March, 2026

KmM = Kilometer Marker

My experience: Tenerife is a windy island with very variable weather, and the traffic can be horrific. As of early March, anyway.

Where to Stay

I stayed in Los Cristianos, which is a mind-bogglingly touristy area. There are apartment complexes here, there, and everywhere. Strangely, when I looked for somewhere to stay on Booking.com, Airbnb, and VRBO, only a few places showed up, so I wondered how most of these places get rented.

One of the good things about Los Cristianos, is that one of the classic rides up Teide starts right from the town. Another thing is that there are so many restaurants that you will be overwhelmed by choice. If you are a Brit, there are lots of restaurants, bars, and stores run by Brits. In particular, if you are missing British chocolates and so on, there is a British supermarket, The Food Co, at the SE part of Los Cristianos.

Bikes

I didn’t bring my bike. Instead, I rented a bike at Free-Motion, which is about a 20 minute walk from where I was staying. If you choose to rent a bike, book it well in advance as it’s usually impossible to just walk in and rent a bike, at least in high season.

I made my decision to come to Tenerife only about 3 weeks before I flew, and at that time the only bike available for the 8 days I wanted was a Cannondale Topstone Carbon 3 Grx Gravel bike. All the pure road bikes had already been booked. However, with its easier gears (43-30, 11-36) and its low rolling resistance Continental Terra Speed tires, I loved the bike.

The Rides

Many of the good rides on Tenerife involve cycling up hills. Which is where you are here, of course. Cycle Fiesta has an interactive map showing where many of the climbs are.

I was here specifically to climb Teide, and to do the Masca ride to the lighthouse and back. In retrospect however, I can say that I preferred Gran Canaria for more varied and interesting riding.

Teide

Teide is the big ride (or rides) on Tenerife. This is the reason why many, if not most, cyclists come here.

There are several ways to climb Teide, and I chose to start in Los Cristianos, where I was staying. The climb was about 50.8 km with 8,288 feet of climbing. There is some downhill on the ascent, and the return trip was about 101.5 km with 9,074 feet of climbing.

The weather forecasts looked rather dire and it was quite cloudy when I rode. I had made up my mind that I would make it up the climb, even if I was in clouds the whole way. It couldn’t be worse than some of the days I’ve had in Colorado or in the Alps.

I was also told by the people at Free Motion that while you can stay warm on the climb, it can be very cold on the way down and that it’s worth taking warm clothes, include wind jacket and long-finger gloves.

Well, after about 30 kilometers of riding under or in clouds, suddenly I was above the clouds and had perfect blue skies for the last 22 kms. Shorts and jersey weather. Perfect.

Coming back down was a different story though. I put on arm warmers and a vest, then once I reached the cloud layer again, I put on a wind jacket and my long-fingered gloves. Don’t say you weren’t warned – although of course it depends on the season and the weather.

So, the details. From Los Cristianos, ride up the rather busy TF-655 towards the TF-1 motorway. Be careful at the big roundabout at the TF-1 because it feels quite dangerous. Continue under the TF-1 and up the TF-28. Keep following signs for El Teide (you will see them at every intersection).

You’ll turn left on the TF-51, go through Arona towards Vilaflor, then turn left on the TF-21 and go through Vilaflor. After Vilaflor the road turns much more peaceful and quiet, and you climb up through trees until eventually you reach some gorgeous views. As you look around, you might even think you see Teide, but forget it. Once you actually see Teide it is so obvious, so dramatic, and nothing really prepares you for it.

After a wonderful long downhill, you reach the intersection with the TF-38 coming in from the left. Follow the TF-21 to the right for another 12 km, past the teleferique station. Some of this is even slightly downhill. This whole section can be very busy with tourists, and there are several car parks where you have to pay attention. The high point is unmarked, and I continued for a bit to the obvious stopping point at the start of the main hiking trail up Teide.

Here’s the ride on Ride with GPS.