Tenerife · North Tenerife
Puerto de la Cruz
Canary tourism began here; the fishing boats stayed
Tourism in the Canaries started in Puerto de la Cruz, yet the small boats still land their catch at the fishing quay every morning. Take a table in Plaza del Charco, watch the surf break along San Telmo towards Lago Martiánez, then use the bus station for Teide, La Orotava and both airports.
Photo: Pimlico27, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped
- Come for
- Historic streets, gardens and a walkable north-coast day
- Make time for
- A full day
- By bus
- Reached by a published TITSA line
The journey is part of the day
Getting to Puerto de la Cruz
Use line 30 from Tenerife North Airport, line 100 from Santa Cruz or line 103 from La Laguna, following the matching guide. Puerto de la Cruz station is the dependable endpoint; continue on foot from there. Line 103 lists the Jardín Botánico area, but its direction-specific stopping restriction means the station remains the safer default when the rule is unclear.
Checked Sources: TITSA
Bus guides
- TFN to Puerto de la Cruz Line 30 Direct
- Santa Cruz to Puerto Line 100 Direct
- La Laguna to Puerto Line 103 Direct
- Puerto to Teide Line 348, Line 341 in the park Direct
- TFN to TFS Line 343 Direct
- Airport buses TFS: 10, 40, 343, 711, TFN: 20, 30, 104, 343 Direct
- Food and drink
Lines from this site’s guides. Times are in this page’s timetable.
Before you settle in
Keep the way home in mind.
Return to Puerto de la Cruz station and use this page's board for your direction. Travellers to Santa Cruz should retain the line 100 warning: TITSA says it is not the service to use for a return set-down at Tres de Mayo. On line 103 towards La Laguna, do not rely on Jardín Botánico as a set-down stop unless its conditional rule is met.
See the next busesA little introduction
Get to know Puerto de la Cruz.
Puerto de la Cruz brings together an old Atlantic port, shaded squares, garden visits and lived-in northern town streets. Its protected historic centre rewards wandering rather than checklist sightseeing: Plaza del Charco forms a natural orientation point, lanes lead towards the fishing harbour and La Ranilla, and the Botanical Garden opens a greener chapter uphill. Arrive at Puerto de la Cruz station and explore on foot in stages. Parque Taoro is another worthwhile pause, particularly for its broad view over the town, but its climb changes the pace of an otherwise compact centre.
Why go
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140 protected buildings in the smallest municipality
Puerto de la Cruz covers 8.7 km² and keeps a protected historic centre of more than 140 listed buildings, a National Tourist Interest Site since 1955.
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The island’s densest run of restaurants and shops
WebTenerife gives it the highest density of restaurants and shops on Tenerife, with the fishing quarter of La Ranilla as the place to eat.
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Mild all year, with Teide on the skyline
Temperatures between 15 and 22 °C made it the first resort in the Canaries, recommended by the British Medical Society in the nineteenth century; the 3,718 m Teide stands on its horizon.
Checked – 2026 Sources: WebTenerife
Make a day of it
What to do in Puerto de la Cruz
- Sight Don’t miss
Plaza del Charco and the historic centre
Begin around Plaza del Charco, then let the surrounding streets reveal balconies, small churches and the town’s trading-port scale. The historic-artistic designation covers a district, so the pleasure lies in the connections between individual buildings.
- Walk Don’t miss
Fishing harbour and La Ranilla
Walk towards Casa de la Aduana and the harbour, then continue through La Ranilla. This side of town keeps the Atlantic and Puerto de la Cruz’s fishing history in view while offering a more intimate street pattern than the larger resort avenues.
- Sight Don’t miss
Jardín Botánico and Parque Taoro
The Botanical Garden is a destination in its own right, while Parque Taoro provides an elevated panorama. They sit away from the harbour core, so choose one or allow a generous second half of the day rather than treating both as quick detours.
