Tenerife History and Tradition:
In 1496, Tenerife was the last island to fall to the Spanish, following a hard fought battle by the Guanches. Named Tenerife by the people of La Palma by combining tiner, meaning mountain, and ife, meaning white, due to the snowy peak of the mountain El Teide being the only part of the island they could see. As a result of this colonization Tenerife soon became attracted a large amount of settlers from France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Britain, becoming a melting pot of nationalities.

Santa Cruz was declared the capital of the Canary Islands in 1821 by the government of Spain due to its port becoming a gateway to Europe and Africa for the transportation of goods. If a ship was bound for the Americas, it stopped on Tenerife first, to capture the favorable trade winds taking them West. For more than a century, the citizens and leaders of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria felt their city should have been chosen as capital and maintained the angst of this decision for more than a century. In 1927 Spain divided the islands in two and Santa Cruz is now the provincial capital of Tenerife, la Palma and El Hierro, sharing the duties of regional capital of all the islands of the archipelago with Las Palmas.

Following World War II, the Canary Islands suffered financially, causing a migration problem with over 16,000 islanders opting to leave the islands. In 1978, a new constitution was adopted which later gave the islands autonomy from Spain in 1982, though they remain a territory of the country. The leader of Spain, Franco, finally opened Spain and the Canary Islands to tourism from Western Europeans and while Spain benefited from this decision, the islands benefited more. With tourism as an option for economic gain, the Canary Islands fast became a primary holiday spot for travelers from around the world, but primarily from Europe.

Modern day Tenerife has a reputation for being an island of pleasurable pursuits with tourists spending their days in the modern hotels lounging in the hot sun while spending their evenings drinking and dancing the night away. It would be fair to say this does and can happen, particularly during the Carnaval season but it is primarily on the southern coastline with the true Canarian, further inland, living a more “normal” life. Though there is some distance between Tenerife and Spain, the Spanish influence is strong though Portugal has provided some inspiration as well. Typical music in the Canary Islands is a majestic blend of Hispanic, Canarian, Portuguese and Latin-American pulses that have helped shape Tenerife folklore, which includes the Guanche background as well. While influencing their music and art, all these countries served to provide a lifestyle of being easy-going, celebratory for any reason or no reason, and taking life in stride because to do otherwise would get in the way of living life to the fullest. Also being as closely related to the Spanish culture as Tenerife has been, Religion plays a very important part in the lives of the inhabitants of the island. A visit to any village or city should include a stopover to the local church, which should be several hundred years old or so.

If you are planning a cheap holiday to Tenerife, plan on rest, relaxation, dancing and a lifestyle change you might never want to leave behind.

Alternative departures:
Tenerife holidays from London
Tenerife holidays from Midlands
Tenerife holidays from Newcastle
Tenerife holidays from Manchester
Tenerife holidays from Belfast
Tenerife holidays from Scotland
Tenerife holidays from Bristol and Cardiff