Hi,

As long as you're not also wanting a lively night life then I would suggest that La Gomera, it's one of the smaller islands off Tenerife, might just provide what you're both looking for. My family has holidayed there in the Valle Gran Rey area for years precisely because my Dad and I can go walking in the hills very easily, my brother can snorkel to his heart's content, my teenage nieces can laze around on the beach and my Mum and my friend can sit on the balcony or at one of the harbour cafes and natter whilst watching the world go by. And then in the evening we can all get together and go out for dinner at one of the lovely small restaurants or local bars. And not a single karaoke or Irish bar in sight!

It would suit your partner down to the ground, especially as there are a couple of companies that offer guided walks if she doesn't want to be walking on her own. We do both our own thing using the local public transport as well as booking some of the guided walks - the latter enables us to get to places that aren't well served by the local bus network or foot ferry. But the big advantage is that the minibus drops you off in one place and then picks you up later at the end of the walk so you can do A to B routes rather than having to make your way back to your starting point as you do if using a hire car. The one we use is German run but the walking guides speak English as well as Spanish and know their job well. The walks are all graded so it's easy to pick those that suit your level of fitness and degree of exertion you want and when we go (October) the groups are usually quite small too.

There are 4 beaches in the Valle Gran Rey area - all within 3miles walking distance of each other. The one at Vueltas by the harbour is the best swimming beach because it's sheltered by the harbour mole and there are a couple of cafes close by. The one at Puntilla (Charco el Conde) is even more sheltered because of the natural reef across the mouth of the small bay it's on but it is smaller and shallower, especially at low tide, hence very popular with families with young children and the one at La Playa is the biggest but the most exposed and hence has great breakers but the swimming is not for the fainthearted. Playa del Ingles is the naturist beach and not one we've ever ventured on so I can't tell you what it's like! All of them have cafes very close by but there's no other beach-based tourist infrastructure ie no sunbeds to hire, no water sports etc. And of course the sand is black - not to everybody's taste - but never overdcrowded either.

There's a lot of info on the island in the 'Other Canary Islands' thread and if you have any other questions then post there and I'll do want I can to help.

SM

PS The weather is January will be lovely and warm upon the coast but cooler up in the hills - but still pleasant walking weather.

that's wonderful, thanks. Sounds just what we're looking for. I'll look into it.

Hi Kev, glad to be of help but having just looked at the La Gomera thread on the 'other islands' thread I realise that some of the early information is a bit out of date - not surprising given that it's over 3 yrs since it was posted. For example, the buses are better now though most of the routes do still run to and from San Sebastian - there are still very few 'cross-contry' routes. Also, the Timah walking guides are more likely now to have reasonable English.

SM

You could do worse than trying a holiday based where I live, in Chayofa. This is a very pretty, quiet village about 10 minutes bus ride from Los Cristianos in Tenerife so it has all the advantages of a seaside resort without any of the disadvantages. There are a couple of timeshare resorts in the village and plenty of private accommodation and although a lot of this tends to be villas rather than apartments, it is still possible to find apartments to rent. There are four good quality restaurants, including two spanish ones and a couple of mini-markets but thats about it. There are no bars so you certainly won't be disturbed by partying holidaymakers. There is a regular bus service during the day and the village is on the main route into the hills for walking in the Arona/Ifonche area and also Vilaflor & the Teide National Park. The diversity of the scenery easily accessible within an hour or less from the village is amazing.

On the weather issue I live in Tenerife from October to March and have done for 21 years.
I don`t know whether you guys who live here 365 agree with me or not but I thought this winter was pretty good even Jan/Feb/Mar but the previous two winters where iffy In Jan/Feb, lots of cloud if not much rain.
Two of my friend went Goa and Cape Verde in search of better weather but of course missed a good winter here in Tenerife.
The problem arises when you are here for a week and you pick the iffy one,
Winters are fantastic on the whole but you do get some cloudy if warm days in Jan/Feb.
No where else to go in four hours though.
Rodz

Hi, we go to Puerto de la Cruz most winters, the weather is lovely, warm but not too hot. You can certainly spend time on the beach, but it may be too cold to swim in the water. Puerto is a lovely old town on the northern cost, with a good beach and a lovely lido with sea water pools. There is a good mix of hotels and smaller pensions to stay. You can get away from it all by using the local buses, (see Titsa web page), there are some lovely walks only a short bus ride away. We always buy a Bono card that gives you discounted travel. The advantage of Puerto is that you will have a nice beach to rest on between walks, good buses to get you out into the countryside and mountains. You will have good shops and restaurants as well. Enjoy.

Although we have been to Tenerife 5 times during the summer, we have just booked an extra break for mid January. Will it still be sunbathing in bikini weather, or shorts and t-shirts and does it get cold in the evenings?

I went a couple of years ago on the 2nd of January. You could sunbathe during the day but the sea was chilly. At night you needed to wear a cardi or light coat. It was certainly better than England.

Thanks for that I'll pack my bikini then

Certainly pack the bikini, although there may be a few days when the wind is a little cool. But then you cant spend all the time on the beach, Can you? We always come back with a tan, and you can burn, so take care. Other than that very opressive heat, you may think you are in the middle of summer. During the day around town you wont want more than shorts and tea shirt. And in the late evening I change into long trousers and take a jumper with me. But never need to wear a long sleeved shirt or wear a jacket. The evenings are very nice just to sit in an outside restaurant and watch the world go by. We are going back in November. Enjoy.