Top 10 Gardens in Tenerife, Canary Islands

The mansion was built in 1730 and it seems was originally the headquarters and wine cellars of a Dutch wine exporting company. In 1774 it was purchased by a Mr.Archibald Little a British merchant whose family owned the house until 1854 (thereby the name Little's Place, in Spanish SITIO LITRE) In 1856 the property was bought by a Mr.Charles Smith whose family have owned the house right up until 1996, a period of 140 years. The historic English garden was first planned by the Little family, and added to by the Smith family. Many famous personalities have spent time in SITIO LITRE either as house guests or simply as guests at the numerous garden parties given in the magic garden. Amongst the most famous house guests were William Wilde, the father of Oscar Wilde, but possibly the most famous of all was Marianne North, the well known botanical painter, who lived in this house for two months in 1875, she is remembered in the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London, where all her 832 paintings are on view. Many of her Tenerife works were painted in this garden (and we have placed copies of these around the garden, so you can see that even after 130 years, the garden is practically the same) Party guests were numerous, but to name only three, we can mention Sir Richard Burton, who passed through Tenerife on two occasions between 1860 and 1863, Sir Richard was the first European to enter the holy city of Mecca (dressed as a Muslim), he also discovered lake Tanganika, but he is best known for having translated the three erotic works of the east into English, these being "The Kamasutra", "The perfumed garden" and "The Arabian Nights". Many years later Agatha Christie and her daughter Rosalyn were on holiday in Puerto de la Cruz, the year was 1927 and she had just divorced her first husband, she was so inspired by the gardens that she wrote one of her novels, basing the plot in Puerto de la Cruz "The mysterious Mr.Quin". The first of all these guests should not be forgotten, he was one of the world's most famous discoverers and botanist. The famous German explorer Alexander Von Humboldt, he was the guest of honour at a party given for him on June 23rd 1799 by Mr Archibald Little. The house is still a private residence but the owners have decided to open the gardens to visitors, so they can savour this "Vision of Eden" and view the lovely collection of orchids, possibly the best in the Canary Islands. The SITIO LITRE garden is the oldest surviving garden in Tenerife, now 235 years old. It has been owned continuously by British families since 1774.

The Ethnographic Park “Pirámides de Güímar” is a 64.000 m2 site of great cultural value, which comprises six stepped pyramids that have been studied by archaeologists around the world, led by the famous Norwegian anthropologist Thor Heyerdahl.The park includes the Casa Chacona Museum, which shows the results of the investigations carried out in the pyramid complex, its astronomical alignment with the sun during the summer and winter solstices, and one of the largest photographic collections of stepped pyramids in the world. Visitors can also visit the Auditorium, showing a documentary about the pyramids and the research of Dr. Heyerdahl, the Expeditions room, with information and reproductions of the boats used by Heyerdahl in his transoceanic voyages, and a large-scale reproduction of the Ra II; and a leisure area with cafeteria, souvenir shop and playroom. Three outdoor routes can also be discovered along the more than 20.000 m2 of endemic Canarian gardens: the Botanical Route, the Exportation Products Route and the Cultural Route, which offers information on many aspects of culture, history and ethnography of the Canary Islands.Furthermore, two new exhibitions have been inaugurated recently. On one hand, the Ethnographic Park is housing the exhibition “Rapa Nui. Polynesia: Extreme Survival”, developed by the ‘Mata Ki Te Rangi’ Foundation of Easter Island. The exhibit aims to raise awareness of one of the most extraordinary societies in the world and the achievements of this statue-building Polynesian society. The latest novelty at the Park is the Secret Garden, a 1500 m2 garden specialised on poisonous plants, comprising a selection of over 70 plant species that have toxic or dangerous properties. This ‘live exhibit’, unique in the Canary Islands, reviews the exciting history of poisons, and presents stories of some of the most notorious poisoners and deadly venoms of all times.