Guanche Heritage
The history of the original inhabitants of Tenerife
9 places
Cave of the Wind, Icod
The longest volcanic tube in Europe
Monumento al achimencey Tinguaro
An imposing bronze sculpture paying tribute to Tinguaro, the achimencey or Guanche war leader and brother of Mencey Bencomo, who led his people at the First Battle of Acentejo in 1494. The work of local artist Miguel Angel Padilla, it was inaugurated on 1 May 2007 and depicts the aboriginal chief, around four metres tall, in a fighting stance. The monument vindicates the memory of the Guanche people and their heroic resistance to the conquest, and has become one of the municipality's identity symbols. An ideal place to discover and honour the pre-Hispanic roots of La Matanza.
Cueva del Santo Hermano Pedro
A shepherd's cave near El Médano, declared an Asset of Cultural Interest as a Historical Site, linked to Saint Hermano Pedro de Betancur, a herder born in Vilaflor in 1626.
Cueva de los Guanches (Icod)
A Guanche archaeological site declared an Asset of Cultural Interest (Archaeological Zone) in 2005, located in the El Cardonal area above the Playa del Moreno cliff.
Achbinico Cave
Natural cave beside the Basilica of Candelaria, regarded as the first Christian sanctuary in the Canary Islands.
Museo Arqueológico del Puerto de la Cruz
A municipal museum with origins in 1953 (current premises since 1991) holding one of the most complete collections of Guanche pottery on the island, with over a thousand 'gánigo' vessels and objects of aboriginal daily life.
Statues of the Menceyes (Candelaria)
Nine bronze statues of the Guanche kings in front of the Basilica of Candelaria, facing the sea.
Barranco de Agua de Dios (yacimiento de Los Cabezazos)
This ravine is one of the most important archaeological sites in Tenerife and living proof of the ancient menceyato of Tegueste. It contains the Los Cabezazos site, declared a Zone of Archaeological Heritage, where dwelling caves, funerary spaces and rock engravings are preserved. Excavations by the University of La Laguna made public in 2024 dated at least six hundred years of continuous Guanche occupation in the Cueva de los Cabezazos, between the mid-7th and the 13th century. Pottery, remains of consumed animals, necklace beads, millstone fragments and awls have appeared there, materials that make it one of the richest sources on the island's aboriginal life. The surroundings, of great natural value, also invite a walk on foot, with respect for their fragility.
Parque Etnográfico Pirámides de Güímar
A private ethnographic park and botanical garden founded in 1998 by Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl around six stepped stone structures; the most widely accepted theory dates them to the 19th century, though their origin is debated.