Tenerife Events, Fiestas and Festivals 2014 / 2015

(Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain)

Tenerife is known for its year-round fiestas and parties, with a comprehensive calendar of events. Amongst the many festivals which take place throughout the year, Tenerife's February carnivals are particularly popular and include parades of decorated floats and an array of competitions.

Other popular events around Tenerife include the Festival de Música de Canarias (Music Festival of the Canary Islands) at the end of each January, the Holy Week celebrations leading up to Easter, and the Dia de la Cruz (Day of the Cross) in May - where many towns are filled with crosses covered in flowers. Also worthy noting is the Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival each June, and the Heineken Jazz Festival every July.

National Public Holidays

• 1st January - Ano Nuevo / New Year's Day
• 5th January - Epifania / Epiphany
• 19th March - Dia de San José / St. Joseph's Day
• Late March or early April - Jueves Santo / Maundy Thursday
• Late March or early April - Viernes Santo / Good Friday
• 1st May - Fiesta del Trabajo / Labour Day
• 15th August - La Asunción / Feast of the Assumption
• 12th October - Nacional de Espana / National Day
• 1st November - Todos los Santos / All Saints' Day
• 6th December - Dia de la Constitución / Constitution Day
• 8th December - La Inmaculada Concepción / Feast of the Immaculate Conception
• 25th December - Navidad / Christmas Day

Calendar of Festivals and Events 2014 / 2015

January

• Cabalgata de los Reyes (Three Holy Kings / Wise Men) - January 5th, an event related to Christmas time, involving 'Three Kings' who parade around on horseback in Santa Cruz and other locations on Tenerife, followed by floats, handing out sweets to the crowds and onlooking children. Similar events take place across the Canary Islands and Spain on this day annually.
• Fiesta de San Antonio Abad - mid-January, celebrations in the Arona region, located on the southern side of Tenerife, including sporting events and plenty of family fun.
• Festival de Música de Canarias (Music Festival of the Canary Islands) - late January / early February, one of Europe's most important classical music festivals, attracting many superb orchestras, with concerts centered around the stunning Auditorio de Tenerife concert hall in Santa Cruz.

February

• Tenerife Carnivals - mid-February, the carnival season around Tenerife and all of the other Canary Islands, offering some of the most spectacular events of the year. Carnivals start with the Carnival Queen competition and then involve impressive processions of floats around the streets, together with music, plenty of food and drink, street entertainment and a host of other exciting events. The main carnivals on the island include the Santa Cruz Carnival and the Puerto de la Cruz Carnival, both of which attract enormous crowds, with festivities lasting around ten days.

March

• Holy Week - mid-March, Holy Week throughout Tenerife, with numerous religious celebrations around the island, particularly in the main cities and towns, leading up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

April

• Judas Fiesta - early April, based in Taganana, with the highlight being a effigy of Judas Iscariot, which is burned in a lively ceremony, believed to purge the sins of the village.

May

• Dia de la Cruz (Day of the Cross) - early May, with festivities across all major towns and villages around Tenerife, being particularly lively at Santa Cruz's Plaza de Espana. The festival consists of crosses being decorated in flowers (Cruces de Mayo), music and dancers dressed in traditional Canarian costumes.

June

• Carrera del Atlantico / Tenerife Canary Islands Half Marathon - mid-June, with various races around the island over several days, including Teide and El Médano.
• Corpus Christi - mid-June, a significant Catholic festival, where volcanic sand and flowers are laid along the streets to formed detailed patterns and pictures from the bible, particularly in the town of La Orotava - to the southeast of Puerto de la Cruz, and nearby La Laguna. Similar events are held around the Canary Islands on the same day.
• Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival - late June, a range of processions, music, dancing and partying around Santa Cruz.

July

• Festival Internacional Canarias Jazz and Mas Heineken (International Jazz Festival) - mid-July, lasting up to three weeks, Tenerife's legendary 'Heineken Jazz Festival' comprises many large and small jazz concerts, with musicians and visitors arriving from all over the world to enjoy this event.
• Romeria de San Benito Abad - early July, major festivities in La Laguna, held on the first Sunday each July.
• Battle of Santa Cruz - July 25th, a re-enactment of Admiral Nelson's famous defeat, based at the Castillo de San Juan Bautista (Castillo Negro)

August

• Nuestra Senora de La Candelaria - mid-August, celebrations based around the Patron Saint, the Virgin de la Candelaria, held in Candelaria, on the eastern coast of Tenerife, just 18 km / 11 miles to the south of Santa Cruz.
• Romeria de San Roque - mid-August, the most prominent annual festival in Garachico, attracting crowds of pilgrims who arrive to honour the town's Patron Saint, San Roque (St. Roch).
• Festival Son Latino - late August, one of the island's most exciting Latin music events, with many famous groups performing on the Playa de las Américas beaches, watched by large crowds.

September

• Fiesta del Santisimo Cristo - mid-September, religious festivities including a popular Folklore Music Festival held in La Laguna, with a number of religion-based festivities and entertainment on offer.

October

• Dia de la Hispanidad / National Day Festival - October 12th, a famous festival celebrating the rich heritage of Spain, held at various venues around the island of Tenerife on this national holiday.
• Tenerife Opera Season - October, November and December, with many popular operatic events organised by the island's Friends of the Opera association.

November

• Wine Festival - late November, with a range of wine tasting and related events in and around Icod de los Vinos, La Orotava and Puerto de la Cruz.

December

• New Year's Eve - December 31st, many celebrations and parties around the island, with the biggest and best in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and La Laguna, both of which offer excellent fireworks displays at midnight.