidon fill and food - wrong ! 30km descent back to a cafe, by which time I had gone off the idea of eating, always my body's worst sign0 -
Thanks for the post, 7 of us off to Puerto de la Cruz in November for 4 days to tackle Teide amongst other rides as well as sample several local refreshments! Can't waithttp://www.snookcycling.wordpress.com - Reports on Cingles du Mont Ventoux, Alpe D'Huez, Galibier, Izoard, Tourmalet, Paris-Roubaix Sportive & Tour of Flanders Sportive, Amstel Gold Xperience, Vosges, C2C, WOTR routes....0
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Yes, Tenerife is fantastic for cycling, but some of the roads are shocking.
The road contouring from Grenadilla through San Miguel towards Arona was pretty rough.
The road from Vilaflor to Arona was dreadful going into the corners due to rippling of the surface (caused by heavy braking of coaches).
Apparently the TF-563 from Vilaflor towards San Miguel is dreadful.
The road within the crater is awful and I should imagine impossible to keep decent no matter how often it is re-surfaced.
Otherwise we found the roads to be very good. The road from the edge of the crater to Grenadilla is BRILLIANT, really smooth and with sweeping bends easy to keep a decent speed.0 -
Anyone recommend me some 'must see/do' for when we are in Tenerife?
Our main day's cycling will be ascending Teide from Puerto de la Cruz, but the other days are still undecided - tho we think one day will be cycling from our hotel in Puerto de la Cruz to return the bikes in El Medano.http://www.snookcycling.wordpress.com - Reports on Cingles du Mont Ventoux, Alpe D'Huez, Galibier, Izoard, Tourmalet, Paris-Roubaix Sportive & Tour of Flanders Sportive, Amstel Gold Xperience, Vosges, C2C, WOTR routes....0 -
Anyone recommend me some 'must see/do' for when we are in Tenerife?
Our main day's cycling will be ascending Teide from Puerto de la Cruz, but the other days are still undecided - tho we think one day will be cycling from our hotel in Puerto de la Cruz to return the bikes in El Medano.
This is stunning, particularly from Santiago del Teide to Buenavista.
https://www.strava.com/activities/386824705
The route to El Medano will take you over Teide and from the crater down to El Medano will, mostly be a great descent.0 -
The ride through Masca is awsome, more spectacular than teide, and much much steeper. It's like Hardknot but 2 or three times as long.
But Gran Canaria is better for cycling, and the roads generally in better nick. Also less traffic. Tenerife is probably improved now that the motoway is extended.Sportives and tours, 100% for charity, http://www.tearfundcycling.btck.co.uk0 -
The ride through Masca is awsome, more spectacular than teide, and much much steeper. It's like Hardknot but 2 or three times as long.
But Gran Canaria is better for cycling, and the roads generally in better nick. Also less traffic. Tenerife is probably improved now that the motoway is extended.
Which way did you do it?
We cycled east - west which looked easier than the climb out of Mascar towards Santiago del Teide.
I'd also suggest you try to do this route on a weekday. There was a lot of Sunday traffic including mini-coaches on the road.0 -
Just looking at options of cycling from our hotel (Puerto de la Cruz) to return our bikes to the hire shop (El Medano).
Seems my main two options (avoiding another 40km ascent of Teide) are to go to Santa Cruz and down the East coast, or West towards Santiago del Teide and down the West Coast.
The Santa Cruz option involves some time on the TF-5 and the Santiago time on the TF-1. By the looks of it they are both the main motorways/roads on the island, so how advisable is it to avoid them?
Any other route suggestions?http://www.snookcycling.wordpress.com - Reports on Cingles du Mont Ventoux, Alpe D'Huez, Galibier, Izoard, Tourmalet, Paris-Roubaix Sportive & Tour of Flanders Sportive, Amstel Gold Xperience, Vosges, C2C, WOTR routes....0 -
Just looking at options of cycling from our hotel (Puerto de la Cruz) to return our bikes to the hire shop (El Medano).
Seems my main two options (avoiding another 40km ascent of Teide) are to go to Santa Cruz and down the East coast, or West towards Santiago del Teide and down the West Coast.
The Santa Cruz option involves some time on the TF-5 and the Santiago time on the TF-1. By the looks of it they are both the main motorways/roads on the island, so how advisable is it to avoid them?
Any other route suggestions?
On a scale of 1-10 with 1 being don't do it, my advice is that cycling on the TF-1 is minus 10!! Don't try it, it may not even be legal.
There are a few things which will make a route difficult to identify.
The TF-1 is being extended westward and there are several diversions on and off the dual carriageway (as of Sept '15) up to the area around Chio. It is a very long construction site, riving through it was OK but not cycling!
There is generally a road which runs parallel to the TF-1 from the Chio area past Playa de La Ameticas, Los Cristianos and round to the airport. This is quite busy as these are the busiest towns and have a lot of tourist traffic.
