Tenerife’s Beautiful Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz is not a paradise for those who love architecture, but it is the most important container shipping port in the archipelago. Even though not very rich in monuments, Santa Cruz still attracts the interest of visitors with its Canarian urban vibrancy like no other on the island of Tenerife. The first conquistadors transformed Santa Cruz into an important port and the main one of the island due to the fact that any ship that was on its way to the New World was somehow obliged to anchor here.
As a result, Santa Cruz was extremely well fortified in order to have the protection it needed. Now the capital city of the island has developed and flourished into a modern and bustling Spanish town, a place where you will be welcomed by the narrow shopping streets, the amazing parks and plazas and the wide and attractive avenues.
The centre of Santa Cruz should be explored on foot if you want to admire the beautiful churches and the interesting museums. However for those who love to combine history with architecture, there is no better place than La Laguna, the place where you will find the most elegant and beautiful historical buildings.
A short but interesting history lesson
Due to the fact that Santa Cruz has always played the role of an important port, it always attracted attention; its history is a very agitated one but it is this same history that helped Santa Cruz become the important Spanish town that it is today. One of the attacks that Santa Cruz had to suffer took place in 1797, when Admiral Nelson unsuccessfully tried to conquer the city. His interest was to capture the gold brought from the New World that was found in the San Jose galleon, hosted at that time by Santa Cruz’s harbor.
It all started on June 22nd when Nelson tried to encircle the town before giving the command to his battleships to start bombarding the town. However, the weather was on Santa Cruz’s side, as the swirls and the strong winds slowed down the attack. His failure did not stop Nelson, who also tried a frontal attack, but one more time with no luck. As you can see, Santa Cruz is a very powerful city that knew how to protect itself along the centuries. You will feel its vibe once you step on its streets, so visit it during one of your Spanish holidays. I am sure that you will enjoy it!