Tenerife, largest of the Canary Islands, has an area of 2.057 sq km and a population of almost 750.000. It’s situated 200 miles off the west coast of North West Africa at about 28 degrees latitude and 16.5 degrees longitude. Triangular in shape, (see Maps Page) the island would fit into a rectangle about 90 km wide by 80 km high and has a road perimeter of about 358 km. It is dominated by Mount Teide, the extinct volcano that stands at 12,198 feet high (3718m), being the highest mountain of Spanish territory. Its peak can be seen from all of the other Canary Islands.
The island’s mountainous northeast and northwest corners are lush, its southern shores parched and arid. Tenerife features a range of natural contrasts, the south being totally different, both visually and climatically, to the North. The South is hot, dry and arid and it’s where holidaymakers crowd onto beaches, like Playa de Las Américas and Los Cristianos. The North is green and lush, which, of course, means occasional rain.
Teide rises above everything on Tenerife and indeed Spain. The volcanic scenery is out of this world and has been chosen as the backdrop to scenes in famous movies such as Star Wars, Planet of the Apes and the Ten Commandments. Volcanic cones are distributed randomly over the whole island's surface and contribute to the amazing landscape. |
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