Just over a decade ago I set up a Tripadvisor account for one specific reason. I was tired of the amount of misinformation about Tenerife being posted on the travel site, especially in relation to the differences between the weather in the south of the island and the north. A 10C variation in temperatures between the two sides of the island was regularly being quoted...
Anyone who has been to a Tenerife fiesta will no doubt have experienced traditional folk music first hand, it's an essential ingredient.
A short time after moving to Tenerife in 2003, a case of mistaken identity indirectly led to us being commissioned to write for a local magazine. Some people mistook me for the Irish Ambassador to Tenerife at a wine awards ceremony
Although a mainstay of islanders' diets for centuries, Canarian cochino negro herds diminished over the years until a renaissance in Canarian gastronomy during the last decade brought old traditions and farming methods back into vogue.
The latest Tenerife location to suffer the Tripadvisor 'not quite accurate' treatment is La Orotava in the north of the island. A thread titled 'Polluted streets & impossible parking' drew me in because, well, it's not exactly the way I'd describe La Orotava.
We regularly say to enjoy a fully rounded flavour of Tenerife's towns/resorts it's important to experience them after darkness falls. We also urge people to research thoroughly before deciding where to stay on Tenerife...
These are our favourite places in Puerto de la Cruz for tapas which, incidentally, is a great Tenerife location for attractive restaurants which have interesting tapas menus.
We recently spent a few days at a family get together in Albufeira in the Algarve. There was a lot of alcohol consumed and many hours of laughing notched up. The extreme temperatures were such that to walk anywhere ran the risk of heat exhaustion so we mostly spent our time around the pool at the villa where most of my family were staying. But we did venture out into...
San Miguel was a revelation; an awakening that made us realise for the first time the world outside of the main resorts was very different.
“Soy canario, no soy español.” “I’m Canarian, I’m not Spanish.” It’s something we’ve been proudly told countless times over the years in the Canary Islands. When the person saying it has referred to me as being English I usually respond with a counter “soy escocés, no soy inglés” (“I’m Scottish, I’m not English”) which usually...