Language
Quite often we are asked "will I need to be able to speak Spanish?". Well the
simple answer is no. All the bar, restaurant and shop owners can speak English
and German, however, just notice how the few people who do make an attempt to
speak Spanish, no matter how badly, get treated better than the 99% of those who
don't. Even the use of common everyday courtesies such as "hello", "how are
you", "please" and "thank you" will certainly pay dividends. For those who are
serious about learning Spanish either before they travel, or a part of the
holiday itself, the
Don Quijote
language school is widely recognised as being one of the best providers of
Spanish language tuition.
Lookie Lookie Men
Many of the popular resorts do have quite a large number of illegal street
traders selling "genuine" designer watches and T shirts. Do not start to barter
with them unless you have a genuine desire to buy. A firm but polite "no" will
not offend.
Markets
Regular street markets are held every Thursday and Saturday morning throughout
the year in front of the Hotel Esmeralda in the Torviscas district of Costa
Adeje, and also every Sunday morning at nearby Los Cristianos. Every person
entering these markets will have to run the gauntlet of innumerable timeshare
touts attempting to lure you to their development with offers of free car hire,
free holidays or even cash rewards. Just smile, keep walking, and say no, and
they'll soon move on to the next likely candidate. Once inside the market it
usually takes around 1.1/2 to 2 hours to see everything, although to secure the
best bargains you will have to haggle with the traders. A couple of words of
advice, do not start to negotiate if you have no intention of buying, but do not
be afraid to say no and walk away if the prices do not fall to a level that you
are prepared to pay for an item. Common sense we know, but still easy to forget.
Money
The official currency of Spain is the now the Euro. For more information please
see the "Euro"
section on the previous page.
Pickpockets
Tenerife, as in every other holiday resort, does have its fair share of
pickpockets. Use common sense in any crowded areas, and hold on to any personal
belongings. If you do have something stolen, you must report it to the local
Police with 24 hours, if only for insurance purposes.
Public Toilets
You will find public toilets in many of the larger shopping centres, other than
that, every restaurant and bar will have them for customers use. So it may cost
you the price of a Coca Cola to "spend a penny".
Restaurants
The Spanish and most of the other Europeans, do tend to eat very late in the
evening compared to the British. As a result, few restaurants will tend to get
very busy much before 8pm.
Shopping
Tenerife is a duty free island and many of the cameras, and other electronic
goods will be substantially cheaper than the prices at home. If you do buy,
ensure that a UK guarantee is included, and is stamped by the shop keeper, and
that where applicable instructions are in English. Don't be afraid to haggle,
the shop keeper will often quote in Euros then "convert" the price for you into
sterling. Take your time, and ensure that you know the price of everything you
are buying. Otherwise you may find out that the batteries have just cost you
almost as much as the product itself. Many electronics shops will also sell 32-1
games cartridges. These games are copies and often contain duplicates, and
always insist on seeing them work before you buy.
Sunbathing
Obvious advice, but the sun in Tenerife is very hot. Please be careful and
ensure that you cover yourself in a high protection sun cream. Remember you will
get very badly burnt even on a cloudy day.
Taxi
Taxis are numerous and a cheap way to get around your resort. Your hotel
reception will always call a taxi for you (sometimes for a small charge) or
alternatively flag one down in the street. Cabs are not always metered, however,
a list of common fares is often advertised at the Taxi ranks, and the driver
should also always carry a copy. For trips any further a field always agree the
price with the driver before getting in.
Telephones
Public telephones are numerous throughout all of Tenerife with instructions in
several languages. International calls home are cheaper between 10pm and 8am,
and all day on Sunday. To make a call to the UK dial 00 wait, 44 then dial your
full STD number without the first 0. The minimum cost of a call is usually
around 2€. International calls can be made from your hotel, but may prove to be
very expensive.
Timeshare
Tenerife has got to be the Timeshare, or holiday co-ownership as they prefer to
call it, capital of the world! Any couple walking together under the age of 60
will be a prime target for the touts. The first question will always be "do you
speak English?". After that you may be asked to help them with a holiday
questionnaire on behalf of the Spanish tourist board, or the more common scratch
card. These scratch cards are all winners. Prizes may be 3 days car hire, water
park tickets, duty free packs or a star prize of 2,000€. Unless you want to
sacrifice 1/2 day of your holiday to a relentless hard sell, do not go with them
to collect your prize! Remember, only the foolish or greedy will really believe
that they are getting something for nothing.
Tipping
It is customary to give tips in Tenerife. Normally a tip of around 10% of the
total bill is expected.
Water
The tap water in Tenerife has a high mineral content and perhaps it will be best
to buy bottled water from the supermarkets. The cost of a 5 litre bottle is
around 1€ there are two types available, "agua con gas" is sparkling mineral
water and the more common "agua sin gas" still water. Avoid ice cubes unless you
are sure it is made from bottled water, this includes ice in drinks.
Waterparks
The largest waterpark on the island is called Aqualand Costa Adeje and is
situated in the Costa Adeje district of Playa de la Americas. The park is open
daily from 10:00 to 18:00 and features all the expected slides including
"kamakaze", "foam", and slower lazy river type slides. A free bus service runs
to the park from the larger resorts, and although these buses do operate for the
return journey, remember that everyone else in the park will be leaving at the
same time as you, and not all nationalities observe the queuing ethos as the
British do. Local taxis are fully aware of the business opportunity that exists
when the water park closes, so this may be another option worth considering. For
the independent traveller, the water park is situated on exit 29 on the main TF1
motorway. During high season the queues for the slides can become long, and
height restrictions do apply on some of the faster slides. During busy days
perhaps the best time to get on the more popular slides is during the daily
dolphin shows. The park has extensive catering facilities and you are not
encouraged to bring your own food into the attraction. A word of caution,
whatever skin type you are the probability is that you will get burnt by the
sun. Cover up with high protection sun cream on a regular basis. The water used
in the park is salt water and this will strip all sun cream from your body with
relative ease on ever slide you go on. The park has extensive sun terraces and
sun beds, but the cost of these is NOT included in your entrance fee. Contact
details are:
Aspro Ocio Canarias SL
Avda de Austria,15
San Eugenio Alto
Costa Adeje
Tenerife
Telephone: +34 922 715 266
Fax: +34 922 714 803
Web site:
www.aqualand.es
Working in Tenerife
Without a doubt the most popular question we are asked is regarding finding
seasonal work in Tenerife. So, we have created this section which should
hopefully answer most of your questions. Firstly, working in Tenerife is not a
paid holiday. The bar and restaurant owners work long hours and will not carry
passengers. Secondly, work is becoming harder to find for everybody. However, if
you are genuinely prepared to work hard, come out to the island early in the
season on a cheap flight, pick up the free English newspapers and follow every
lead. If you strike lucky then good luck to you, if not, well you've had a cheap
holiday.
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Islas Travel Guides.
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This website was launched on 1 May 2002
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