How to Visit Mount Teide

The easiest way is the cable car, which climbs from the base station at 2,356 metres to La Rambleta at 3,555 metres in about eight minutes. It's worth buying your ticket online and in advance, as it is paid and places sell out. It runs by day and closes when there is strong wind, ice or snow, so always check the forecast before you go.

You can also walk up, but it's a long, demanding high-mountain route (for example, from Montaña Blanca), which many people split in two by staying overnight at the Altavista refuge, at about 3,260 metres. It's no stroll: you need to be prepared and allow plenty of time.

Here's the key point that surprises many people: the cable car drops you at La Rambleta (3,555 m), but to set foot on the crater and the summit, at 3,715 metres, you need a special permit. It's free but limited, and you must request it in advance online, on the Spanish National Parks reservation website. In high season it sells out weeks ahead.

If you miss out on the permit, it's no problem: from La Rambleta you can walk the trails to the La Fortaleza and Pico Viejo viewpoints without a permit, with spectacular views over the caldera and the sea. And there's a legal trick: anyone who stays overnight at the Altavista refuge and climbs to the summit very early, before the morning checkpoint starts, doesn't need the permit.

The best time is early morning: there are fewer people, the sky tends to be clearer and the wind is gentler than in the afternoon. By midday the cable-car queues build up and clouds sometimes roll in.

This is high mountain, so the altitude and cold are noticeable. At 3,500 metres the temperature drops a lot compared to the coast — there can be snow in winter — and the sun burns twice as hard. Some people feel altitude sickness (dizziness, headache) because the cable car climbs so fast. Bring warm clothing, closed shoes, water and sun protection.

Teide has one of the clearest skies in the world, protected by law for astronomical observation; the Teide Observatory sits on its slopes. That makes it one of the best places in Europe for stargazing, and many companies offer guided visits at sunset and after dark.

Sunset from up here is a spectacle: with the sun low, the volcano casts its own triangular shadow over the sea of clouds. If you stay for sunset, be ready for the cold and for the descent, as the last cable car leaves shortly after.

You get there by road, climbing from the south (via Vilaflor) or the north (via La Orotava), in a little under an hour from the main areas. By public transport there are two TITSA bus lines, one from the south (Costa Adeje) and one from the north (Puerto de la Cruz), but with a single daily departure each, so a car gives you much more freedom.

Once in the park, don't miss the Roques de García, rock formations next to the Parador with an easy loop trail; the most famous, the Roque Cinchado, appeared on the old thousand-peseta banknotes. The whole route crosses Las Cañadas, the huge caldera surrounding the volcano.