Teide Observatory for families with children

A family visit of Teide Observatory is a far cry from an adult-centred experience with information on advanced science and research.

These days it’s one of the most popular destinations for families with children thanks to the educational and fun activities that it runs.

If you’re travelling to Tenerife with your children, make a note of all the details below about Teide Observatory for families because this experience might just be one of the best activities you do on your family holiday.

Here we go!

Teide Observatory for families: what does a tour include?

Later on we’ll tell you all about the different tours of Teide Observatory for families, but first, read on to find out what you’ll discover inside.

Teide Observatory has been in operation since 1964 and focuses on solar observation (it’s the largest solar observatory in the world!) and robotic astronomy.

The centre runs multiple simultaneous research lines that lead to almost daily scientific articles.

How is this possible?

To answer this question all you have to do is gaze up at the skies: the skies above Mount Teide are considered to be one of the three best skies in the world for stargazing. Impressive, right?

When you visit the observatory your guide will tell you all about the importance of the Canary Islands’ skies. He or she will also share facts about the different telescopes used at the observatory and fill you in on the projects that are currently being run by the Canary Islands Institute of Astrophysics, which is based at the observatory.

There’s also a hands-on part of the tour when you’ll take part in an astrophysics workshop—children and adults will discover exactly what this branch of science is all about and what a professional astrophysicist actually does. At the end you’ll explore the inside of a real nocturnal telescope and learn all about how it works and its history.

And to top it all off, you’ll even do a practical observation and use solar telescopes to find sunspots and solar flares. It’s a remarkable sight: did you know that it was here, at this very observatory, that scientists discovered that the Sun “beats” every 5 minutes?

So there you have it: a quick summary of what you’ll do on a 90-minute guided tour of Teide Observatory for families.

And now here are all the details you need about tours of Tenerife Observatory for families.

Day tour of Tenerife Observatory for families with children

Day guided tour of Teide Observatory (8+ years)

This day tour of Teide Observatory for families with children who are 8 years old and above (like the other tours) has one big advantage: children go free until they are 16 years old.

If that’s persuaded you and you think your children would like our tour of Tenerife Observatory for families, don’t hesitate:

Afternoon tour of Teide Observatory for families

Did you know that from Mount Teide you can see 83 of the 88 constellations that have been discovered to date?

Astronomic Tour (8+ years old)

Our 2 in 1 Teide tour for astronomy lovers.

This time your tour of Tenerife Observatory for families starts just before the sun goes down so you can enjoy the observatory in peace and quiet. This experience also includes return transport from your accommodation.

When the tour ends (which includes everything described in the previous experiences), you’ll be taken to the cable car base station and go stargazing. You’ll observe the firmament through long-range telescopes with help from our Starlight guides.

They’ll tell you all about Mount Teide’s impressive night skies which, together with Hawaii and Chile, are considered to be one of the best skies in the world for stargazing.

When you finish the nocturnal observation you’ll be transported back to your accommodation, undoubtedly beaming from ear to ear after enjoying a family day out packed with science and fun in equal measure.

Summary table

Below is a table that summaries everything described above:

Mount Teide excursions at a glance

As you’ve seen, tours of Teide Observatory for families with children are a great activity that is fun for young and old alike.

But there’s more! The National Park has lots, lots more to offer visitors, so we’ve put together a weekly activities calendar so you can take a quick look and easily choose the best options for you. 

So that’s from us for today—we hope we’ve persuaded you to come and visit the largest solar observatory in the world with your family, either during the day or at dusk.

We’re waiting for you!