A Guide to Hiking Roque de Taborno, Anaga Rural Park, Tenerife

One of the most scenic hikes you can do in Tenerife is the Roque de Taborno trail located in Anaga Rural Park. Often called the “Matterhorn of Tenerife”, Roque de Taborno is an impressive rock formation near the tiny mountain village of Taborno. Although it’s only a short hike, it offers some of the best views of the jagged Anaga Mountains, lush green valleys and Atlantic Ocean.

In this blog post, we’ll detail everything you need to know about hiking the Roque de Taborno trail including the trail length, level of difficulty, the best time to hike it, how to get to the trailhead and, of course, what to expect once you’re on the trail.

If you’d like to see our Roque de Taborno hiking experience, make sure to watch our dedicated Anaga Rural Park video which we’ve shared on our YouTube channel Kitti and Jon.

About Roque de Taborno in Anaga Rural Park

Roque de Taborno is a rocky monolith towering over the small village of Taborno in Anaga Rural Park in the north-east of Tenerife. Anaga was designated a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 2015.

Roque de Taborno Hiking Trail Statistics

Length of the Roque de Taborno Hiking Trail

The Roque de Taborno hiking trail is an approximately 4km (2.5 miles) long path. This route could take around 2-3 hours, depending on your speed and how many breaks you take around the route. The scenery is absolutely breath-taking, so you’ll stop often to admire it.

In terms of timings, we set off around 9:30AM and started circling around the rock formation around 10:15AM. We reached Mirador Roque de Taborno around 11:15AM and got back to the car just after 12PM. Overall, we did walk much slower to make the most of the quiet trail and stunning scenery which reminded us a lot of Hawaii.

Level of Difficulty of the Roque de Taborno Trail

Depending on your level of fitness / hiking experience and the weather conditions, we personally rate this particular route around Roque de Taborno easy to moderate. At 4km it’s quite a short hike, with a minimal elevation gain of 235 m.

The trail itself is relatively easy to follow, especially on a clear day. However, there are many paths jutting off the main route and in low visibility it won’t take much to veer off the main path. In addition, the trail can be a bit muddy and overgrown in places, as well as uneven. There are also some steeper sections, which may be slightly more exerting if you’re not used to hiking or have knee issues.

What can make this hike more challenging is the weather conditions. If you start later in the day, then the heat and humidity can make you feel exhausted much faster in the summer months. On the contrary, if you pick a day with low visibility, that can present some navigational challenges. Strong winds can also be dangerous because the ridge is exposed and narrow with steep drops. We’ll discuss the best times to hike the trail further down.

Roque de Taborno Hiking Trail Route Description

Section 1. Taborno Village to Mirador Barranco la Fajana

From the end of Taborno village, follow the walkway all the way to the end, passing Iglesia San José de Taborno. From the walkway, we were already treated to magnificent views of the incredible landscape.

Towards the end of the walkway was a little viewing area of Roque de Taborno with some information boards. Further down, there will be some steps on your left that you’ll have to take. Before you take the stairs though, stop at Mirador Fuente del Lomo for a lovely view looking out to the sea and the mountains.

After the brief break at the viewpoint, turn back and take the staircase going steeply down, passing people’s gardens on the left. Follow the narrow and rocky path until you’ve passed all the houses. You’ll soon end up on a ridge with clear views of the impressive rock formation ahead. Carry on along the ridge until you reach a viewpoint marked as Mirador Barranco la Fajana on AllTrails. When we looked back towards Taborno village from there, the landscape reminded us of Salento and the Cocora Valley in Colombia.

Section 2. Mirador Barranco la Fajana to Taborno Village

A few minutes later (at about the 1 km mark), the path will split in two. Here we went left and circled around the rock in a clockwise direction. This section was a bit muddy because the sun hadn’t quite reached this side of the monolith yet. The path was also a bit overgrown with spiky plants and cacti. However, the views were still impressive and we could enjoy looking out at the Atlantic as we made our way around the rock.

