If you're staying in Costa Adeje or Playa de las Américas, Puerto Colón is your port, and the choice is huge: 64 of the 113 registered whale-watching boats in Tenerife are based here. What sets this port apart isn't the animals, which are the same ones you'd see from Los Cristianos, but the format. Big catamarans with drinks included are king here, along with 3-hour trips with a sandwich and a swim, and 4.5-hour trips up to Los Gigantes and Masca with lunch and a hotel pick-up.
The catch is the distance. One comparison website estimates about 36 minutes at sea to reach deep water, against 12 from Los Cristianos, so the sensible minimum here is 2 hours. If all you want is to see pilot whales in the shortest possible time, the short trip from Los Cristianos is ten minutes away.
Our picks
1
The all-round catamaran
Eden: 2 or 3 h, 50 people at most, water, soft drinks and beer included; the 3-hour trip adds about 30 minutes of snorkelling.
GetYourGuide2 - 3 hours
Costa Adeje: Whale-Watching Catamaran Tour with Drinks
4.7 (4,210 reviews)
from €31.50Check availability
2
For children who want to see underwater
Royal Delfin, a catamaran with 16 panoramic windows below the waterline. It isn't a submarine: it stays on the surface.
GetYourGuide2 hours
Costa Adeje: Whale & Dolphin Submarine Vision Mini Cruise
4.5 (2,338 reviews)
from €33Check availability
3
Sailing yacht for 11
Pecazul, from Tenerife Sailing Charters: 3 h under sail with a swim, snorkelling, sandwiches and unlimited drinks. Not for you if you get seasick.
GetYourGuide3 hours
Tenerife: Whale & Dolphin Watching with Drinks and Snacks
4.5 (3,088 reviews)
from €65Check availability
4
Half a day at sea
A 3- to 5-hour cruise with snacks and drinks from GetYourGuide's "Originals" range. Check the pontoon on your voucher.
GetYourGuide3 - 5 hours
Costa Adeje: Whale & Dolphin Eco-Cruise with Snacks & Drinks
4.6 (5,829 reviews)
from €47Check availability
Puerto Colón: the harbour and its pontoons
Puerto Colón is a private marina (Puerto Colón S.A.) on Avenida de Colón, with 364 berths for boats up to 24 metres, next to La Pinta beach. It's 16 km from Tenerife South airport. Many people place it in Playa de las Américas, but it's in the municipality of Adeje.
What confuses people most here is boarding. Each company has its own pontoon (pantalán) and your voucher will tell you which. These are the ones used by the best-selling boats:
| Pontoon | Boats |
|---|---|
| 4 | Bonadea II–Diomedea; Pecazul (Tenerife Sailing Charters), with a "Pantalán Nº4" sign at the head |
| 6 | Monte Cristo; White Tenerife |
| 10 or 15 | Freebird (Avenida de Colón 11) |
| 12 | Royal Delfin (Tenerife Dolphin) |
Who sails from Puerto Colón
Freebird (Funcat Primero S.L.). Three catamarans: the Freebird One, 28 × 20 metres, with a bar, a disco, a second deck and 18 double sunloungers, which the company bills as the largest excursion catamaran in the Canary Islands; and the F13 and F24, two 22-metre Fountaine Pajot Tahiti 75s. Freebird is the company; the Freebird One is just one of its three boats. It's on Turismo de Tenerife's Sustainability Charter. More in our Freebird review.
Tenerife Dolphin. It runs the Royal Delfin from pontoon 12, a surface catamaran with 16 panoramic underwater windows. Listings sell it as "underwater vision", but it doesn't dive: the real submarine leaves from Amarilla Marina (formerly Marina San Miguel). It takes wheelchairs on the main deck only.
Eden Catamaran S.L. Founded in 2003. Its catamaran carries up to 50 people, and the company itself says it spends no more than 15 minutes with the same group of animals, half what the law allows. It also has the Blue Fin, for private trips of up to 7 people and sport fishing.
Bonadea II–Diomedea. The smallest option in the harbour: a 7-metre RIB with a hydrophone for a maximum of 6 passengers, on shared or private 2-hour trips from pontoon 4. The captain and guide, Sergio, has more than 27 years at sea. There's no toilet on board and the price isn't published on the website. Not to be confused with the "No-Chase" trip from Los Cristianos, which is run by another company: we explain it in our Bonadea review.
Also sailing: Tenerife Sailing Charters' yacht Pecazul (40 feet, 11 people at most), the Monte Cristo catamaran, which specialises in sunset trips with a buffet and transfers, and White Tenerife, an adults-only catamaran for 12 people at most, with a glass floor and a hydrophone, from pontoon 6.
Prices in Puerto Colón
| Trip | Duration | Includes | Adult / child |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freebird | 2 h | beer, soft drinks, water | €30 / €15 |
| Freebird | 3 h | sandwich, drinks, transfer | €47 / €23.50 |
| Freebird Masca and Los Gigantes | 4.5 h | lunch, sangria, transfer | €62 / €31 |
| Royal Delfin Mini Cruise | 2 h | not specified | €33 / €20 |
| Royal Delfin Atlantic Cruise | 3 h | not specified | €50 / €30 |
| Royal Delfin Los Gigantes–Masca | 4.5 h | not specified | €63 / €40 |
| Pecazul (Tenerife Sailing Charters) | 3 h | food, drinks, snorkelling, pick-up | €65 / €55 (under-10s) |
At Freebird the child rate covers ages 4 to 11 and under-4s go free; the 4.5-hour trip with a pick-up in the north (Puerto de la Cruz) costs €69. On the Royal Delfin babies go free. Tenerife Sailing Charters asks for a €25 deposit, with the rest paid on board. Eden starts at €31.50 on GetYourGuide.