The alternative would be to head around to Santiago then Chio and then climb back up Teide on the TF-38. You have to go to the top but not through the crater - at the top you turn and head to Vilaflor and then down to Grenadilla and down to El Medano. This would actually be a great route anyway.
We didn't cycle around the north east side of Teide so I can't comment.0 -
Thanks!http://www.snookcycling.wordpress.com - Reports on Cingles du Mont Ventoux, Alpe D'Huez, Galibier, Izoard, Tourmalet, Paris-Roubaix Sportive & Tour of Flanders Sportive, Amstel Gold Xperience, Vosges, C2C, WOTR routes....0
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Just back from a 4 day trip to Tenerife as a group of 7, we flew with Thomas Cook (£160rtn) and hired a 9-seater van through Auto-Reisen (£120 all in) as well as staying at the Elegance Miramar Hotel in Puerto de la Cruz (£63 each All-Inclusive for 4 nights).
We hired bikes through Bike Point and found them good value and also offered a friendly service. We collected our bikes from their El Medano location, less than a 10min drive from the Airport. We hired the cheapest bikes they had (€19 a day) and had a selection of BMC/Ridley/BH/Focus and Marin bikes, with low gearing usually meaning a 34/50 and a 32 on the back, although one bike only had a 28.
Routes wise, we chose to stay at Puerto de la Cruz as our main reason for visiting the island was to ride Teide from the resort (31 miles up hill). We rode up Teide on the first day and it was as we expected, not too difficult in terms of gradient but the miles slowly wore down the legs, with the last 13km thankfully being mostly around 3% it made things just fine. Luckily we had a support driver who met us every hour and refreshed our drinks, if it wasn't for this we would probably have needed to carry 2 bottles each as there was literally nothing between Aguamansa and Portillo (about 18km) although with the heat not being too bad, we would probably have gotten away with 1 bottle. Temperatures were around 23c at bottom and 14c at top.
The second ride we did was in the North part of the island, starting in Pedro Alvarez, going over the top through Cruz del Carmen and down the spectacular TF-12 road to San Andres. We got soaked on the descent with very heavy rain which unfortunately spoilt the descent. Had lunch in the town at the fantastic La Pandorga restaurant (€10 3 course meal with drink), dried out and cycled through the very busy Santa Cruz and back to our start point.
Overall we did what we went to do, Teide, however as we expected the island didn't really offer that many cycling options for us (without climbing 3000m+) and so I doubt we will be back. Overall, a class time was had.http://www.snookcycling.wordpress.com - Reports on Cingles du Mont Ventoux, Alpe D'Huez, Galibier, Izoard, Tourmalet, Paris-Roubaix Sportive & Tour of Flanders Sportive, Amstel Gold Xperience, Vosges, C2C, WOTR routes....0 -
We are booked to go to Tenerife in late March, just a regular week away but I thought I'd take the opportunity to hire a bike and get a couple of rides in, hopefully Mt Tiede.
We are staying in Las Calettillas, with no hire care, so Bike Point wont deliver. A company called CanariasXperience will do, but are asking for a deposit by bank transfer, final settlement by the same and a 300 euro cash deposit. Not only will all those methods 'cost' me (25 euros per bank transfer plus exchange rates/commision on the cash) but also reduces my protection.
Is this normal? Or can anyone else suggest alternatives, near Santa Cruz if that helps.
Many thanks
2020/2021/2022 Metric Century Challenge Winner0 -
In Santa Cruz bike hire links http://www.vadebicis.es/index.php/alquiler-de-bicis (ROAD-MTB) or http://www.rentabiketenerife.es/es/pagi ... icicletas/ (ROAD-MTB)https://tourdriving.wordpress.com bike hire and travel links, in 47 countries http://ukbikerentals.com UK Bike & Motorcycle hire in Counties after ABC0
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tourdriving wrote:In Santa Cruz bike hire links http://www.vadebicis.es/index.php/alquiler-de-bicis (ROAD-MTB) or http://www.rentabiketenerife.es/es/pagi ... icicletas/ (ROAD-MTB)
Thank you. The company got back to me and have accepted a Paypal payment, so Im sorted now.
2020/2021/2022 Metric Century Challenge Winner0 -
Just to follow up my earlier post - we moved location to Playa Parasio in the South and CanariasXperience delivered my bike, a Pinarello Razha d12, efficiently.
I rode up Tiede via Arona and Vilaflor, refuelling in Vilaflor. I then used the cafe at the Parador which had the slowest service ever for some food and drink at the top. I descended towards Los Gigantes. The upper roads were awful and made it really hard work, it was only after a few miles that it smoothed out and once below the clouds it became enjoyable!
90 mile route with about 12k feet of ascension overall. Brilliant ride and highly reccomended. Pretty easy to find your way about too - I just used some key towns jotted down to head for, and a free tourist map.2020/2021/2022 Metric Century Challenge Winner0