- Activity Don’t miss
Loro Parque on the town bus
WebTenerife lists Loro Parque on Avenida Loro Parque in Puerto de la Cruz, home to more than 40,000 animals of over 600 species and subspecies. TITSA’s local line 381 runs from Plaza Reyes Católicos via Punta Brava to a Loro Parque stop and on to La Longuera, so you do not need a tour transfer if you are staying in town.
Show all 8 Show fewer
- Beach
Swim at Playa Jardín
The Playa Jardín complex of three black-sand beaches, Playa Jardín, Playa Chica and Punta Brava, is one of the town’s emblems, below the Castillo de San Felipe at the western end of the seafront.
- Sight
The Botanical Garden
The Jardín de Aclimatación de La Orotava was created by royal order of Carlos III in 1788 to grow species from the tropics on Spanish soil; the plantations began in 1792. It is uphill in La Paz, a walk of fifteen to twenty-five minutes from the centre by WebTenerife’s reckoning.
- Culture
A festival for every season
The MUECA street-art festival fills the town in May, the Bach Festival comes in December, bonfires burn on the shore on the night of 23 June and the goats are bathed in the fishing harbour, and in November the wineries open for the Fiesta de San Andrés.
- Food & drink
Eat in La Ranilla
The traditional fishing quarter is WebTenerife’s place to eat, a few streets from the quay where the boats come in; since 2014 it has also carried Puerto Street Art, the open-air murals that colour its walls.
Checked – 2026 Sources: WebTenerife, TITSA
A day here
How a day in Puerto de la Cruz feels
A plan built on the buses this guide already names. The departure times are in the board on this page; choose your bus back before you set out.
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Morning
Arrive at the station, walk to the Charco
Line 30 from Tenerife North Airport, line 100 from Santa Cruz and line 103 from La Laguna all end at Puerto de la Cruz station; the historic centre and Plaza del Charco are downhill from there on foot.
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Middle of the day
Harbour, La Ranilla, lunch
Follow the lanes from the Charco to the Casa de la Real Aduana and the fishing harbour, then into La Ranilla for lunch.
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Afternoon
Up to the garden or along to San Telmo
Choose between the climb to the Botanical Garden and the level walk along the San Telmo seafront to Lago Martiánez. For an onward bus, the station is the dependable boarding point; the board on this page lists every published departure.
Checked Sources: TITSA, WebTenerife
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about Puerto de la Cruz
How do I get from Tenerife North Airport to Puerto de la Cruz by bus?
Take TITSA line 30, the direct airport–Puerto de la Cruz line, from the airport bus stop; it has working-day and weekend tables and ends at Puerto de la Cruz station. Line 343, the airports line, also calls here a few times a day on its way between Costa Adeje, TFS, TFN and the station.
Is there a bus from Tenerife South Airport to Puerto de la Cruz?
Only line 343, which runs a handful of times a day from Costa Adeje through both airports to Puerto de la Cruz station. Otherwise take line 10 to Santa Cruz Intercambiador and change to line 100; the times for both are on this site.
Can I get to Teide from Puerto de la Cruz without a car?
Yes: line 348 leaves Puerto de la Cruz station once a day via La Orotava, Aguamansa and El Portillo for the Parador, and returns in the afternoon from the Parador via the cable car base. On the way back it does not pick up between Aguamansa and the station unless it is already stopping to set down.
Checked Sources: TITSA, Aena
Good to know
Small details. Better days.
Show 4 local tips Show fewer
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Walk downhill first
Explore Plaza del Charco, the harbour and La Ranilla together, then decide whether your energy and weather suit the climb towards the garden district or Parque Taoro.
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Keep north and south plans distinct
The Loro Parque transfer offer is marketed from eligible southern areas. If you are already in Puerto de la Cruz, line 381 reaches the park from Plaza Reyes Católicos; check whether a packaged transfer adds anything before booking.
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Both airports from one station
Line 343 starts at Puerto de la Cruz station and calls at Tenerife North and then Tenerife South airports on its way to Costa Adeje, with separate working-day and weekend tables. Line 30 is the shorter link to the north airport only.