Soon, we began a steeper uphill section that zig-zagged all the way up to Mirador Roque de Taborno. This viewpoint was hands down the most beautiful spot along the entire hike. The rock formation towered over us on one side, with sweeping views out to the Anaga Mountains and the sea on the other.

It was a lovely place to stop and, since there was nobody else around, we hung out here for a while. If we didn’t know that we were in Tenerife, we probably would’ve guessed that we were on one of the Hawaiian Islands.

From the viewpoint, we just followed the path around the other side of the monolith, enjoying the views of the mountains and the sea below. Back at the fork, we just walked to Taborno the same way we came.

Practical Information About the Roque de Taborno Hiking Trail

How to Get to the Roque de Taborno Trailhead / Where to Park

The most convenient way to get to the trailhead is to drive to Taborno. We rented a car for the entire week we were in Tenerife and it was the best way to get around the island independently. If you want to do the same, we suggest hiring a car from Tenerife Airport using the Cicar car rental company. Their prices are great and we had a very positive experience with them.

Read Next: Tips on Driving in Tenerife

Depending on where you’re staying in Tenerife you can get to Taborno in roughly 1 to 2 hours. This is mainly because the roads within Anaga Rural Park are quite narrow and curvy.

• Santa Cruz de Tenerife: 45-minute drive.
• Puerto de la Cruz: 1 hour drive.
• Costa Adeje: 1.5 hour drive.
• Los Gigantes: 1 hour 45 minute drive.

Parking in Taborno for the Roque de Taborno Trail

Once you reach Taborno village, you can park in one of the lay-bys. Just make sure not to drive past the small church, as the road is quite narrow beyond that and turning around can be tricky, as we learned the hard way. You can just about turn around in the yellow box in front of the church.

There’s also very limited parking in Taborno. Therefore, make sure to either arrive early or later in the day. We actually ended up having to return on another day because there was no space available by around 11 AM. The next time we went back we arrived before 9AM and had no trouble parking.

Best Time to Hike Roque de Taborno

You can hike the Roque de Taborno trail all year round. The driest and warmest months are between May and November, with January being the coldest and wettest. Mist and low clouds are also more common in the winter months but the conditions can change quickly in spring and autumn too. During the summer months be prepared for much hotter conditions.

No matter which month you’re visiting, we suggest picking a calm day with high visibility, as it would be a shame to miss out on the views.

In terms of timings, we suggest arriving earlier in the day to be able to park in Taborno. If you arrive after 11AM you may not find a parking spot until much later in the day. If the weather conditions are fine, then doing this hike later in the afternoon / evening could also be a good option. In the summer, coming earlier or later would also mean that you can avoid hiking in the hottest part of the day.

What to Wear and Bring with You

The conditions in Anaga can change quickly, especially the higher up you go. Therefore, wear weather and hiking appropriate clothing when attempting this trail. You’ll be exposed the whole time, so check the forecast before you set off and pack a light rain jacket and some warm layers, particularly if you’re hiking in the winter or shoulder seasons. In the summer months, don’t forget to bring enough sun protection.

The path is narrow, uneven and steep, so wear walking/hiking shoes, boots or trail runners with a good grip. We also suggest bringing your own lunch and snacks and having plenty of water with you to stay hydrated. Signal can be spotty in the mountains, so have offline maps downloaded for navigational purposes.

Please Note! Whatever you bring with you, make sure you either take it home or dispose of it responsibly. We suggest bringing a bin bag with you which you can collect all your waste in. Enjoy your time in nature but Leave No Trace!

Final Thoughts on Hiking the Roque de Taborno Trail

Hiking around Roque de Taborno was possibly our favourite thing to do in Tenerife. It was definitely an advantage to have the whole trail to ourselves for the most part, as well as pretty great weather conditions. The landscape was absolutely incredible and if not for wanting to visit other places within Anaga, we would’ve lingered around the viewpoints even longer.

Let us know in the comments below if you would add this hiking trail to your Tenerife itinerary. If you found this blog post useful and want to show your support, you can buy us a coffee here.