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Cemeterio de San Juan Bautista
Improvised cemetery where over 9,000 victims of the 1581 bubonic plague outbreak are buried.
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Iglesia de San Juan Bautista
Parish church with a single nave decorated with timber sculptures dedicated to San Juan Bautista, the co-patron of the city, and before the 16th century merely a saint like any other. When the bubonic plague was brought into the city in 1581, concealed in tapestries imported from Flanders, an outbreak followed immediately and resulted in 9,000 casualties. The dead were buried in mass graves at an improvised cemetery. The outbreak was declared over when no more deaths had occurred for a year, on 24 June 1582 -- the day of San Juan Bautista. As a monument in honour of the saint, a church was constructed and named after him near the cemetery.
Casa de los Capitanes Generales
Early 17th-century house, constructed between 1624 and 1631, then known as the House of the General Captains after the 6 army captains who lived here between 1705 and 1723. Architectural curiosities are the windows set in red stone frames, arranged asymmetrically. The building is arranged around a central patio. It now houses the City Hall and a tourist office. The atrium is worth a visit.
Catedral de San Cristóbal de La Laguna
Main religious building in the city, declared a Site of Cultural Interest in 1983, and a in 1999. The current structure was built between 1904 and 1915 in the Neoclassical and Neogothic styles, on the site of an early 16th-century chapel which is believed had been built atop an earlier Guanche necropolis. Inside is the elaborate Baroque 18th-century altarpiece of the Virgin of Los Remedios (La Virgen de los Remedios), the patron saint of the city; seven painted panels have been attributed to the Flemish master Hendrick van Balen. Also noteworthy is the marble 18th-century pulpit carved by the Genoese master Pasquale Bocciardo. A visit accompanied by audio guide takes about 45 minutes.
Teatro Leal
Theatre in eclectic style, used for film screenings and theatre performances. With a capacity of 608 spectators, it is among the largest of its kind left on the Canaries, and has been renovated from the 1990s until the late 2000s.
Iglesia de la Concepción
Established in 1511, this is the oldest parish church on the island. The interior has beautifully-painted Mudejar wooden ceilings, and visitors can climb the bell tower, which is the tallest in the Canary Islands. It's prohibited to ring the bells, although very tempting! Outside the church is an ossuary with the remains of victims of many epidemics. Photography inside the church is not permitted. Tickets must be purchased from the ticket office next to the bell tower.
Convento de Santa Catalina de Siena
Dominican order convent at the Plaza del Adelantado, hosting the preserved body of Maria de Leon Bello y Delgado, popularly called La Siervita. The convent was founded in 1606 by alderman Juan de Cabrejas and his wife, who purchased the residence of Alonso Fernandez de Lugo in the early 17th century and converted it into the convent. In 1611 the convent was inaugurated and 4 nuns from Seville moved in, multiplying to many hundreds of nuns over the next centuries. The current church is topped with a belfry with a single nave, and high and low choirs. Noteworthy are the 2 carved wooden access doors flanked by stonework arches. The altarpiece stands out in particular, along with the ironwork that separates the inner sanctum dating from the 17th century. The large altarpiece in the main chapel is from the hand of Antonio de Orbaran and Antonio Alvarez, dating from 1665. The convent was declared a cultural monument of the Canarias in 1986, and worth a visit.