The cheapest ticket on the platforms is a 2-hour trip for €25 on Tiqets. Watch out: there's one at €25 advertised as leaving "from Los Cristianos" that actually boards on Avenida de Colón, right here in Puerto Colón. Always check the boarding address, not the title.
Free transfers and getting there
One of the real advantages of this port is the free pick-up, but there's small print:
- Freebird: the free coach only runs for the 3- and 4.5-hour trips, and in the south only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, between Los Gigantes and Golf del Sur. The 2-hour trip has no pick-up.
- Royal Delfin: free transport from the main hotels in the south.
- Tenerife Sailing Charters: hotel pick-up included on the shared trip.
By bus (the "guagua", as it's known locally), the hub is Costa Adeje bus station, where the 40 (from the South airport, €3.70), the 110 and 111 (from Santa Cruz), the 343 (from Puerto de la Cruz via both airports) and the 473 and 477 (from Los Gigantes) all terminate. Along the coast runs the 467, linking Los Cristianos, Costa Adeje and La Caleta. Check on the app or on titsa.com which stop leaves you closest to your pontoon.
If you're driving, the marina's website has a parking section with the terms; if in doubt, ring the marina office (922 71 41 63).
The sea from Puerto Colón
The Adeje coast lies in the lee, sheltered from the prevailing wind. What counts here is the journey: the first part of any trip is the run out to the pilot whale grounds.
Swim stops are made well away from the animals. Freebird stops near Diego Hernández beach on the 2- and 3-hour trips, and near Masca on the 4.5-hour trip. Eden adds about 30 minutes of snorkelling on its 3-hour trip.
If you get seasick, choose a catamaran over the Tenerife Sailing Charters yacht: its own listing advises against it for anyone who gets seasick easily.
Which boat to choose in Puerto Colón
- Families with young children: Freebird's 2- or 3-hour trip (under-4s free) or the Royal Delfin, with its underwater windows.
- A full day on the water: the 4.5-hour trip to Los Gigantes and Masca with Freebird or the Royal Delfin. It's the way to see the cliffs without driving across the island, although from Los Gigantes harbour itself the same fits into 2 hours.
- A group of 6 or fewer: Bonadea II–Diomedea. Bear in mind there's no toilet.
- Couples without children: White Tenerife, adults only and 12 at most, or the Pecazul yacht.
- Party atmosphere: Freebird, if you get the Freebird One, with its bar and disco.
The comparison of all three ports is in the main whale-watching guide, and what's on dry land in our Costa Adeje guide.
GetYourGuide3 - 5 hours
Costa Adeje: Whale & Dolphin Eco-Cruise with Snacks & Drinks
4.6 (5,829 reviews)
from €47Check availability
GetYourGuide2 - 3 hours
Costa Adeje: Whale-Watching Catamaran Tour with Drinks
4.7 (4,210 reviews)
from €31.50Check availability
GetYourGuide3 hours
Tenerife: Marine-Life Tour with Transfer, Buffet and Drinks
4.8 (2,221 reviews)
from €63Check availability
Tiqets02:00
Costa Adeje: 2-Hr Guided Whale & Dolphin Watching Cruise
5.0 (1 reviews)
from €25Check availability
GetYourGuide2 hours
Costa Adeje: Whale & Dolphin Submarine Vision Mini Cruise
4.5 (2,338 reviews)
from €33Check availability
GetYourGuide3 - 4.5 hours
Adeje: Whale and Dolphin Watching Cruise with Lunch and Swim
4.5 (1,774 reviews)
from €50Check availability
See all options on GetYourGuide →
Frequently asked questions
Which pontoon in Puerto Colón do the whale-watching boats leave from?
It depends on the boat: Freebird boards at 10 or 15, the Royal Delfin at 12, Monte Cristo and White Tenerife at 6, and Bonadea and Tenerife Sailing Charters at 4. The exact pontoon is on your voucher.
How much does whale watching from Costa Adeje cost?
The 2-hour trips cost €30 with Freebird and €33 on the Royal Delfin. The 3-hour trips cost €47 to €65, and the 4.5-hour trips to Los Gigantes and Masca, €62–63.
Is there a free hotel pick-up?
On many trips, yes. Freebird offers it on the 3- and 4.5-hour trips, in the south only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays; the Royal Delfin picks up from the main hotels in the south.
Is the Royal Delfin a submarine?
No. It's a surface catamaran with 16 panoramic windows below the waterline. The real tourist submarine, run by Submarine Safaris, leaves from Amarilla Marina and doesn't do whale watching.
Puerto Colón or Los Cristianos?
Both take you to the same pilot whales. Los Cristianos is closer to them and allows 1.5-hour trips; Puerto Colón has more boats, catamarans with food and free transfers.
