Anaga laurisilva

About this spectacle

The Anaga Rural Park in northeastern Tenerife harbors one of Europe's finest surviving patches of laurisilva — an ancient laurel forest that blanketed the Mediterranean basin millions of years ago and retreated here as climate shifted. Walking beneath its dense canopy you move through perpetual green twilight: mosses drape every boulder, lichens hang like curtains from gnarled branches, and the air carries the cool scent of damp earth and bay laurel. Mist filters through the ridgeline trees most mornings, backlit into silver veils that dissolve and reform with each gust. The forest floor is a tangle of ferns, Canarian bluebell and endemic shrubs rarely found elsewhere on Earth. Birdsong from Bolle's pigeon and the laurel pigeon punctuates the silence, both species dependent on this habitat. The narrow ravines — barrancos — amplify the sense of isolation and age, making the experience feel genuinely prehistoric.

When to go

Jan — Dec, peak Oct — May

Getting there

Nearest airport: TFN. Nearest city: Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Booking options

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