Heading west from Los Cristianos to Vilaflor, this particular scenic route in Tenerife brings you through a number of picturesque coastal resorts to the west of the island before ascending through expansive ‘white covered’ valleys and almost Alpine-esque beauty to reach the attractive town of Vilaflor; not to mention the famous ‘Flowers of the Valley’, offering you a taste of the multitude of colours and landscapes on this diverse, wondrous island.
From Los Cristianos, take the TF1 towards until you reach one of Tenerife’s premier hiking spots; ‘Barranco del Infierno’ at Adeje. Here, either partake in one of the numerous hiking trails or discover a town that has maintained its traditional look despite the trend in this part of the island towards modernisation.
Leaving the TF1 with the coast on your left, take the TF47 towards Playa San Juan, Alcala and Los Gigantes until you reach the charming bay of El Puertito – a beautiful, seemingly undiscovered stretch of coast, which yields few tourists despite its unchallenged beauty. Along the TF47 you are able to take in the activity filled large resorts of Playa Paraiso and Calleo Salvaje before heading towards the quaint fishing villages of Playa San Juan and Alcala.
 The other resorts on this route ; Puerto Santiago, Playa de la Arena and Los Gigantes seemingly all merge into one as Mount Teide once again looms large over the horizon. It is in Los Gigantes however, where you will find the most dramatic stretch of the coastline, with huge cliff drops falling into a crater below. In the summer months the crater is filled with incredible Tajinaste Rojo – the ‘Flowers of the Valley’, a dazzlingly bright red plant that grows up to three metres in length and produces honey.
Pick up signposts from Los Gigantes for the TF21 towards Vilaflor, where almost instantaneously the landscape becomes punctuated by a dense Canadian Pine forest with pine ravines as the coast looks up at you from over 2000 metres below, sporadically bursting through the openings. At Las Lajas there is an excellent picnic site set in the middle of the forest and a locally recommended restaurant serving Spanish meat dishes.
The next port of call will land you at Spain’s highest village; Vilaflor. You could be forgiven for thinking you weren’t in Spain judging by the Alpine-esque environment this attractive village finds itself in. Whilst in Vilaflor, walk up the unmarked route named ‘Paisaje Lunar’ (translates as lunar landscape) for an area of land not too unlike the surface of the moon! A few hundred yards further up the track you will be greeted by Pino Gordo (fat pines), the largest of specimen of its kind in the whole of Spain. Vilaflor’s Centro de Artesania Chasnia offers local wines, food and handmade chocolates amongst other produce.
From Vilaflor take the TF51 which takes in amazing views of Los Cristianos and Playa Las Americas as you relax amid the sparsely populated settlements in an area of untouched natural beauty only a learned few have discovered and enjoyed.
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On the TF24, the road climbs steeply through colourful pine and eucalyptus forests as the sea sits magically below you and offers numerous designated viewpoints (miradors) along the way. The first of these enables visitors to look over the north tip and the Anaga Mountain range as well as Tenerife’s capital Santa Cruz. As the road climbs higher and higher the coasts of Candelaria and Guimar reveal themselves serenely. Within no time at all another mirador at El Ortuno dons La Orotava Valley. Views to the north and south of Tenerife are numerous as you climb towards Teide’s summit and on clearer days you can even see the neighbouring island of Gran Canaria. The mirador at Chipeque gives unrivalled views of La Orotava Valley and the stretch of coast from Tacaronte in the north to the rock of Garachico in the west – all punctuated by the beckoning silhouette of Mount Teide. 
