Discover La Orotava: Heritage, Crafts and Nature

La Orotava offers a range of reasons to visit: historic heritage, traditional crafts, festival traditions and nature. More than 70 percent of Teide National Park lies within the municipality. At the same time, Playa del Bollullo and the historic centre are among the place’s explicitly highlighted themes. Which of these you focus on can shape your travel plans.

National Park, Hiking Trails and Coast

Teide National Park encompasses the stratovolcano Teide-Pico Viejo, which stands 3,718 metres high. Atmospheric conditions create a striking, ever-changing landscape of clouds there. La Orotava is also home to the park’s institutional headquarters and its visitor and interpretation centre. This makes the town interesting for travellers who would like to learn about the park and how it is presented to visitors.

For hiking, the national park has a main network of 21 trails of varying lengths and difficulty levels. This makes clear that the trails do not all require the same amount of time or physical effort; you can therefore consider each route as a separate planning point. Check which length and difficulty level suit your plans, rather than assuming that all the trails are alike.

Playa del Bollullo offers a different natural setting: this black volcanic sand beach lies below a cliff, and the surf is usually strong throughout the year. The beach is served by interurban bus route 376; there is also a small car park with fewer than 50 spaces. As transport and parking information may change, check the route and parking situation before you travel. The beach, hiking trail network and national park differ markedly in character, offering you different themes to consider when planning your trip.

Architecture and Crafts in the Historic Centre

Camino del Ciprés is a traditionally paved path. On 16 September 2008, a decree by the Government of the Canary Islands recognised it as an Asset of Cultural Interest in the Historic Site category. It is associated with exceptional ethnographic and historic value.

Casa de los Balcones, also known as Casa Fonseca, was built in 1715. Its architectural features include carved wooden balconies and an inner wooden courtyard. The house provides access to a museum and includes an important craft complex dedicated to traditional calados, as well as a centre for training, promoting and showcasing traditional crafts. Calados and embroidery are among La Orotava’s handicrafts that attract particular interest from visitors; they are made using very old methods and traditional rules.

Sacred art is also included in the official tour of the historic centre, which includes a stop at Iglesia de la Concepción and its Museo de Arte Sacro. The museum has seven exhibition rooms. Together with the historic houses and crafts, this tour offers a tangible introduction to several facets of the area’s cultural heritage.

Corpus Christi and the Romería

The Corpus Christi festival is one of La Orotava’s patron saint celebrations. By 1576, a procession with altars in front of the façades of the most important manor houses had already been established there. During the Corpus Christi procession, the route passes over an area of around 1,200 square metres covered with carpets. It also features 34 flower carpets and a large carpet made of volcanic sand in the town hall square. The approximate area and number of flower carpets indicate the scale of this display, but do not provide a date for the event.

The format of the Romería dates back to its adoption in 1936. It includes decorated carts, horses, folkloric groups, musicians and singers. Together with the carpets, altars and traditional crafts, these details bring the town’s festival and craft themes to life.

When planning your trip, you can weigh up the different focuses: architecture, sacred art and calados versus natural attractions such as the national park, hiking trails and beach. Festival traditions add another distinct dimension. This way, you can decide which aspects of La Orotava matter most for your stay.

Discover more destinations: La Perdoma, La Florida, Aguamansa, Tacoronte, Las Palomas, San Miguel, Las Aguas, La Caleta.

For an overview of the wider destination: Tenerife.