Another world: Neil Armstrong once described Tenerife as 'the closest thing to the lunar landscape I have ever seen'Neil Armstrong described the harsh volcanic landscape as 'the closest thing to the lunar landscape I've ever seen'.
As the first man on the Moon, he should know what he's talking about. And perhaps that explains why Tenerife is said to have been used as a location for films such as Star Wars and Planet Of The Apes.
The good news for the rest of us is that Tenerife is a modest four hours' flying time from London, proving once and for all that you don't need to endure a long-haul flight to find winter sun and spectacular scenery.
Between October and November, the average temperature is a comfortable 22-24C and even in December and in the New Year highs of 20c are normal at sea level.
All this makes it a popular destination for sun-starved British holidaymakers wanting to escape the gloom - and the snow - at home.
We wanted such a winter break and with only four full days plus flying time to spare, it seemed conveniently close. Reasonably priced beach hotels and budget flights abound and Travelsupermarket.com ranks Tenerife at number one on its top ten list of winter sun destinations.
But I had misgivings. Tenerife for me conjured up images of all that I didn't want in a holiday - an Atlantic version of Majorca's Magaluf or Cyprus's Ayia Napa, a concrete desert where all-day English breakfasts and duty-free alcohol are the principle attractions.
The 20-minute drive from the airport to our hotel on the Adeje Coast did little to dispel this impression. Over-development of the south-western corner of the island is inescapable.
The infamous Playa de las Americas did indeed remind me of Miami. But then, I like Miami - and on arrival at our hotel we quickly discovered exactly what we were looking for.
The big surprise was that Tenerife in winter attracts a very different and older clientele from summer, when the Playa vies with Ibiza's San Antonio as a venue for European youth culture.
Colonial heritage: The pool area of the Iberostar is fittingly grand'The island has changed a lot in recent years,' said Sally Molloy, Sovereign's permanent rep on the island.
'The sort of visitors coming here - especially outside the main summer months - are becoming increasingly discerning in their tastes. Every year there are new first-class hotels being built and this is one of the best.'
Iberostar El Mirador is built in grand colonial style with a giant pool - actually, more of a lagoon - with views of the island of La Gomera and the Atlantic beyond.
A private walkway led down to the beach. We'd come to relax, get some sand between our toes, read books and eat alfresco. This fitted the bill to perfection.
Eating and drinking in a five-star hotel is normally a heart-stopping financial business, but not here. Tenerife is duty-free and prices for all holiday needs are bargain basement.
Along the beach, that all-day English costs an astonishing £1.50 and you can wash it down with a pint of beer for 85p.
Even in El Mirador's three restaurants, lunch for two costs less than £40 and the standard of the food was way beyond all expectation.
For dinner, we preferred the half-board buffet with its nightly choice of fresh seafood and grilled meats.
The hotel is child-free and having left all our own at home in order to enjoy a brief bit of quality time together, this suited us perfectly.
The majority of our fellow guests were couples from mainland Spain presumably doing exactly the same.
Sunseekers: Tenerife attracts a different crowd in the winter monthsThe weather was glorious, the beach was inviting. So the first couple of days slipped by.
It was good to discover you really can read a Kindle in bright sunshine and Amazon' s electronic book does away with the whole bulky business of carting around a portable library on holiday.
However, by the third afternoon we were impatient to explore. A rental car costs around £40 a day and we set off for the interior, the national park and Mount Teide, with its distinctive cone and serrated black volcanic flanks.
The climate's much colder up here and only a few exotic alpine plants cling to the cinder floor.
At a lower altitude, the vegetation is greener, with cacti and wild flowers peeping up through the rock, and there are some spectacular hiking routes.
The highlight of our travels was a trek to the so-called hidden village of Masca. Thirty years ago, the only way to reach this collection of traditional Canarian farming cottages clustered around a tiny church was by boat and donkey.
The tortuously steep one track road that snakes down to it will test your driving skills to the limit. It's not an outing I recommend for anyone who suffers from vertigo or who has difficulty judging widths.
We returned our car to the Avis office at Playa de las Americas and took a leisurely four-mile stroll back along the seafront to our hotel.
We passed many bars and inviting restaurants, and browsed boutiques selling bargain-priced designer clothing and electronic goods.
The cocktail hour found us relaxing over mojitos while watching the sun sink into the Atlantic at the Hacienda, a cool Mexican bar, before the final climb to our hotel and dinner.
In the heat of summer this corner of Tenerife might not be my cup of tea, while heavy traffic on the track down to Masca would surely be the stuff of nightmares.
But for a brief winter break in warm sunshine, I've yet to find anywhere better.
Travel Facts
Sovereign (0844 415 1984, www.sovereign.com) offers a wide choice of hotels on the island. At el Mirador, on the Playa del Duque below the hill town of Adeje, a four-night stay in December costs from £499pp B&B. Price includes easyJet flights from Gatwick and accommodation.
source: dailymail
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