In Tenerife, Christmas doesn’t smell of snow at the front door. It smells of freshly fried sweet potato pastries, nativity scene moss and, if you go high enough, Canary pine and firewood.
Christmas in Tenerife blends age-old customs with a pleasant climate and landscapes that change completely within a few kilometres. You can stroll through a seaside market in the morning and dine at an altitude of 1,500 metres that same evening.
We’ll tell you about the Canarian traditions worth experiencing in December, and how to enjoy them at your own pace.
Christmas markets in Tenerife
Markets are the easiest way to start feeling Christmas on the island. They offer local crafts, traditional sweets and street music.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
The Alameda del Duque de Santa Elena Christmas Market usually opens from the week before Christmas Eve until Three Kings’ Day, from morning to night. It’s a good place to find handmade gifts.
If you prefer something livelier, the Rastro next to the Nuestra Señora de África Market opens on special days during the holidays, including the eve of Three Kings’ Day.
And for those who come to eat, the Gastronavidad Market Fest transforms Plaza de España into a gastronomic market with live music.
San Cristóbal de La Laguna
Few cities look as beautiful in December as La Laguna. For much of the month, the historic centre, a World Heritage Site, fills with craft stalls and traditional sweets. There are over a hundred spread throughout its cobbled streets.
In the Plaza de la Navidad you’ll find live music, food trucks, mulled wine and chocolate. It’s the perfect plan for a cool afternoon.
Tip: exact dates change each year. Check the municipal programmes at the end of November.
Nativity scenes: Tenerife’s great Christmas tradition
If there’s one thing that defines Christmas in Tenerife, it’s its nativity scenes. There are nativity scenes in churches, in squares, in shop windows and even living nativity scenes.
The Nativity Scene Route of La Orotava
It is the most important nativity scene route in Tenerife and a benchmark throughout the Canary Islands. About thirty nativity scenes run through the historic centre of the Villa, including the giant nativity scene in the Town Hall square. It is organised by the Taoro Nativity Scene Association and the Town Council, and every Christmas it attracts tens of thousands of visitors.
You can do it on your own or with a guided tour. You’ll find very different styles: Hebrew, Canarian, Italian-influenced… Each nativity scene has months of artisan work behind it.
The living nativity scene of Tigaiga (Los Realejos)
Every 25th December, the residents of the Tigaiga neighbourhood transform their streets into Bethlehem. They swap electric lights for torches, cover the asphalt with sawdust and dress in period costumes. The tradition began in 1972 and today it is one of the island’s most beloved representations.
Other nativity scenes worth a stop
- Candelaria: the municipal nativity scene, in the square of the Cultural Centre, is one of the most visited in Tenerife and can be seen at any time.
- Santa Cruz: the Nativity Scene Contest has been filling the city with nativity scenes throughout Christmas for over fifty editions.
Canarian traditions that are still alive
Ranchos de Pascua and Lo Divino
These are groups that walk the streets with guitars, timples, tambourines and scrapers made from anise bottles, singing carols and announcing Christmas. In the past, neighbours would open their doors and offer food and drink for a toast. Listening to them live is like looking into traditional Canarian Christmas.
The Masses of Light
In the days leading up to Christmas Eve, many towns in the Canary Islands celebrate early morning masses accompanied by rondallas (folk music groups) and popular songs. It is a tradition where the religious and the popular have gone hand in hand for centuries.
The Christmas Concert
Every 25th December evening, the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra offers the traditional Christmas Concert of Puertos de Tenerife, by the sea, in the Dársena de los Llanos.
The Canarian Christmas table
In the Canary Islands, Christmas is also celebrated at the table.
- Sweet potato pastries (Truchas de batata): the quintessential Canarian Christmas sweet. These are small pastries filled with sweet potato or angel hair, with almond, aniseed, cinnamon, lemon and a touch of anise.
- Laguneros: puff pastry doughnuts filled with angel hair, a symbol of La Laguna.
- Puff pastry cakes: typical of the north of the island, especially with guava.
- Chicken casserole (Cazuela de gallina): this used to be the star dish of the family dinner after midnight mass.
At La Vendimia restaurant at Hotel Spa Villalba, we cook with produce from our garden and from Vilaflor, combining the best of Canarian and Mediterranean cuisine. Every dish brings a piece of this land to your table, even at Christmas.
December at altitude: Tenerife’s other Christmas
There’s a Christmas in Tenerife that few people know about: the one in the mountains.
At 1,500 metres above sea level, in the Teide forest crown, December brings cold, clean air and cosy nights. With luck, the peaks wake up white. The clear skies are perfect for stargazing, and the trails wind silently through the Canarian pine forest. The GR-131, the longest trail in the Canary Islands, starts practically from the doorstep.
This is the Christmas you’re looking for if you want to slow down rather than speed up.
The December long weekend, when Villalba dresses up for Christmas
At Hotel Spa Villalba, Christmas begins on the December long weekend. On those days, we decorate the hotel and put up the tree, and the hotel transforms: warm lights, wood, stone and that festive scent that announces what’s to come.
If you escape during those days, you’ll experience the start of Christmas from within. You’ll stay in a mountain hotel transformed into a Christmas refuge in the heart of nature. It’s the best time to book your first getaway of the season.
Your Christmas at Hotel Spa Villalba
Imagine your day like this: in the morning, the Nativity Scene Route or a market in La Laguna. In the afternoon, back to the pine forest, a spa circuit with sauna, Turkish bath, jacuzzi and a semi-covered pool with views of the pines. And in the evening, a Canarian dinner at La Vendimia and after-dinner drinks by the fireplace.
A peaceful, authentic Christmas designed for adults, away from the crowds.
Book your Christmas getaway on the official website and feel the heartbeat of Teide at your own pace.
Frequently asked questions about Christmas in Tenerife
When do the Christmas markets open in Tenerife?
The main markets, in Santa Cruz and La Laguna, usually operate throughout December and until Three Kings’ Day, 6th January. The exact dates are published each year in the Christmas programme of each town council, usually at the end of November.
Where is the most important nativity scene route in Tenerife?
In La Orotava. Its Nativity Scene Route brings together about thirty nativity scenes throughout the historic centre, including the giant nativity scene in the Town Hall square. It can be explored independently or with a guided tour and is a benchmark for Christmas in the Canary Islands.
What is the typical Christmas sweet of the Canary Islands?
The sweet potato pastry (trucha de batata). It is a sweet pastry, fried or baked, filled with sweet potato or angel hair with almond, cinnamon, lemon and anise. In Tenerife, laguneros and puff pastry cakes with guava are also very popular at Christmas.
Does it snow on Teide in December?
It can snow. In winter, it is common for the peaks of Teide to wake up covered in snow after a cold front, although it is not guaranteed. If you want to see it up close, staying in high areas like Vilaflor puts you just a few kilometres from the National Park.
