Tenerife - a country of two parts. (Part 2)

For those of you that want more than just sun bathing and partying the night away, you can hire a car and drive up into the mountains and find some authentic restaurants serving proper traditional Tenerife food. But, they hardly ever speak English, so take a phrase book or you could end up eating some very strange things! You can hire a car for a fairly reasonable rate for the day and have a wonderful view of the forests and local unspoilt areas.

If you wish to go to Mount Teide you can drive most of the way, but you then need to park and take the fenicula railway right to the very top, but the experience is well worth it. However, it is cold, so take warm clothes. There is even snow up there in the summer.

Golf del Sur or Amarilla Golf

For golfers who wish to have a villa holiday, Golf del Sur or Amarilla Golf are two complexes built with villas around golf courses, and are the perfect place to go. The courses are used for tournaments so they are very good courses. The sun is still very hot here but there are very exclusive and quiet complexes. They both have club houses where you can socialise and have a drink or two or three or whatever! Some of them provide entertainment on certain nights. It is far enough away from Playa de las Americas but Costa del Silencio is not too far and may provide more entertainment, shopping and restaurants so you will not feel totally cut off from the rest of the island.

Adeje

Costa Adeje is the newest resort area in the south of Tenerife, with plush hotels and modern attractions. It is a distinctly upmarket area for families and couples. The beaches are newer and with better facilities both onshore and offshore. You can try windsurfing, sailing, surfing, water skiing, jet biking and parascending - if you are brave enough! This is a very windy beach so watch out for sun burn as you may not feel the heat so much.

Although you can still find a few pie and pint pubs, the majority of bars and restaurants prefer chic and classy to cheap and cheerful. Some of the finest Canarian cuisine can be found here, but watch out for the Mojo sauce - it is fiery with a hell of a kick!

So if you want the sun and a few days sun bathing but also want some sophisticated days, these are the places for you.