Relaxed places to visit without turning sightseeing into an endurance test

Not every Tenerife day out needs to involve mountain hikes, long coach tours or an alarm clock at seven in the morning.

For many older visitors, the best excursions are considerably simpler: somewhere interesting to visit, somewhere pleasant for lunch and enough flexibility to head back to the hotel when you’ve had enough.

If you’re staying in Los Cristianos, Playa de las Américas, Costa Adeje or elsewhere in South Tenerife, there are plenty of easy days out that fit that description.

1. Spend a morning exploring Los Cristianos

Los Cristianos works particularly well as a gentle day out because you do not really need an itinerary.

• 🌊 Walk along the seafront
• 🚢 Watch the ferries and boats around the harbour
• ☕ Stop for coffee overlooking the sea
• 🏖 Continue towards Las Vistas if you feel like walking further

There are restaurants and cafés throughout the central area, so it is easy to turn a short visit into lunch and an afternoon beside the sea.

Our guide to why Los Cristianos works so well for older visitors explores the area in more detail.

2. Have lunch and a wander in Las Galletas

Las Galletas offers something slightly different from Tenerife’s major resorts.

It retains the atmosphere of a small coastal town with a fishing tradition, a seafront promenade, harbour and plenty of places to stop for something to eat.

• 🐟 Fresh fish and seafood restaurants
• 🌊 Pleasant seafront surroundings
• 🚤 Boats around the harbour
• ☕ Easy to combine a stroll with a long lunch

You do not need to spend an entire day there. For many visitors, a couple of hours followed by lunch is exactly the right amount.

3. Visit El Médano for a change of atmosphere

El Médano feels noticeably different from Los Cristianos or Costa Adeje.

The town has a relaxed coastal atmosphere, a central square, beaches, cafés and restaurants, while the surrounding coastline is famous for windsurfing and kitesurfing.

• 🌊 Watch the watersports without participating in them
• ☕ Find a café around the town centre
• 🏖 Wander beside Playa Chica and the promenade
• 🍽 Stay for a leisurely lunch

The official Tenerife tourism information identifies Playa Chica as having disabled access, parking and bus connections, although individual visitors should still check whether the precise route and facilities suit their own mobility requirements.

4. Take a whale and dolphin watching trip

One of South Tenerife’s most memorable experiences requires surprisingly little physical activity: heading out to sea in search of whales and dolphins.

Boat trips operate from Los Cristianos, Puerto Colón and Los Gigantes, with different durations and styles available.

• 🐋 Whale and dolphin watching
• 🌊 Excellent views of Tenerife from the water
• ⛵ Trips ranging from relatively short outings to longer cruises
• ☀ A completely different perspective on the south coast

The waters off Tenerife’s south-west coast support resident populations of cetaceans, making sightings possible throughout the year.

However, boats differ considerably in size and accessibility. If balance, walking or boarding is difficult, ask the operator about boarding arrangements, steps, seating and toilet facilities before booking.

5. Enjoy the Costa Adeje seafront

You do not have to be staying in Costa Adeje to spend a day there.

The coastal area around Puerto Colón, Torviscas, Fañabé and Playa del Duque provides plenty of opportunities for an unhurried day beside the sea.

• 🌴 Promenade walks
• ☕ Seafront cafés
• 🍽 Large choice of restaurants
• 🏖 Several beaches along the coast

The advantage is flexibility. Walk as much or as little as you want, stop for lunch and take a taxi back when you’ve had enough.

6. Make lunch the excursion

This is an option people sometimes overlook because it doesn’t sound sufficiently ambitious.

Pick somewhere you haven’t visited before — perhaps Las Galletas, Los Abrigos, El Médano or La Caleta — take a taxi there and have a long lunch.

• 🚕 No parking worries
• 🍽 Something genuinely different from your hotel area
• 🌊 Time beside the sea
• 😴 Back at the hotel before you’re exhausted

There is no rule saying a Tenerife excursion needs to occupy eight hours.

For many older visitors, a three-hour outing they thoroughly enjoy is far better than an exhausting full-day tour.

7. Take a scenic drive without making it a marathon

If you have a hire car, Tenerife’s changing landscape makes even a relatively short drive interesting.

The southern coastline includes very different environments within manageable distances: major resorts, fishing communities, beaches and volcanic landscapes.

• 🚗 Leave after breakfast rather than at dawn
• 📍 Choose one or two stops rather than six
• ☕ Build coffee and lunch into the route
• 🌴 Return before tiredness sets in

Our guide to whether you actually need a car in Tenerife may help if you’re still deciding whether to hire one.

8. Spend a day doing almost nothing somewhere different

One of the easiest ways to explore Tenerife is simply to move your normal holiday routine somewhere else for a day.

If you usually have coffee, a promenade walk and lunch in Los Cristianos, take a taxi to Costa Adeje and do exactly the same thing there.

• ☕ Coffee somewhere new
• 🌊 A different stretch of coastline
• 🍽 Lunch in a restaurant you haven’t tried
• 🚕 Taxi back to your accommodation afterwards

You still experience another part of Tenerife without turning the day into an expedition.

Easy doesn’t necessarily mean accessible

There is an important distinction here.

A relaxed day out is not automatically suitable for every wheelchair user or traveller with significant mobility limitations.

• ♿ Surfaces and gradients vary
• 🚤 Boat boarding arrangements differ
• 🚕 Transport may need arranging in advance
• 🚶 The amount of walking can vary enormously

If accessibility is the priority, our separate guide to accessible days out in Tenerife for elderly visitors looks at excursions specifically from that perspective.

Don’t underestimate the value of a shorter day

Many people continue planning holidays exactly as they did 20 years earlier, even when their energy levels have changed.

There is nothing wrong with coming back to the hotel at three in the afternoon.

• ☀ Enjoy the morning while you’re fresh
• 🍽 Have lunch somewhere interesting
• 😴 Rest during the afternoon
• 🌙 Go back out for dinner in the evening

That often creates a much more enjoyable holiday than spending every day trying to complete a sightseeing checklist.

Our article on why slower Tenerife holidays often work better explains this approach in more detail.

The bottom line

Some of the best days out in South Tenerife are also the simplest.

Los Cristianos, Costa Adeje, El Médano and Las Galletas can all provide enjoyable half-days without demanding complicated planning, while a short boat trip or scenic drive can add something different when you want to explore further.

The trick is not trying to fit too much into a single day. Choose one destination, take your time and leave enough energy to enjoy the evening as well.

For more ideas about places to visit around the island, see:
Tenerife’s official tourism website.

If you would like someone to accompany you on an outing, you can read about support for excursions in Tenerife, explore our companionship services, request care or get in touch with Tenerife Carers.