Tenerife Magazine’s round up of some of the most interesting news stories of the week in Tenerife.

The Anniversary of Santa Cruz as Capital of the Canary Islands
Ignore the fact that 190 years isn’t exactly a landmark number to celebrate. Ignore the fact that although the anniversary was celebrated on Monday, the date King Fernando VII decreed Santa Cruz de Tenerife to be capital of the Canary Islands was the 27th January 1822. What is really interesting is the politician who is recognised as being the driving force behind it happening – José Murphy. Tenerife increasingly looks to its Guanche past for its pride and character yet it was a son of two Dubliners who was responsible for Santa Cruz achieving status in the eyes of Spain.

Progress at Last for Las Gaviotas Beach
It is welcome news to hear that Santa Cruz council have allocated €400,000 to make the naturist beach of Las Gaviotas safe again for sunbathers. The beach has been closed to the public since December 2010, so the funding allocation is a step in the right direction. Now comes the bureaucracy and contracting process to determine who carries out the work. No dates have been suggested for when it’s expected to re-open but with any luck lets hope that by the summer it’ll be more than just the local fisherman on the rocks who’ll be able to get their tackle out at Las Gaviotas.

Spain Enters a Period of Drought
Those people who know Tenerife well will have registered that there has been a lack of rain so far this winter. There have been only a couple of days when there has been anything close to decent rain with little difference between south and north coasts. Whilst an absence of rain is what we all want when we take a holiday, it is potentially disastrous for the island. Scientists acknowledged this week that the pattern of a dry autumn (30% less rainfall than normal) followed by an equally dry December and January that has occurred across Spain is a rare and worrying combination. The conditions have also resulted in a lack of snow on the mountains; another valued source of water when spring arrives. Mount Teide has been noticeably devoid of the white stuff so far this winter. The situation isn’t critical yet but if the seasonal February/March rains don’t fall it could be. Still, it’s Carnaval in a couple of weeks and we all know what that means… there will definitely be a downpour of monsoon proportions.

Where Does a Prince Spend His Birthday?
On an island that is still experiencing an undersea volcanic eruption apparently. Spain’s Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia spent the Prince’s 44th birthday meeting with the people who were most affected by the eruption off the coast at La Restinga on Tenerife’s neighbour, El Hierro. Thankfully the volcanic eruption behaved itself during Prince Felipe’s visit; this was one birthday party that no-one wanted to go off with a bang.

And finally the TIT (This Is Tenerife) of the week award goes to…The University Hospital of the Canary Islands (HUC)
This week the HUC managed to ‘misplace’ a patient for 11 hours. Worse, not only did they misplace the patient, a woman suffering from mental health problems and a brain tumour, they informed the patient’s relatives that she had actually left the hospital. The woman’s family, being seriously concerned for her safety, reported her disappearance to the police who advised taxis, buses and trams in the area to be on the lookout for a confused woman wearing a hospital gown. Meanwhile the woman’s sister scoured the hospital whilst another family member stood watch at the hospital entrance… but with no success.
Eleven anxious hours later the family received a phone call to inform them that the woman had been found sitting in a wheelchair in Emergencies where, it was claimed, she had been all the time. It’s a claim that the woman’s sister, having searched the hospital’s public areas, disputes. HUC has admitted that there was a mix up in information between different departments in the hospital which led to confusion to her whereabouts although they still insist she was never actually ‘missing’. Could someone let us know the Canarian word for ‘not knowing where someone is’ because it’s clearly very different from the English one.

Volcanic Activity on El Hierro

Tenerife Magazine has been monitoring the continued volcanic activity on the Canary Island of El Hierro in Spain over the past few weeks.

With reports of a possible undersea volcanic eruption on the morning of 10th October at Tenerife Magazine, we believe it is important to keep readers informed and reassured about the volcanic activity on, or near, El Hierro and about any impact this has on Tenerife.

We will be publishing accurate, up to the minute information in English about events on El Hierro as they unfold and when we receive news updates from the authorities and other reliable sources.

1. Fair weather friend
Well of course the weather’s the number one reason for throwing the bikini and factor 15 into a suitcase, perusing the Net for cheap flights to Tenerife and waving goodbye to the snowman.
Just four or so flying hours from the UK, who wouldn’t want to wiggle their toes in the warm sand, settle down beneath a palm tree with a good book and a long cocktail and exchange that milk bottle look for a healthy olive glow? It’s the single most common reason why millions of people choose  to holiday in Tenerife – and who are we to argue with them?

2. One island, many holidays
Tenerife is such a microcosm of landscapes that it’s like visiting a dozen different holiday resorts in one. From beaches to picturesque villages, theme parks to green parks and sandy shores to mountain highs you can find every type of holiday experience in less than 800 square miles of tropical paradise.

3. Swing into Action
On Tenerife you can pretty much guarantee that there’ll be at least one championship golf course basking in sunshine every single day of the year, and what’s more, there won’t be any earache from the other half. Golf widows can retire to the beaches of Playa de Las Américas, Costa Adeje and Las Galletas or indulge themselves in top notch hotels while their other halves pander to their favourite obsession.

4. A Taste of the Good Life
Eating out on Tenerife is still an affordable luxury and although blackboards advertising All Day British Breakfast still abound in some resorts, those with a more refined palate may be gastronomically surprised. From chic city dining to bijou resort bistros and five star hotel restaurants to gourmet secret gems – Tenerife restaurants are today’s special.

5. Holiday on another planet
There aren’t many places in the world where you can travel from snow topped mountain to sunbathing on the beach in less than two hours but Tenerife is one of them. Not just the icon of the archipelago and pride of  Spain, Teide National Park is also the most amazing landscape you’re likely to encounter this side of a long weekend on the moon.

