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Selfie at Pico del Teide summit.  La Gomera behind center, La Palma extreme right

February 14, 2025

Mount Teide, the highest point in Spain as well as Highest Point above Sea Level in the Islands of Atlantic and most visited Spanish National Park.  When planning Canary Islands part of great Spain '25 trek,  it immediately came as a must do.  But planning is not trivial.  Main reason - human infestation, as frequently the case.  Telesforo Bravo (summit) Trail is extremely busy any time of year, and National Park management is strictly limiting the quota.  Reservations are (still) free, but must be done well in advance - 3 months might be too late!   Second obstacle is altitude - considering that, in case of day visits, you slept near sea level and did not acclimatize.   Easiest way is to simply ride Cable Car or  "Teleferico" to upper Terminal called La Rambleta near 3500m elevation, where summit trail starts.  Not wanting to have entirely tourist experience and actually hike a bit I decided on intermediary approach:   Ride the Teleferico up, but descend via "Montana Blanca" hiking trail ending ~3km from Teleferico lower Terminal.   One of my outdoor rules I follow strictly is to always hike towards the car.  Montana Blanca access road has small parking lot on TF-21, but it is always full and it's virtually impossible to find a spot.   So I had to leave the rental at lower Terminal, which necessitated rather dull asphalt walk at end of the day.   Even parking at Teleferico has issues;  ramp closes after hours and you will get locked out if late.  Luckily there was fairly large parking at TF-21 pullout below access ramp.  You also must be careful:  TF-21 is quite narrow without shoulder and walking is dangerous, specially in the dark (as I did at end of the day).

Teleferico Ride takes only 8 minutes.  Except bathroom, there are no facilities at upper Terminal.  There are absolutely no water sources so you need to bring everything from below.  I first did brief side walk to "Mirador de Pico Viejo" (trail continues), then came back to La Rambleta and after passing the checkpoint hiked up the Telesforo Bravo to the summit, passing through quite a bit of sulphur vapour near the top.   After descent I hiked over to La Fortaleza viewpoint where most tourists turn back, then descended Montana Blanca losing ~1400m vertical in almost total solitude.  Halfway down I checked historic Altavista Refugio ~3270m, closed since 2020 because of poor conditions.  Apparently it was slated for repairs and re-opening later in 2025, but I can not verify as of date of this writing.    Trail below Altavista is much steeper and I wished I had at least one hiking pole.  Final bit was  Montana Blanca ~4.6km gravel access road walk back to TF-21, passing by rather unique Huevos Del Teide (Teide Rocks) along the way.   Do NOT shortcut switchbacks as its forbidden;  they patrol it and you will be given a fine if caught.

Here are some useful links to plan Teide Hike:

• Teide Cable Car or Teleferico Reservations.   If you buy 1-way only (as I did) they will check you have descent hiking permission.
• Pico Del Teide Access Permit.  Strictly enforced at La Rambleta Trailhead.  You must also specify the time slot when making the reservation
• Montana Blanca (Sendero PNT 07) Permission:  Other Teide hiking trails can be reserved here as well

Finally, was it worth it?   You bet!  On a bluebird as I was lucky to have,  aerial 360 of Canary Archipelago is stupid beautiful and one of most breathtaking vistas I've seen on my travels.   Hiking itself was not particularly difficult but more challenging from what I expected because of hard surface.  It was still unique and when descending you have views you might not be used to the entire time.  Volcanic Rock formations are also quite unique.  To properly experience the area in hiking terms 3 or 4 days would be required to explore at least part of vast network of Teide trails.  If you have just one day, the variation presented here is likely best bang for your buck. 

Gallery

Sulphur vapour Occasional sulphur vapour coming out reminds you are on active Volcano