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Eating gluten-free in Puerto: the questions to ask
FACE, the Spanish coeliac federation, explains where cross-contact happens in a kitchen: the same spoon or utensil used for dishes with and without gluten, oil in which something with gluten was fried, toasters and sandwich makers shared with bread, and boards or surfaces not cleaned after flour. So in La Ranilla or on the seafront ask four things: is the dish cooked in its own pan or oil, with its own utensils, on a clean surface, and is the bread kept away from it? This site names no restaurant; the food-and-drink page lists FACE’s and ASOCECA’s own resources.
Photos and film
Puerto de la Cruz in pictures
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Watch before you go
Gimbal Walk TV Plays through YouTube’s privacy-enhanced player; nothing loads from YouTube until you press play. -
Plaza del Charco is the square to aim for after line 30, 100 or 103 sets you down at Puerto de la Cruz station: the historic centre and the harbour are a walk from it. Photo: El fosilmaníaco, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped), via Wikimedia Commons -
Playa Jardín lies at the western end of the Puerto de la Cruz seafront beside Loro Parque, where local line 381 from Plaza Reyes Católicos stops. Photo: Cayambe, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped), via Wikimedia Commons
Make room for something memorable
Book something around Puerto de la Cruz
Affiliate links: we may earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. Selected activity links open GetYourGuide; destination photos are illustrative. Check the date, current price, meeting point and what is included before booking.
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Pimlico27 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 Puerto de la Cruz
Loro Parque entry and transfer from south Tenerife
A packaged Puerto de la Cruz day out that combines park admission with transport from eligible southern areas.
Why consider it It can simplify a dedicated park day for travellers based in the south who prefer a booked transfer.
View experience: Loro Parque entry and transfer from south Tenerife on GetYourGuide (opens in a new tab)Meeting point & getting there: Loro Parque entry and transfer from south Tenerife
Pickup is described for eligible south-Tenerife locations. Check your accommodation and chosen option; it does not suit every north-side traveller.
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Pimlico27 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 Puerto de la Cruz
Loro Parque entry ticket
An entry ticket for Loro Parque in Puerto de la Cruz.
Why consider it If you are staying in the north or already travelling by bus, you can reach the park on a town bus instead of paying for a transfer.
View experience: Loro Parque entry ticket on GetYourGuide (opens in a new tab)Meeting point & getting there: Loro Parque entry ticket
Check on the product page what the ticket includes. TITSA line 381 runs from Plaza Reyes Católicos in Puerto de la Cruz to a Loro Parque stop.
Current experiences on GetYourGuide
Tours and activities on Tenerife as GetYourGuide lists them today, with current prices and reviews.
There’s more around the corner
Where next?
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Ronny Siegel / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 3.0 -
Diego Delso / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 Orotava Valley, north Tenerife
La Orotava
Traditional architecture, garden views and atmospheric uphill streets
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Diego Delso / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 Isla Baja, north-west Tenerife
Garachico
Volcanic coast, historic squares and an unhurried small-town day
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Diego Delso / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Guide checked · How we check · Suggest a correction
Sources for this page
The sources this page cites, each with the date we checked it. Two dates mean the facts that cite it were checked on different days.
TITSA
- Line 30 timetable Checked – 2026
- Line 100 timetable Checked – 2026
- Line 103 timetable Checked – 2026
- Line 381: Puerto de la Cruz–Punta Brava (Loro Parque) Checked
- Line 343 timetable Checked – Oct 2026
- Line 10 timetable Checked
- Line 348 timetable Checked
WebTenerife
- Puerto de la Cruz historic centre Checked – 2026
- Parque Taoro Checked
- Loro Parque Checked
- Jardín Botánico (Jardín de Aclimatación de La Orotava) Checked
Aena
Gobierno de Canarias, Servicio Canario de la Salud
Gobierno de Canarias, 1-1-2 Canarias
Gobierno de Canarias, Dirección General de Emergencias
GetYourGuide
FACE, Federación de Asociaciones de Celíacos de España
FACE
ASOCECA
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