Where to stay in Tenerife: best budget accommodations and areas

Are you planning a trip to Tenerife? Well, that’s awesome. Tenerife is the perfect choice if you are looking for hot weather in Europe while still having the opportunity to both relax by the beach and partake in fun outdoor activities (even in winter!).

However, being the largest of the Canary Islands also means it offers an extensive range of accommodation types and areas to stay. With so many choices, from international resorts in the buzzing South to backpacker hostels and local guest houses nearby hiking trails in the North, booking a place to stay in Tenerife can be confusing and disorienting.

But let’s not start the holiday in a jumble. Here is a super powerful guide with lots of information about the different areas on the island and a selection of the best budget accommodations in Tenerife. Let’s organise this trip!

Planning a trip to Tenerife? You may also like these articles:

• The best outdoor activities in Tenerife for nature lovers
• The Ultimate Guide to go whale and dolphin watching in Tenerife

Accommodations in TENERIFE, what to expect

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It’s not just All-Inclusive resorts

The island of Tenerife is mainly known for its many all-inclusive offers and massive international hotels. In the south, towards Los Cristianos, there is in fact, a broad range of hotels and resorts with beautiful swimming pools, children’s playgrounds, spas and luxurious apartments.

These places are usually booked long in advance and sold by tourism agencies all around Europe to short-term holidayers and families who just want to relax and enjoy the sun without the hassle of organising every detail of the trip. That’s fair enough. Steven and probably half of the UK and Ireland know way too well what it is like to fly to Tenerife as a child, with the extended family for a week away.

But Tenerife is not just all about all-inclusive holidays. You can easily find 4 to 6-person apartments, backpacker hostels, cyclist-only guesthouses, hiking refuges and affordable double bedrooms in local bed-and-breakfast.

In this article, we focused on the best affordable places to stay all around the island for solo travellers and couples, but we also listed a few apartments we recommend for groups and families of 4 to 6 persons.

The best budget places to stay in Tenerife – Quick Answer

Where to stay in Los Cristianos and Playa de las Americas

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Los Cristianos and its neighbourhood area Playa de las Americas are the main tourist hubs in the south of Tenerife. They are both easily reached within 30 minutes by local bus from the southern airport where daily flights link Tenerife to many countries in Europe.

Nearby, you will find nice beaches, some for swimmers and beach bums, others for surfers only, plenty of restaurants and bars serving international food and of course a lot of accommodation.

Both areas are safe, and family-friendly and most of the places are multi-lingual.

In fairness, there is everything you need to spend the best holiday in the sun, worry-free. For the most active people, many tour companies will have an office and a hotel pick-up service from these areas, making them the perfect places to base yourself and explore all the best things to do in Tenerife. You can go paragliding, whale watching, visit El Teide volcano, or even go to fun attractions such as the water parks Aqualand and Siam Park.

However, Los Cristianos and Playa de Las Americas can feel overcrowded and lack authenticity. They both are cities that have been built for international mass tourism. And if you are not used to travelling to places like this, you may feel overwhelmed as we did. Nevertheless, it is here that you will find the largest offers in terms of accommodation.

From all-inclusive resorts to gigantic hotels, guesthouses, and apartments, Los Cristianos and Playa de Las Americas are quite pricey and the best/most affordable places are often booked months in advance. Unfortunately, for those with a tight budget or solo travellers, there aren’t many good hostels around. In fact, we can only recommend one. But if you are looking to relax by the swimming pool with a nice cocktail and are keen on compromising on your budget, we have added a couple of suggestions.

Dive resort Ocean Dreams

Dorm from €20 – Doubles from €40

The Dive Resort Ocean Dreams despite its name, is really a budget hostel with dorms and private rooms. It has good wifi, nice staff and a few large common areas where you can hang out and socialise. It is very central, only 5-10 minute walk from the main bus terminal, right by the beach where you can take kayaking tours or scuba diving courses, and close enough to lively restaurants and bars. It is the only budget hostel in the area and you won’t find a better value in Los Cristianos.

