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City in Tenerife, Spain
Photo: trolvag, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Puerto de la Cruz (sometimes abbreviated to Puerto Cruz on road signs or Puerto in everyday language) is a city on the island of Tenerife. It is more family-friendly than the other tourist areas of Tenerife. It is also the longest-established and most complete of all resorts on Tenerife. The old part of the town retains beautiful spots, one of the few places where the locals still work, eat, and drink. Much of the area around the old fishing port is full of narrow, cobbled streets, lined with colonial architecture.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
MACEW / Eduardo Westerdahl Museum of Contemporary Art
It was established in 1953 as Spain's first contempoary art museum, in the former Royal Customs House. It has a good collection of modern works by Canary Island artists.
This defensive fortification was built in the mid-18th century to protect the city from pirates.
Archaeological Museum
Has a large collection of indigenous Guanche artifacts, with a focus on pottery.
A small defensive fortress built in the early 17th century to defend the town against pirates. After being completely renovated in the late 20th century, it is now used as a venue for concerts and art exhibits.
Likely the oldest building in Puerto de la Cruz, the church was built between 1599 and 1608 and was attached to a no-longer extant Franciscan monastery.
Chapel of St. Telmo
The small chapel was built in 1780 and dedicated to the patron saint of seafarers. After being partly destroyed by flooding in 1826 the chapel was rebuilt, and fully restored several years ago. Of special note is the interior Mudejar-style carved wooden roof truss.
Historic central square of Puerto de la Cruz with a fountain in the middle, and lots of shops, bars, and restaurants around it.
Museo Del Pescador
A small museum with ship models.
A world class zoo that originally started out as a humble parrot park (hence the name). It features the usual big cats, apes, giant turtles, an aquarium, ... as well as the island's only roller coaster. Shows present parrots, dolphins, sea lions, and – not uncontroversially – orcas doing tricks. Buy your tickets online to avoid some of the queuing at the entrance. You can also buy inclusive coach trips from Costa Adeje/Playa de las Américas, which will take you there for the day and back (about 90 minutes travelling each way). Bringing your own drinks and food is explicitly permitted, with "Picnic areas" provided throughout the park.
Jardín Botánico / Botanical Garden
Established in 1788 to acclimatize specimens brought back from the New World on their way to mainland Spain, the small Botanical Gardens have an interesting selection of tropical trees and shrubs. Even if you're not interested, it's a beautiful place to wander around and relax. Don't expect to see much of the native Canarian flora there, though.
Jardín Sitio Litre / Orchid Garden
The lovely English-style garden of an 18th-century mansion features a large collection of orchids along with bonsai trees and a dragon tree. Famous past visitors have included Sir Richard Burton as well as Agatha Christie, who was inspired to write her short story collection The Mysterious Mr Quin. There is also a pleasant terrace café.
Park with fountains, waterfalls, and plenty of benches to take a rest in the shade while making your way up the slopes of Puerto de la Cruz. Nice view of the city center.
A fantastic, post-modern swimming and sunbathing complex designed by the famous Lanzaroteno architect Cesar Manrique. It's a bit concretey by modern standards but is still an awesome paradise which costs hardly anything to enter for the day. See non-official website for more information.
Popular with both locals and tourists, this restaurant serves traditional Canarian cuisine in a pleasant setting with friendly service. On weekends the queues to get in can be very long, so reservations are recommended.
Serves creative Mediterranean cuisine. Reservations recommended.
Restaurant in a beautifully restored former monastery.
Traditional Canarian food masterfully prepared by chef Seve and his team. They have a large selection of wines to choose from.
A bit more expensive than the others, but open late nights and Sundays.
Gastropub and tapas bar with higher quality food.
Built in 1712 as a private manor, the building is named after the Marquesa de Candia, a previous resident. In 1799 the Prussian naturalist Alexander von Humboldt stayed here for five days as a guest of the then-owner Bernardo Cólogan y Fallon. In 1887 it was converted to a hotel. Modern facilities include an outdoor pool, fitness centre, onsite restaurant, non-smoking rooms, and free Wi-Fi.
This 250-year-old hotel has modern facilities including an outdoor pool and onsite restaurant. Wi-Fi is €6/day; pets permitted on request.
A great place to relax. It is surrounded by an extensive subtropical garden and from the heated swimming pool you can enjoy panoramic views which reach from Teide volcano over the Atlantic.
Comfortable five-star hotel in the quiet residential area of "La Paz" 1.5 km from the centre of Puerto de la Cruz and "Lago Martianez".
Municipal Market
The city's main market has 30 stalls; services and non-food related goods are located on the ground floor, and food items are sold on the first floor. There is also an Alteza supermarket in the building.
The main shopping centre has a number of shops and restaurants, including a Mercadona supermarket.
By bus
If you travel to/from Santa Cruz, the direct Línea 103 goes by motorway and takes about 45 minutes. Línea 102 has a few more stops and takes about 1 hour.
By car
Puerto de la Cruz is well-connected to the east and west through the TF-5 motorway. The Teide mountain area can easily be reached by just following the TF-21 uphill.
By bus
Within the city there are no additional buses. Instead, you can use connections to nearby towns or villages to access certain corners of the city.
By car
Car rental is available locally as well as at the airport.
By trackless train
The Loro Parque Express is a free shuttle service that brings you from the city center to the entrance of Loro Parque and back.
Choose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
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