BARRANCO DE RUIZ – SAN JUAN DE LA RAMBLA COASTAL WALK

Barranco de Ruiz – San Juan de Rambla is one of the most diverse short hikes I did in Tenerife. Although short, this hike offers great views of Barranco de Ruiz gorge and goes along picturesque villages. San Juan de La Rambla is a beautiful town that has one of the best coastlines in the north of the island.

BARRANCO DE RUIZ & SAN JUAN DE LA RAMBLA

Distance: The total distance for this hike was 9km for a loop trail.

Hike duration: This hike’s duration was 2h and 20 minutes. Adding a snack break this hike shouldn’t take more than 3h.

Elevation gain: 553m

Difficulty: This hike is moderately easy. The biggest challenge is probably the first section of climbing to the top of Barranco Seco as well as navigating the trail towards San Juan de la Rambla (just download my map from Strava to feel safer).

Gear needed: This is a short hike but I recommend bringing a windbreaker, sun protection and rain jacket just in case. If you’re unsure on what else to bring for a hike, read this guide.

My Strava map + gpx file for your watch or a phone: BARRANCO SECO

GETTING TO BARRANCO DE RUIZ HIKE

The starting point for Barranco de Ruiz hike is located right at the Zona Recreativa Barranco de Ruiz.

By car: You can leave your car here. This car park is quite small so I recommend arriving very early or late afternoon.

By bus: Line 108 (Santa Cruz – Icod de los Vinos) or line 366 (Puerto de la Cruz – Buenavista). You can find current bus schedules at Titsa website.

MY EXPERIENCE HIKING BARRANCO DE RUIZ

At the end of my stay in Tenerife, I was trying to find as many interesting short hikes as possible. During my stay I hiked some number of short trails, such as: Roques de Garcia, Chinyero Volcano, Monte Aguirre, Roque de Taborno and Sombrero de Chasna. Barranco de Ruiz was the last one of my list.

Our adventure started at the Barranco Ruiz recreational area, where we started our climb up the La Vera village. Climbing a few stairs, we gradually ascended, appreciating the views of the coast and Barranco de Ruiz.

It’s probably worth adding, that this section of the hike is its biggest challenge. We gained over 300 metres of elevation on the distance of 1,5km. Remember to take it slow and make breaks. This can be very strenuous on full sun.

After about 30 minutes we reached the top and the village of La Vera. This section of the trail goes along the road (wasn’t busy), we made a little stop and took some pictures posing with those cute colourful buildings. I wish I could see some of those colours in bigger cities.

After exploring the colourful village of Los Quevedos we started descending to Das Finca Hotel San Juan. That place wasn’t very interesting so we started descending towards San Juan de la Rambla. The trail there was completely overgrown so we kindly asked for a consent to pass along a farm field and soon found ourselves back on the trail. I recommend checking your GPS here and decide for yourself which way is best for you.

The last section of this hike is an absolutely stunning coastal walk with crashing waves and rugged beauty along the shoreline. This dramatic coastal scenery is worth every minute. After chilling for a bit at the final viewpoint we decided to head back. Important: be super careful when crossing the road, the traffic there can be insane.

CONCLUSION

We really loved this circular walk. Barranco Ruiz – San Juan de La Rambla is yet another great, short adventure that can be completed by anyone (as long as the trail isn’t overgrown :D). If you’re around the area and have spare 2-3h, I strongly recommend checking it out. Alternatively, you can just do the coastal part only.

Here’s my recommendation for some other easy hikes in Tenerife: Paisaje Lunar, Mirador de Samara, Roques de Garcia, Roque de Taborno, Barranco del Infierno, Monte Aguirre and Chinyero Volcano.

HAVE YOU SEEN MY OTHER HIKING GUIDES FOR TENERIFE?

I lived and worked in Tenerife for three months, hiking nearly every day. I’ve explored over 70 trails to bring you an ultimate guide – highlighting the Top 30 Best Hikes in Tenerife. Each guide has a detailed description including the distance, difficulty, gear needed and everything else needed to complete the hike successfully. If you happen to notice any changes on the trail that should be updated – please drop the comment below so I can keep this guide up to date.

If you prefer easier hikes that can be completed under 3 hours, check out Top 12 Short Hikes in Tenerife guide.

Safe and happy hiking my friend!