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Where to Stay in Costa Adeje

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While most of the large hotels and resorts are found in Los Cristianos or Playa de las Americas, most rental apartments are located in Costa Adeje. The area is as crowded but the beaches are much larger and protected from the waves thanks to artificial barriers.

It is also in Costa Adeje that you will find most of the whale and dolphin watching tours leaving Puerto Colon, a small harbour. In Costa Adeje, there are a lot of choices in terms of restaurants and bars but also nightclubs. The area is very lively at night and some bars don’t hesitate to play their music very loud to attract party people.

If you are looking for private and cheap options to stay in Costa Adeje, you may have some issues. There are no private rooms under €50 per night except for a few doubles in budget hostels (see below). Costa Adeje, however, is the perfect place to stay if you come as a group of friends or with your family. You won’t have any issue finding 2 to 3-bedroom apartments.

On the other hand, solo or budget travellers will have the choice between 3 backpacker hostels offering comfortable shared dorms for less than €20 a night. The cheapest places to stay are in this part of Tenerife.

Where to stay in Arona

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Arona is one of the regions of Tenerife. It technically includes Los Cristianos and Playa de La Americas but we choose to list them separately.

Arona is a very large area that goes from the beach to Arona pueblo, from where you can enter the national Park Teide. As you first start to go up the arid mountain, you will often enter a thin layer of clouds before penetrating into a very lush forest of Canarian pine trees. The few sleepy villages spread around, such as la Camella or San Miguel, feel a lot more local than the rest of the Arona department. It is here that most of the locals in south Tenerife live.

The higher you get, the more authentic it feels. It is like being in the countryside but with a gorgeous view over the southern beaches, the ocean and the island of La Gomera and El Hierro in the background. Arona is a nice place to relax, without much atmosphere but a good way to stay away from the crowded beach towns without being too far out. From San Miguel de Abona, you can get to Costa Adeje within 20 min by car and to the entrance of the national park El Teide within half an hour.

In north Arona, you will also find some of the most affordable places to stay South of Tenerife, with private doubles for less than €30 a night. Note that with the altitude, it can get cold at night and that you might need to depend on the local buses or rental cars.

We think, however, it is a good compromise between tranquillity, price and mobility if your plan is to visit the island and not stay at the beach all day.

It is particularly a great spot to stop for a break if you are on a road trip around Tenerife and need to stretch your legs after so many switchbacks!!

Where to stay in El Medano

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El Medano is a laid-back town in Southern Tenerife that is ideal for solo travellers, couples or families looking for a quiet place to stay by the beach. It also attracts local residents on weekends and water sports adepts all year round.

In fact, the constant offshore wind coupled with shallow waters and a reliable swell has made El Medano one of the main spots for wind and kite surfing in the Canary Islands. No surprises then, if El Medano has a bohemian feel with its many cafés and seafood restaurants as well as handmade jewellery vendors and international buskers entertaining strollers along the beach promenade.

We liked El Medano for its small size and casual lifestyle but also because you won’t find any 5-star hotels and all-inclusive resorts nearby. In El Medano, you can rent villas and apartments or stay in great surf hostels to meet a lot of travellers interested in outdoor activities and nature.

Where to stay in Santa Cruz de Tenerife

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Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the Capital city of the western islands of the Canaries. It is a large city where locals live and work but where tourists don’t seem to stay very much except during the month-long festivities of Carnival.

Santa Cruz acts mainly as a tourist hub with a large bus terminal and a few ferry companies offering affordable transfers to or from Gran Canaria. The city is nevertheless, really nice to visit. It has a typical market that reminds us of Sucre in Bolivia (best to visit on Sunday) and a few tourist attractions such as the Auditorium Adán Martín, or the water park César Manrique. Both can be visited on foot or by bus.

