San Andrés (Tenerife)

San Andrés is coastal town on Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands. It is best known for its castle and 1-km-long Las Teresitas beach.

Understand
San Andrés is a coastal town with a rich history, albeit troubled by real estate corruption in the late 20th century.

History
The area of current San Andrés has been inhabited by the Guanches, the aborigines of the Canary Islands, for centuries before the islands were conquered by Spain in 1497. The aboriginal king of Anaga was said to reside in the San Andrés valley. In a cave on the outskirts of San Andrés, the famous Mummy of San Andrés was discovered, a mummified body belonging to the Guanche civilization.

After the conquest, the lands were given to Don Lope de Salazar in 1498. He founded modern San Andrés, which became one of the first Spanish settlements on Tenerife. Between 1505 and 1510, Don Lope initiated infrastructure construction, including a chapel on which the current church is based, and the castle which was built to defend the settlements against harassment by pirates. A fortress aided in the defence, but was destroyed by storms in 1740 and 1896.

In the 20th century, project developers dreamed to convert the fishing village of San Andrés into a posh tourist resort. Fortunes were spent on infrastructure, including the construction of Las Teresitas Beach, an effort to replace the thin strip of black volcanic sand and rocks with a white sand beach. 4 million bags of Saharan sand were imported in 1973 and dumped on the shoreline to create an artificial beach, and large patches of land were prepared for redevelopment. Streets were laid out, and the large scale construction of villas and hotels started. However it didn't take long until evidence of corruption was found, and by 1984 the Spanish Court ordered a complete stop of construction while a criminal investigation was ongoing. Construction has been suspended ever since.

As a result, San Andrés bears the scars of a failed development effort. There are numerous streets with perfectly landscaped green, but without houses or apartments. What was already built remained in a state of ruin, including a large shopping center with underground parking garage.

The ruins aside, San Andrés retained a lot of its authenticity, and the modern town lives on fishery and tourism.

Climate
Nearly all rain falls during the winter months in San Andrés, with May to August being extremely dry. The best time of the year to visit are the early summer months May and June, when the rolling hills are still green and temperatures don't get too hot.

By plane
The  is only 15 km away, although it may take considerable time to cover the distance by car since you'll need to pass through the urban areas of San Cristóbal de La Laguna and the capital city Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The airport serves mostly continental connections with the Spanish mainland. Iberia and Air Europa have daily services from Madrid, Air Europa and Vueling also offer connections from Barcelona, Malaga, Valencia, and Seville. In addition, a fleet of turboprop aircraft is operated by Binter Canarias to connect the different islands by air.

There are several international flights as well, from London Heathrow, Helsinki, Rome, Agadir, Casablanca, and Funchal.

By bus
San Andrés is well connected by bus, all of which are operated by TITSA. Lines, , , and pass through San Andrés. For the historic centre, get off at (lines  and ).

By car
San Andrés can be easily reached from Santa Cruz in 15 min over the TF-11 highway which leads straight into the town. Finding a parking spot may be challenging on sunny days when Las Teresitas Beach is popular. There is a at the south-western side of the beach. Dodgy individuals roaming around the parking lot may claim a charge of €2 as parking fee, but they are harmless and can be ignored.

Get around
San Andrés can be best explored by foot, because of its many steep and narrow streets, which make cycling a challenging endeavour.

Do

 * Hike into the Anaga National Park.
 * Swimming and snorkelling in the ocean.

Eat
The best place for fast food is the which is lined with kebab, burger, and pizza vendors.

Drink
Remember to take lots of water with you when venturing into the Anaga National Park, since there will be no opportunities to stock up on food or drinks anywhere in the wilderness.

Go next

 * Santa Cruz de Tenerife — one of the capital cities of the Canary Islands
 * Taganana — village in the Anaga National Park
 * San Cristóbal de La Laguna — historic capital of Tenerife, with a historic centre that is a
 * Tegueste — a colonial era town