When you’re vacationing on an MSC cruise of the Canaries, the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, welcomes cruisers ashore on its ramblas (wide, tree-lined avenues) that lead to the central Plaza de España where the Francoist architecture finds one of its maximum national expressions.
When you’re vacationing on an MSC cruise to the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, welcomes cruisers ashore on its ramblas (wide, tree-lined avenues) that lead to the central Plaza de España where the Francoist architecture finds one of its maximum national expressions. If instead one comes from the old part of Santa Cruz de Tenerife you come across churches built in a variety of architectural styles, from the insular baroque of the church of St. Francis, to the colonial Canary style of the church of the Concepciòn or the 18th century Iglesia del Pilar, built on an ancient hermitage.

As you set ashore from your cruise ship, you can explore the Garcìa Sanabria park with the museum of outdoor sculptures, Esculturas al Aire Libre, where a tropical nature blends with the contemporary art of Mirò, Guinovart, Domìnguez, Moore and many others. A place not to miss is the Parque Marìtimo, designed by Canarian artist-architect Cèsar Manrique, which hosts 5000 palm trees of 300 different species, three pools dug into the lava rock, a beach, bars and restaurants.

You can continue your excursion up to the Caleta de Negros, where you find one of the best preserved castles of the island of San Juan, known as Castillo Negro (black castle) because it was built with lava rock. Beaches: Playa de las Teresitas is one of the most beautiful of the northern coast of Tenerife offering palm trees, a warm breeze and a refreshing dip in the sea.

It is just outside the city, in the village of San Andrés. If you’re fascinated by multi-coloured parrots, penguins and marine mammal shows, try an excursion to Loro Parque, the modern zoo in Puerto de la Cruz: a perfect outing for the whole family.

Tenerife has the tallest mountain in Spain: the Teide, an active volcano measuring 3718 meters in height, within the park that bears its name, which, even during the warmest season will offer the experience of passing from the tropical climate of the beaches to the alpine climate of its peak.