The town is also very close to the beautiful beach of Las Teresitas and Anaga Mountain where you can explore and hike for a day. In terms of accommodation, you will find a lot of hotels, usually aimed at professional stays, but for those on a budget, there are two hostels we would recommend if you plan to stay in town for a couple of nights.

wanderlust hostel

Dorm from €20

The wanderlust hostel is only a 5-minute walk from the ferry and pedestrian areas of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and 20 minutes from the bus station. It is located in an apartment building on the 2nd floor with access to a large rooftop terrace.

The rooms are large, the bed cosy but the walls are thin so you might want to bring earplugs as you never know who else will be staying too. Breakfast isn’t included but they have a kitchen you can use anytime. The hostel also offers a gym and a massaging armchair which is pretty cool. The only thing we found weird was the mirror on the ceiling. A little bit creepy when you stay on the top bunk!

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Tenerife experience hostel

Dorm from €23 – Double from €45

The Tenerife experience’s facilities are simple but the hostel is bright, cosy and decorated with a lot of taste. It has a lot of nice areas where to hang out and a beautiful terrasse right in the centre of the capital city.

We liked how close it is to the bus station and the tramway but also the delicious free breakfast.

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Where to stay in La Laguna

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San Cristobal de La Laguna is the best place to stay if you plan to go hiking around Anaga’s Biosphere Reserve. The main hiking trails start only a short bus ride (30 minutes) from the main bus terminal located nearby the city centre. La Laguna also hosts the 2nd airport on the island, quickly accessible by local bus and from where you can easily rent a car.

La Laguna is about 30 minutes from Santa Cruz de Tenerife by tram. While Santa Cruz feels a lot like a normal Spanish city with high buildings and limited history, La Laguna – which used to be the main capital of the island – has managed to preserve most of the houses and buildings built during the 15th century.

If you’ve had the chance to visit South or Central America, you will easily recognise the Latin style in La Laguna, the colonial architecture and the layout of the cities found across the Atlantic. We love its narrow cobblestoned streets layered by old churches, convents and old palaces hiding beautiful patios and balconies made of the local pine trees.

Photographers and history aficionados will enjoy strolling around its historical centre which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.

For those interested in the nightlife, you will find a vibrant scene and student vibe as San Cristobal de La Laguna hosts the only University on the island with more than 30,000 students! In the evening, head to the main square and you will find a lot of bars and restaurants offering cheap tapas and drinks.

For some reason, you won’t spot many tourists around town (except for the group of walking tours in the morning). And that’s probably because La Laguna is more of a place where you live than stay temporarily.

LA TERRERA YOUTH hostel

Dorm from €21

This hostel is perfectly located in the centre of La Laguna. A bit small but comfy and affordable. It has one double bedroom and a couple of shared dorms. People like the nice little garden, hot shower and the simple but good breakfast! The hostel has a kitchen.

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Where to stay in Puerto de la Cruz

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Puerto de la Cruz is the main tourist town in the north of Tenerife with a lot of hotels and short-term apartments to rent. The town has a nice mix of local vibes and tourist attractions and is mainly popular among older tourists. It was the first tourist hub on the island and since the emancipation of the south, Puerto de La Cruz seems to try to save face by showing off with its large tax-free boutiques and huge swimming pools.

The pedestrian city centre and the promenade along the coast are really nice to stroll or visit by segway (!) and you can find nice international restaurants and bars all over the place. However, you might want to walk a bit out of the centre to find local food.

Puerto de la Cruz is also a city that attracts a large population of expats– the north is really popular with Germans – but also surfers, because of its affordable apartment rent and the easy access to good waves all year long within the city itself. It is a great place for Digital Nomads who want to settle for a bit in Tenerife. There is indeed an active digital nomad community in Puerto de la Cruz and one of the few coliving places in Tenerife.

Puerto Nest Hostel

Dorm from €19 – Double from €50

Beautifully located, this hostel is only a 15-minute walk from the bus station and 5 minutes to the beach. We loved the rooftop terrace to enjoy breakfast in the morning or chill during the day. The staff is friendly but the cute house dog is the star of the place. Puerto Nest Hostel has a kitchen and good wifi.

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Find more accommodations in Tenerife

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