Güímar

Güímar is a town on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands archipelago. It is best known for its 6 Guanche pyramids, and for a ravine called the Barranco de Badajoz. A coastal part of Güímar, dominated by volcanic landscape, has been protected as the Nature Reserve of Malpais of Güímar. Güímar's harbour district, Puertito de Güímar, has many restaurants and taverns that offer patrons a view over the ocean. It is a modern residential suburb compared to most of Güímar and has ample facilities for walking and cycling.

Understand

Güímar is used to refer to the municipality and town with the same name, as well as the famous valley in the eastern part of Tenerife. It borders La Orotava and the Teide National Park to the west, Arafo to the north, and Fasnia to the south. The town has 20,000 inhabitants (2018).

History

Until the 15th century, the territory of modern Güímar was part of the Kingdom of Güímar, an aborigine (Guanche) Menceyato. Its economy was based on livestock (goats, sheep, pigs) and agriculture, as well as fishing and forestry.

After the conquest of the island, an attempt was made to integrate the Guanches into the new society, but few managed to obtain ownership of the lands they possessed previously. As a result, many were forced to continue to live in caves like Guaza in relative isolation until the 17th century.

The first modern settlement was established in the 16th century in the neighbourhood San Juan, referred to as Güímar de Arriba. The first buildings constructed were linked to a sugarcane mill founded by the brothers Juan Felipe and Blasino Piombino. The economy gradually diversified, and vineyards replaced much of the sugarcane sector. Güímar became known for its honey as well.

Climate
Güímar
Climate chart (explanation)
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See the Güímar forecast at Climate-Data.org
Imperial conversion
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Güímar has a hot semi-arid climate, with extremely dry summer months (June-September) and limited rain the rest of the year. Temperatures vary between ca. 12°C in winter to nearly 30°C in summer, when its steppe climate is fortunately tempered by the mild influence of the Atlantic Ocean. A pleasant wind makes the temperature even in summer quite tolerable, but make no mistake: the sun is shining mercilessly, and sun cream is a necessity!

Get in

By bus

Línea 111 stops along the highway, connecting with Santa Cruz, Costa Adeje and the southern airport. From there you have to walk to the road connecting Güímar with Puertito de Güímar, from where to the center (3-4 km away) you can catch another more regional bus connecting both towns.

Línea 035 and Línea 037 connect with Granadilla de Abona and Arico.

Get around

On foot

The city centre of Güímar is walkable, with the ethnographic park about 10 min uphill from the 🌍 Plaza de San Pedro.

By car

Finding a parking spot can be challenging in Puertito de Güímar, so it might be easier to commute with a TITSA bus rather than driving.

See

Güímar has enough to offer to spend at least a day exploring its natural and cultural treasures. The pyramids in the Ethnographic Park are the best known attraction of Güímar, but for those not interested in archaeology there are churches, architecture, and nature also well worth visiting.

  • 🌍 Ethnographic Park (Parque Etnográfico Pirámides de Güímar), Antropólogo Thor Heyerdahl (Calle Veltran de Liz N°43), ☏ +34 922 514 510, . 09:30-18:00 daily except 1 Jan and 25 Dec. Historic site with the 6 remaining lava pyramids, dated to the 19th century. The pyramids were popularized by adventurer and publisher Thor Heyerdahl, who researched the pyramids and became the driving force behind the development of the park. The origin of the pyramids is an ongoing topic of discussion: Heyerdahl believed until his death that their origin dates back to the Guanche period, whereas excavations by the University of San Cristobal de la Laguna suggests they can be no older than the 19th century. The current hypothesis is that the pyramids are a byproduct of farming practices at the time, a result of farmers clearing potentially arable areas from volcanic rocks and piling them up in the most efficient way. The park is set up as a Thor Heyerdahl theme park. The 6 remaining pyramids with adjacent museum, a botanic garden, and garden with poisonous plants can be visited. There is an optional exposition on Polynesia, which isn't worth the extra money. The audio guide (included in the premium ticket of €18) is highly recommended, a complete visit takes about 3 hours. At the end of the visit there is a cafetaria for snacks and drinks, as well as a souvenir shop selling memoralia, post cards, and seeds of endemic Canarian flora such as the Canarian palm tree and Drago tree. The cafeteria is open from 9:30 until 17:00. Adult €18, child €6.50, student €13.50. (updated Oct 2019)
  • 🌍 Badlands of Guimar (Malpaís de Güímar), Camino del Socorro. 24/7. Natural Reserve consisting of several volcanic cones and basaltic lava flows, with a total area of 290 ha. The lava flows are very recent in geological time scales, dated to less than 10,000 years old. There are numerous remains from pyroclastic eruptions of ash and volcanic bombs that formed the various cones. The crater of the Montaña Grande is ca. 300 m in diameter and 50 m deep, and notably asymmetric due to the effects of wind during its formation. There is a parking lot in El Puertito near the southmost point of the park, or parking is available on the street. Free. (updated Jul 2019)
  • 🌍 Montaña Grande. Literally Big Mountain, is the largest cone, and rises 276 m above sea level. (updated Mar 2023)
  • 🌍 Deep Cave (Cueva Honda). A cave formed by a large gas bubble within a lava tube, since exposed by erosion. (updated Jul 2019)
  • 🌍 Church of Santo Domingo (Iglesia de Santo Domingo), Calle Santo Domingo. A Catholic church from the mid-17th century, partially destroyed by a fire in 1775 and subsequently rebuilt. Free. (updated Jul 2019)
  • 🌍 Barranco de Badajoz, Camino la Ladera (follow the concrete paved road with the quarry to the right and vineyards to the left, until it changes into a dirt road; there are 🌍 parking spots at the last vineyard; the closest bus stop is 🌍 Barranco de Badajoz). 24/7. A ravine with archaeological evidence of Guanche activity, including several Guanche mummies. There are many legends of people experiencing supernatural phenomena when visiting the ravine late in the evening or staying the night. Some people claim to have seen angels, UFOs, strange orbs or fireballs, and so on. Whatever may or may not be true of those, the natural beauty of the area makes it worth a visit. There is also industrial heritage to be discovered, with 6 mine shafts, aquaducts, and ruins of buildings spread along the length of the ravine. As of 2019, a land slide blocks the path about 100 m before the end of the ravine, restricting access. The riverbed is dry in summer. None of the mine shafts are accessible, with sings warning that the atmopshere down the shafts is not breathable. Free. (updated Aug 2019)
  • 🌍 Finca Canarias Aloe Vera, Carretera Guimar TF612, ☏ +34 638 38 85 93, . M-Sa 09:30-18:00. A 11,000 m² aloe vera farm with 7,000 ecologically grown plants. There is also a shop where visitors can buy aloe vera-based products. Visitors are given a free 30-minute guided tour around the farm featuring live demonstrations that explain the 5,000-year-old history of the aloe vera plant. The tour also passes through the greenhouse, where tropical trees, aromatic plants and medicinal plants are grown. The production facilities can be visited provided that no juice or gel is being produced at the time of the visit. (updated Oct 2019)
  • 🌍 Güímar Harbor viewpoint (Mirador del Puertito de Güimar), TF-28. 24/7. A viewpoint on the approach to Güimar from the south when driving using the TF-28. It features low walls with blue ceramic tiles, a variety of cacti, and a tall bronze statue of the last Guanche king of Güímar. Free. (updated Feb 2020)
  • 🌍 Church of San Pedro (Iglesia de San Pedro), Plaza de San Pedro. Catholic church and protected cultural heritage monument built in 1606 and expanded several times to house 3 chapels and a baptismal font. The current building dates from 1794 with its prominent Baroque facade and 19th-century steeple. Inside is the figure of San Pedro Apóstol, a work by an unknown sculptor which is believed to date from the 18th century. It also features Güímar's patron saint, Nuestra Señora del Socorro. (updated Feb 2020)

