Tenerife in September

The Cristo de La Laguna

La Laguna's fiestas for its Cristo were founded by the island council in 1607. The Cristo is a Flemish carving from around 1500, which reached Tenerife in 1520 after stops in Venice, Barcelona and Sanlúcar de Barrameda.

On 9 September the statue is lowered from its altar and carried to the cathedral. The big day is 14 September, when it returns to its sanctuary and the city lights up with the Fuegos del Cristo fireworks. The fiestas close on 21 September with a procession around the Plaza del Cristo.

Dates for the diary

• 7 SeptemberGüímar's Romería del Socorro, considered the oldest romería in the Canary Islands. Pilgrims walk from the town church down to the chapel on El Socorro beach, where the finding of the Virgin's image by the Guanches is acted out, and she is carried back to town the next day.
• 7 and 8 SeptemberLos Silos honours its patron, Nuestra Señora de la Luz.
• 8 SeptemberThe feast of the Virgen de los Remedios, La Laguna's patroness.
• Second weekendEl Tanque's fiesta of Our Lady of Coromoto, especially loved by families with ties to Venezuela.
• Mid-SeptemberIn Las Angustias, Icod keeps alive El Diablo y La Diabla, an old custom now held in honour of the Virgin.
• 9 to 21 SeptemberThe Cristo de La Laguna, see above.
• 24 SeptemberLas Mercedes celebrates its patron, Nuestra Señora de Las Mercedes.
• During SeptemberIn El Palmar, near Buenavista del Norte, the church bells ring every 12 hours for the 7 days before the fiesta of the Virgen de la Consolación, and the Baile de las Libreas acts out a struggle between good and evil.

Times and details can change from year to year, so check with the town hall before you set off. A public holiday that falls on a Sunday can sometimes move to the Monday.

Out and about

Every 4 years Tegueste stages La Librea, a 17th century tradition in which a mock militia parades with 3 model ships pulled on ox carts. Surf and bodyboard competitions carry on at El Socorro beach in Los Realejos.