Getting to Tenerife

Getting to Tenerife can be achieved by way of two major forms of transport, by sea and by flying.

Sea Travel to Tenerife

For travelers who prefer not to fly, wish to bring their own vehicle or who just wish to travel leisurely between the Canary Islands then there is no better way of doing this than using the Tenerife ferry services.

There are a number of different operators in the region and their details can be found below as well as links to on-line booking facilities.

Trasmediterranea is the largest ship owner for both cargo and passenger services linking the Spanish Peninsula with the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla. Trasmediterranea was founded in 1917 in Barcelona with a fleet of 45 ships.

Since 1990, the fleets have been replaced with modern multi-purpose, ro/pax and ro/ro ferries, whilst vehicle-carrying fast catamarans and monohull ferries have been used since 1995

Trasmediterranea has one of the most modern and best equipped fleets in Spain, using the latest technological advances in security and quality for it’s on board services.

You can book your Transmediterranea ferries here.

Naviera Armas offers regular car passenger and freight services between the Canary Islands

Naviera Armas has been one of the leading shipping companies in the Canary Archipelago since 1941.

They have a fleet of 8 modern ferries and offer a wide selection of more than 28 routes between the islands of Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, La Gomera, El Hierro and La Palma, as well as the Sânto Antâo – Sâo Vicente – Sânto Antâo route in Cabo Verde.

You can book your Naviera Armas ferries here.

The well known international Fred Olsen shipping line has operated safe and reliable ferry services between the various Canary Islands for many years. The busier and more important services are very frequent, sometime several times daily.

Services connect Tenerife with the other islands, and most include the usual ferry facilities, including car ferrying. The beautiful island of Gomera can be visited easily in a single day. The crossing is just over one hour and offers a superbly relaxing 'short

You can book your Fred Olson ferries here.

Flights to Tenerife 

Tenerife is the only Island in the Canaries that, benefits from having two airports, one in the North and one in the South.

Los Rodeos (Tenerife North) was the only airport on Tenerife until the mid seventies when the Tenerife South (the Reina Sofia) airport was built.

The Reina Sofia (Tenerife South) airport is thoroughly modern having undergone a major face-lift in the recent years and handles a majority of Tenerife’s international flight traffic.

Los Rodeos Airport

Tenerife North Airport is a lot less well known than its southerly counterpart and is predominately used for internal flights and Spanish visitors.

Although in the main an internal airport, Los Rodeos still handles in excess of 3 million visitors a year and is considered to be the main inter Island Hub.

In Spain the airport is more formerly known as Aeropuerto de Tenerife Norte.

Traveling to and from Los Rodeos is as easy as getting on a local bus or catching a taxi.

For those driving to Los Rodeos there is a plethora of parking for visitors as well as in excess of 300 parking spaces for the many car rental companies that are based at the airport.

For the weary traveler there are many bars and cafeterias where you can get a meal or a nice relaxing drink, and for the shopaholics amongst you there are a number airport shops.

The official Los Rodeos website can be found here. This link is sometimes slow but the site has a wealth of information for the traveler. 

Sofia Riena Airport 

Tenerife South Airport (Sofia Riena) is Tenerife’s primary airport handling in excess of nine million passengers a year.

Bizarrely, unlike the majority of Spanish Airports, Tenerife South (Sofia Riena) sees an increase in passenger numbers in the winter months.

This is due to many of Northern Europe’s elder members making a bee line to the warm subtropical climate of the Canaries for therapeutic reasons, or to enjoy the much friendlier Canarian climate in the autumn and winter.

Tenerife South’s (Sofia Riena) airport has eight disembarkation lounges but during busier periods you may be collected from your flight by an airport shuttle bus which then takes you to the arrivals terminal. The arrivals terminal houses several luggage carousels designed to handle the baggage requirements of more than 2500 holiday makers during its busiest periods.

Tenerife south as you would expect from such a busy airport, is well serviced by local transport. Traveling to and from (Sofia Riena) is as easy as getting on a local bus or catching a taxi.

If you are an independent traveler a guide to local taxi fares is below:

For the weary traveler as in Tenerife North airport there are many bars and cafeterias where you can get a meal or a nice relaxing drink, while for the shopaholics amongst you there are a number airport shops.

The official Sofia Riena website can be found here. This link is sometimes slow but the site has a wealth of information for the traveler.

To book a flight or holiday to Tenerife please go to our  Canary Islands Holidays and Canary Islands Flights page.

Or

If you have already made your travel arrangements but will be requiring car hire upon your arrival at the Airport, you can book ahead by clicking one of the links below, to ensure there will be a vehicle of your choice available.