TITSA, Tenerife's buses: fares, the Ten+ card, airports and Teide

TITSA (Transportes Interurbanos de Tenerife, S.A.) runs the island's green buses, which locals call "guaguas". For a visitor it works well: buses from both airports, a night service to the south and routes to almost every town. Where it falls short is the mountains, where Teide, Masca and Teno have few departures and unforgiving timetables.

How to pay: cash, bank card or Ten+

Fares are charged by the kilometre. There are three ways to pay:

• Single ticket on the bus, in cash or with a contactless Visa or Mastercard that doesn't ask for a PIN, including from your phone or watch, on every route and at the same price. A same-day return gives you 10% off on journeys of 20 km or more.
• Ten+ card with stored credit: it costs €2, you top it up in €5 steps to €100 and several people travelling together can use it. The credit expires a year after the last top-up.
• Tourist passes: €10 for 24 hours and €50 for 7 days of unlimited buses and tram from first use. They're personal and loaded onto a Ten+ card or the Ten+ Móvil app; they're sold at the machines in the airports, bus stations, kiosks and tram stops.

Children under 5 travel free if they don't take a seat. Resident passes and the free children's card (ages 5 to 9) are for Canary Islands residents only: if you read that "buses are free in Tenerife", it doesn't apply to you.

Fares on the journeys visitors use most

Check them at titsa.com before you travel.

The airport routes

Five routes serve Tenerife South airport: the 40 to Los Cristianos and Costa Adeje (first at 06:30, then every 30 minutes until 21:40; a 40-minute ride), the 10 direct to Santa Cruz (55 minutes), the 415 to Golf del Sur, Las Galletas and San Isidro, the 343 express to the North airport and Puerto de la Cruz (four a day in each direction) and the night bus 711, which leaves for Los Cristianos and Costa Adeje nine times between 23:00 and 04:50.

The 111 doesn't go into the terminal (it stops at the motorway junction) and the 450 doesn't serve the airport. Tenerife North airport is served by the 20 (Santa Cruz and La Laguna, every 25 minutes), the 30 (Puerto de la Cruz, 30 minutes) and the 343. Taxis and transfers are covered in detail in airport transfers.

Useful routes for visitors

• South: the 467 links Las Galletas, Los Cristianos, Costa Adeje and La Caleta; the 473 and 477 go to Los Gigantes; the 470 runs from El Médano to Los Cristianos.
• South to the capital: take the 110 (55 minutes, direct) rather than the 111 (1 h 30 min, stopping at every junction). They cost the same.
• North: the 102 and 103 link Santa Cruz and La Laguna with Puerto de la Cruz; the 363 carries on via Icod and Garachico; the 381 goes to Loro Parque.
• Anaga: the 910 to Las Teresitas and the 946 to Taganana and Almáciga (8 a day on weekdays).

Teide and Teno: where the bus falls short

Two routes with a single departure a day go up to Teide. The 342 leaves Costa Adeje at 09:25 and Los Cristianos at 09:40, and comes back down from the cable car at 15:40. The 348 leaves Puerto de la Cruz at 09:30 and comes back down from the cable car at 16:05. They have a special fare with no Ten+ discount, and TITSA doesn't say whether the tourist passes are valid: bring cash or a card.

Since January, and until the roadworks finish, you can't reach Punta de Teno by private car, on foot or by bike: access is on the 369 from Buenavista, for €1 or with a tourist pass. Check the latest on the Buenavista town council website. The 355 to Masca changes its timetable depending on the day of the week.

If the timetables don't suit you, these trips pick you up at your hotel:

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Rules on board and handy tools

Luggage up to 100 × 60 × 25 cm and pets up to 10 kg in a carrier. To find out when your bus is due, text "TITSA" and the stop number to 7551 or use the official app. Customer service: 922 531 300, from 08:00 to 20:00.

Who it suits and who it doesn't

TITSA works for you if you're staying in the south and want to hop between beaches, get to the airport or head off to Santa Cruz or Puerto de la Cruz. It doesn't work for Teide in a hurry, or for stringing together several towns in the north-west in one day: for that, an island tour or a Teide trip with pick-up makes more sense. And if you're after a hop-on hop-off bus, the only one with a city route is in Santa Cruz: you'll find it in sightseeing buses.