Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands — Attraction in San Cristóbal de La Laguna

I currently live in Lanzarote, and last week me and 3 other friends decided to spend the weekend in Tenerife. Tenerife in general is amazing, definitely worth the trip. We visited the Anaga forest, Mercedes, Taganana, Benijo and one can´t visit Tenerife without spending a day or two in the Teide.

On the second day, we decided to spend the day in the Teide volcano, fully excited to see this magnificent mountain. We had rented a car a Fiat 500 for 4 persons and we left towards the Teide. On arriving to around 2000 meters the landscape changed from greenery to volcanic and so we decided to stop and take some pictures as 2 of us are keen photographers and change into warmer clothes as it was getting much colder.

We locked the car, and set off for around 15 mins to take some pictures of the amazing view. We left most of our belongings in different places of the car, mainly behind in the luggage compartment and on the floor in the car. On our return to all our dismay and panic we found that someone had broken into the car, not using any physical force as there was no sign of break in but using technological force- we learned later from the police.

I couldn’t believe what was happening, they stole my new Iphone, and my wallet- save the money that doesn´t worry me but rather all my documentation like NIE card, national ID card, bank cards from my original country and Spain, pin codes, work cards etc. I usually take extra precaution and don’t take such things with me on holidays, but as it was just for the weekend and not leaving the country I did not think twice. I wasn't the only one, my partner had his I phone stolen and his long camera lens valued at over 800 euro, and another friend had his special camera bag stolen with 2 long lenses and all the accessories of the GoPro. All other belongings like clothes were not stolen- so clearly they were looking for technology.

In full panic we rushed back down the Teide, having just arrived, and we went straight to the Puerto de la Cruz national police station, there we filed a police report. When filing a police report make sure that you give them each and every detail as best you can, forget about the panic and try to think. Ensure you read the report well before signing it and leaving and the correct words are used, especially if something is insured. At the station the officer told us that this is a reoccurring issue, nearly 2 or more cases a day. He also said that they are working on getting security up to the Teide to reduce these crimes. So up till today, even though so many cases have been reported (even online) there is no security! . Apparently these people drive around all day in the Teide looking for vulnerable tourists which usually carry a camera around with them and drive a rental car in order to find the right moment when they least expect it to steal all their most expensive belongings- and ruin their holiday.

The gist of sharing my experience is to try and warm other travelers to take extra precaution when going to Tenerife, and not only in the Teide but also in other places and countries. I did not get to enjoy the Teide but Tenerife is amazing, do...

The first thing to know about this tourist trap is that there are no refunds once you have payed online and this is protected by Spanish law.

The "really mean lady" as my eight year old child calls her was incredibly gruff and unpleasant to deal with. We asked politely if we could use the toilets and she barked at our entire group that we could use the toilets in "fifteen minutes". Every fifteen minutes this scene repeated until an hour passed and we just set off looking for them. Others needed to go too and it was quite a distraction and the unpleasant aura this incredibly unfriendly woman projects really made us regret our purchase.

I am only glad that not all of the family came on the tour. Afterwards, our girl just wanted to lie down after spending so long waiting for the toilet.

To the fantastic speaker from Normandy, I regret this review as your contribution on the life of the star was excellent and you answered questions very well. Your colleage has really let you down and if I wasn't so annoyed at the way my family was treated I would have had questions in mind for you.

If you do come to this, bring jackets as it can be cold and is mostly outside.

For all we got out of this I think you would be better off finding your local astronomy group and meeting with them. Friendlier, cheaper and they will have more time to answer...

Guided daytime visit to the Teide Observatory - 1.5h - small groups (8-10 people; non-residents)

honoured&thankful to have the opportunity to enter the observatory premises

respect for the guides (friendly, funny, welcoming) and for all the explanations (appreciate the fact that they work there and also do this kind of guided tours)

highly disappointed and very upset, for a first-timer, that there was NOT INCLUDED the use of any kind of telescopes, especially the solar ones -- the video intro presentation from the official website clearly shows the use of mini-telescopes from the visitors -- recent google reviews mentions this activity to be included&done during such tour...

overall, is a unique and...