Do

Hiking
  • 🌍 Ventanas de Güímar (Windows of Güímar). An impressive hiking trail above the town of Güímar along an abandoned water canal tunnel running through an almost 90-degree rock cliff with regular openings (the "windows") for breath-taking views across the valley and sea. The hike is not suitable for people with vertigo and should only be undertaken by more or less experienced hikers. It is a full-day tour to reach, wander and leave the trail again. For the tunnels you will need a flashlight, but your phone's one should be enough. The tunnels have sharp rocks inside, so a helmet would be optimal, but also a basecap will lower potential injuries in case you do not pay attention and hit your head. In case you are keen, a part near the middle of the tunnels are without canal and provide space to put a mattress or even a small tent.
    Download trail coordinates: GPX, KML.     (updated Mar 2023)

Buy

Güímar is famous for cultivation of aloe vera and the various aloe vera products that are produced locally. These include soaps, shampoos, and many other types of personal hygiene style products as well as aloe vera based drinks. They are for sale at Finca Canarias.

  • 🌍 Mercadona, Calle de la Laguna 34, ☏ +43 922 44 78 80. M-Sa 09:00-21:30. Supermarket selling food, drinks, and convenience items. (updated Aug 2019)

Eat

There are a few restaurants in the historic centre, but opening hours are somewhat limited, and on a Sunday evening it is nearly impossible to find anything open at all. On the other hand, also Mondays are sometimes closed overwhelmingly. The coastal town 🌍 Puertito de Güímar has many restaurants and taverns that offer patrons a view over the ocean. Many have later opening times, and some are also open during the weekend.

Budget
  • 🌍 Restaurante Alex, Plaza Las Indias 1, ☏ +34 625 95 35 76. Th-Tu 10:00-20:00. Typical sea front restaurant with a simple menu that emphasizes authentic and fresh Canarian cooking without fuzz at a fair price. (updated Aug 2019)
  • 🌍 Bodega Cha Juana, Calle Chacaica, ☏ +34 666 72 60 44. Family-run guachinche with honest food, on the outskirts of Güímar, but with a great view. (updated Aug 2019)

Mid range
  • 🌍 La Charcada, Calle Almte. Gravina 11, ☏ +34 922 52 85 96. Su-Th 08:00-23:00, F Sa 08:00-23:30. Restaurant with outdoor seating right at the beach front, making dining with view over the ocean a nice experience. You'll have plenty of time to admire said ocean because the service is somewhat slow. The food is quite good for the price, with a menu dominated by fish and other sea food. €8-24. (updated Aug 2019)

Splurge

Drink

Sleep
  • 🌍 Hotel Finca Salamanca, Carretera Güímar, El Puertito nº 2, ☏ +34 922 51 45 30, . Fancy hotel on the outskirts of Güimar, marketed as a rural hotel in a Spanish colonial architectural style. €88. (updated Aug 2019)
  • 🌍 Finca Angeles, Camino Barranco de Badajoz. Guest house with a scenic view over the Barranco de Badajoz and Güímar. (updated Feb 2020)

Go next

Güímar is closer to the metropolitan region of Tenerife than to the south:

  • La Orotava – Despite its proximity, can't be reached easily from Güímar because there is no mountain pass between the two. You will either have to make a detour through the Teide National Park or through La Esperanza.


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