6. Party Dude
Ask anyone who lives here, one of the things the Tinerfeños do better than most is they know how to have a good time. From bar hopping in your resort to subjecting your senses to an all out assault at Europe’s biggest carnival, for those who enjoy the hedonistic pleasures of life, almost every night is party night on Tenerife.

7. Rural retreats
Tenerife can be many things to many people and while thrill seekers find pleasure in the theme parks and nightlife of the resorts, nature lovers can escape the noise and bustle of the world in Tenerife’s idyllic rural interior. Whether you’re a walker, a tent pitcher or an away-from-it-all junkie, there’s a rustic retreat with your name on it.

8. Sail away
Tenerife is a stepping stone to the Western Canary Islands of La Gomera, La Palma (above) and El Hierro, all of which are just a short sail and a million miles away from the tourism centres of Tenerife. For the price of one flight to Tenerife and a ferry ride, you can experience half an archipelago.

9. Dive in
Centuries of volcanic eruptions have formed a mysterious underwater world of basalt columns and silent caves – all of which are teeming with marine wildlife. Warm, deep waters close to shore provide some of Europe’s best diving for those with a penchant for rubber and air tanks.

10. Thar She Blows (Photo courtesy of Atlantic Whale Foundation)
Personally, I prefer my air supply limitless and am happy to watch the amazing creatures of the deep from the deck of a sailing ship. Bottle nosed dolphins, minke and sperm whale occupy and pass through the warm waters between Tenerife’s west coast and neighbouring La Gomera making Tenerife one of the best places in the world to watch them in their natural habitat.

With seven alternate tropical universes, why confine yourself to just one Canary Island?
There are less than 230 kilometres and an entire universe of difference between La Palma in the west and Fuerteventura in the east and in between, there are five islands as disparate as any in the Greek archipelago.

So why isn’t island hopping in the Canaries more popular?

Tenerife Magazine decided to find out why.

The Booking Experience.
Armed with a calendar, a notebook and web addresses, I set about planning and booking a Canaries island-hopping trip, taking in some of the smaller islands as well as Tenerife and Gran Canaria.
I began with the traditional island hopping mode –
The Ferry.
For the Western Islands, I decided to use The Fred Olsen Express as it’s quicker than Naviera Armas.
It wasn’t long before I was running aground…the online booking site wouldn’t let me buy my tickets if I had the ‘schedules’ window open. Fine if you’re just planning a single crossing, but very frustrating if you’re trying to plan several trips. I had to keep switching views to check out which days ferries operated between the smaller islands and then going back to online sales to check times and prices.
Next I tried Naviera Armas to get around the eastern Islands of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote as Fred Olsen doesn’t sail to them. At least they have a neat little map which shows exactly where they sail from and to but again, I had to constantly switch between ‘destination times’ and ‘passenger sales’ views making multiple bookings a very convoluted affair.

The Airlines
With some ferry crossings taking a whole day and limited sailings between smaller islands, I decided to check out the inter-island air services. On Binter Airlines’ website the flight schedules were easy to search, there were lots of flights to choose from and they gave me loads of options around my travel dates which made for easy planning. Although the Islas Airways services are restricted to the bigger islands, I actually found their site to be the easiest and most user-friendly of all for online booking.

Costs and journey times
The rule is simple; the faster you get there, the more it costs you; so flying is the fastest and most expensive way to connect the islands.
Ferries are cheaper but then they’re also considerably slower and in the case of Naviera Armas, so slow as to not be a viable option on some journeys, like Tenerife to El Hierro which takes a staggering 8hr and 30 mins and is generally the domain of farmers and their goats – both of whom are better sailors than I am.

Using Tenerife to Gran Canaria (one way) as my example, I discovered substantial differences between prices and journey times:

Naviera Armas     €30.41     2½ hours
Fred Olsen         €47.63    1 hour
Binter Canarias     €60.85     30 mins
Islas Airways     €64.35    30 mins

All the journeys I checked out had similar time/cost differences where all four carriers operate.
But services are restricted between some islands, which incidentally, I only found out by trying to book certain routes and being shown the blank ‘done’ screen.
For example, Fred Olsen doesn’t operate between Gran Canaria and Lanzarote or Fuerteventura.
Binter Airlines don’t fly direct between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura or between La Gomera and La Palma or El Hierro; and Islas Airways only operate between Tenerife, La Palma, Lanzarote and Gran Canaria.
It’s all very confusing, means endless internet searching and no easy way to hop between islands.

So – Why Isn’t Island Hopping in the Canaries a Popular Option?

None of the carriers, either sea or air, offer discounts for multiple trips. There are special offers running from time to time but they usually only apply to residents who already enjoy substantial discounts on travel. As the bus services on all the islands offer a multiple trip card with substantial discounts, why can’t the ferries and airlines do the same?

For anyone planning to visit several islands, online booking either from home or while on the move is the most sensible option, but I found ferry online booking sites to be cumbersome and definitely not user-friendly for island hoppers. Why can’t the ferries offer multiple trip planning and booking?

Although both Fred Olsen and Naviera Armas operate free ferry buses between capital city and ports on Tenerife, (Fred Olsen also operates ferry buses on Gran Canaria and Lanzarote), the bus doesn’t pick up or drop off at the airports.

The end result is this: As a tourist, the costs of visiting multiple islands is either prohibitively expensive if you choose to do it by air; tiresomely slow if you opt for the more cost-effective ferries or painfully unconnected if you choose to mix and match.

Until the inter-island services wake up to the possibilities of island hopping and offer discounts on multiple trips; better connectivity between ports, bus stations and airports; and online booking services that allow users to plan multiple trips, I guess island hopping in the Canaries will remain about as popular as the norovirus.

The words “shame”, “wasted” and “opportunity” come to mind.