Things to do in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Exploring Tenerife’s capital
Charlie had spent some time as a digital nomad in Gran Canaria and she also had been surfing in the south of Tenerife. She had heard that the Carnival in Tenerife is said to be the biggest on the islands and she wanted to see whether that was true. She therefore spent a weekend in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Santa Cruz is the capital of Tenerife and interchangeably with Las Palmas de Gran Canaria also the capital of the Canary Islands. The city in the Northeast of Tenerife is built on a hill on either side of a canyon. It has a population of just over 200.000 and its inhabitants are referred to as chicharreros. This name is a reference to its origins as a fishing village. A statue in the town centre, El Chicharro, Spanish for Atlantic Horse Mackerel, is the symbol, and whilst the term chicharrero was initially negatively connotated, the inhabitants of Santa Cruz are today proud to be chicharreros.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife was founded in 1494 when the Spanish conquered the Canary Islands. A volcanic eruption in 1706 destroyed the port of Garachico in the north of Tenerife and Santa Cruz in the northeast became the most important port on the island. It then became the capital. The cathedral is still in the former Capital, La Laguna.
Parks and Gardens in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz is very green for a city with palm-tree-lined roads and multiple green spaces. The biggest of them is the García Sanabria Park, named after the mayor who made the city what it is today. Throughout the year, there are multiple festivals held at the park and it is created like a botanical garden. The plants are labelled and if you follow the path that starts at the fountain in the shape of a spiral, you can see everything easily. There are also art installations in the park, for example, The Cat (Monumento al gato) by Óscar Domínguez.
Other green spaces and parks in the city are the Plaza del General Weyler and Plaza del Príncipe de Asturias.
The waterfront in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
The Palmetum is a 12-hectare Botanical Garden by the waterfront in Santa Cruz that is dedicated to palm trees. You can travel through the flora of different parts of the world as you stroll through the park. There are several viewpoints out to the ocean where you can take a seat in between the palm trees. In the centre of the Palmetum is an indoor space that recreates a tropical rainforest with waterfalls.
Next to the Palmetum is Tenerife’s Parque Marítimo an outdoor swimming pool area inspired by the artist César Manrique. Right next to it is the Castle of St John the Baptist and the Auditorio de Tenerife Adán Martín, an opera house by the water that reminds a lot of the Opera in Sydney.
Closer to the harbour of Santa Cruz, you’ll see the Plaza de España with the town hall whose bell tower is also referred to as the Big Ben of Tenerife. From there, the main shopping street, Calle Castillo, leads back up towards the several parks and gardens mentioned earlier.
Museums in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Not far from the town centre and alongside the canyon is the museum TEA, Tenerife Espacio de las Artes. The modern building was opened in 2008 and its architecture certainly sticks out in the city. Inside the museum is an art exhibition, a cinema, a café and a popular library.
On the other side of the road is the market Mercado Nuestra Señora de África, La Recova. The market is a symbol of the tri-continentality of the islands between Europe, Africa and the Americas.
Another museum worth visiting in Santa Cruz is the Museum of Nature and Archaeology where you can see plenty of archaeological finds and learn about the history of the Canary Islands.
Churches in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
One of the most important churches in the city is the Parroquia de Nuestra Señora del Pilar a few minutes down the road from the García Sanabria Park. Inside this church is a Mary statue Nuestra Señora la Virgen de las Angustias, also referred to as “La Republicana” due to a controversial story surrounding the history of Spain in the 20th century in between republic and dictatorship.
The ceiling inside this church is made of wood and inspired by the Moorish influences in Andalucía. This is unusual for the Canary Islands and reminded Charlie of the cathedral in Funchal, Madeira.
Another church worth visiting in Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the Iglesia Matriz de la Concepción opposite the Museum of Nature and Archaeology. You will see the colonial architecture and the impressive bell tower from afar. There are some small bars and restaurants next to the church which form the old town of Santa Cruz. It is the perfect place to end a day in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
