Tenerife boasts numerous landmarks, ranging from the beautiful capital at the north, the Teide National Park at the center of the island, to the beautiful and diverse beaches at the island’s south side. If you are a fan of sandy beaches and stone cliffs, which are perfect for surfing and fishing, Tenerife is definitely worth a visit. In addition to this, the thousand-year-old Dragon Tree whose core bleeds when cut is located at the island as well.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital of Tenerife, a city with a population of 205 thousand people. Until 1927, Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the only capital of the Canary Island, but in 1927, this role was forwarded to Las Palmas, the capital of Gran Canaria. Santa Cruz de Tenerife boasts the largest marina in Spain, as well as various architectural styles that make the city beautiful, most notably the building of the Auditorium designed by Santiago Calatrava, who is considered to be one of the most important modern-style architects of the world.
The Dragon Tree, also known as El Drago Milenario, is the oldest and largest specimen of the Dracaena Draco tree. The tree is around 800 years old, and is one of the most important natural, cultural, as well as historical symbols of Canary Islands. The Dragon Tree is over 16 meters tall and its trunk is 20 meters wide. When the tree bloomed in 1995, it boasted around 1800 flowery branches, and its load in fruit increased by 3.5 tons. The Dragon tree is one of the symbols of Tenerife.
Teide National Park is the largest park in the Canary Islands and it should be at the top of your visit list once you come to Tenerife. The park is situated at the center of the island of Tenerife and is the largest and oldest of the four national parks of the Canary Islands. With a surface area of around 190km2, the Teide mountain reaches a height of 3718m above sea level at its highest point, making it the tallest mountain in Spain. The Teide National Park is one of the world’s biggest marvels, with an advantage of being easily accessible and relatively close to all European countries.
Candelaria is a small town located in the southeast of Tenerife. The town covers an area of 49.18m2 and has a population of roughly 26 thousand people. Candelaria has been one of the island’s religious centers ever since an image of the patron saint of the Canary Islands, The Virgin of Candelaria, was found etched in a rock in the town. Every year, thousands of votaries flock to the town’s basilica, even though the original image of the Virgin was lost in a raging storm during the 19th century.
The Adán MartÍn Auditorium, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava, is located in the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, just at the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, at the southern part of the city’s pier. In the 1970s, Tenerife was in need of an auditorium. The project was originally given to architect Antonio Fernández Alba, but the changes in the building’s concept, as well as a change of the future auditorium’s location, the project was abandoned until 1989, when Santiago Calatrava Valson was tasked with its completion.
