El Bollullo or La Tejita: which Tenerife beach wins
Published 2026-08-31. Conditions described are typical and never guaranteed.
The verdict in one screen
These two beaches are both wild, both free to walk onto, and both a world away from the groomed golden sand of the south. That is where the similarity ends. If you ride a board with the wind in your sails, or you simply want a vast open beach where you can lay a towel far from the next family, La Tejita is your beach. If you want a dramatic black sand cove under towering cliffs, a real sense of arrival earned on foot, and a north coast surf break with genuine character, El Bollullo is the one to circle.
Neither is a soft resort beach and neither should be treated as a safe swimming pool. Both are exposed to the Atlantic, both carry current and shore break on their day, and both have limited or unconfirmed lifeguard cover. Read the sea every time, and choose by what you actually want to do rather than by which name sounds prettier.
Short version: La Tejita for wind, space and early swims. El Bollullo for scenery, swell and a proper north coast adventure.
Sand and setting: two very different kinds of wild
El Bollullo is a compact cove of dark volcanic sand sitting below ochre cliffs and banana terraces near La Orotava. It is intimate and enclosed, the kind of place that feels like a discovery even when other people are there. The black sand against the coloured rock is a big part of why photographers and scenery lovers make the effort, and the effort is real: there is no road to the sand.
La Tejita is the opposite in scale. It is long, wide and open, running below the red cone of Montana Roja, and the sand shifts from pale to darker tones along its length. Where El Bollullo hems you in, La Tejita gives you room to breathe. On a busy day it still swallows the crowd because there is simply so much of it, and the far end toward the cone is an established naturist stretch, so you can pick clothed or naturist to suit your preference.
If you value that sense of scale and a horizon with nothing built on it, this is one of the most convincingly wild beaches in the south of the island. If you prefer the drama of a hidden pocket beneath cliffs, the north coast cove takes it.
Which one photographs better
Honestly, it depends on your taste. El Bollullo is the more theatrical single frame: cliffs, banana greenery and dark sand stacked into one tight, striking scene. La Tejita is the wider, calmer composition, all long sand and the red volcanic cone. For a couples style day where the setting is half the point, browse the romantic beach ideas and pick by mood.
Water and swimming: read the sea, both times
This is where the two beaches part company most clearly, and where the honest advice matters most.
El Bollullo is an exposed north coast beach open to Atlantic swell. That means frequent shore break and current, and little or no lifeguard cover, so it should be treated as a wild beach rather than a supervised one. On a calm, small day a confident swimmer can enjoy it. When the surf is up it is for experienced water users only, and the safest move on a big day is to stand on the sand and watch the sets roll in. This is not a promise of safe conditions on any given day, it is a reminder to check before you commit.
La Tejita has a different rhythm, driven by the wind rather than the swell. Early in the day, before the trade winds build, the water can be calm and clear and genuinely pleasant to swim in. Once those same winds fill in through the afternoon, the exposure that makes the beach fly for boards brings chop and current, and the swim becomes less relaxing. The tactic is simple: swim early, ride later. On a blustery afternoon, the calmer choice is a sheltered bay such as Los Cristianos a short drive away.
So who wins the water round? For an actual swim, La Tejita, but only if you go in the morning. For the person who wants to be near powerful, dramatic Atlantic water rather than in it, El Bollullo delivers the spectacle.
Sport: surf versus wind
If your day is built around riding something, the choice makes itself.
El Bollullo is a well known north coast surf and bodyboard spot that picks up swell when the conditions line up. It is a powerful beach break on an exposed coast, with rocks and current to respect, not a gentle learner wave. It rewards riders who can read the ocean and punishes those who cannot. Surfers and bodyboarders time their visits to the swell for good reason.
La Tejita, together with neighbouring El Medano, is the windsurf and kitesurf heart of the Canaries. The steady trade winds that funnel across the south end of the island make this one of the most reliable stretches in Europe for boards, especially through the summer, with schools and rentals in the area and long open sand to rig and launch on. Riders gather here from across the continent because the wind delivers.
- Want to surf a swell driven break? El Bollullo.
- Want to windsurf or kitesurf a wind driven beach? La Tejita.
They are not really competing for the same rider, which is the cleanest way to settle it.
Facilities and crowd: minimal at both, in different ways
Set your expectations low on comfort and you will not be disappointed by either.
El Bollullo has a simple beach bar above the cove that typically serves drinks and food, and it is a fine spot for a barraquito with the sets in view. Beyond that the facilities are minimal, so bring water and sun cover, and confirm opening hours locally because they can vary with the season and the weather. The walk in through the banana plantations is part of the experience, and proper shoes for the descent are not optional.
La Tejita, being a protected natural beach, also keeps things sparse: a beach bar and some parking near the access, but little shade and limited services along most of the sand. Bring water, sun protection and your own shade. The upside of that thin infrastructure is exactly the wildness people come for.
On crowds, La Tejita has the advantage of size. It absorbs people because it is so long and wide, and the naturist far end spreads visitors out further. El Bollullo is smaller and can feel busier on a fine weekend, though the walk in filters out the casual crowd who want to park beside the sand.
If neither quite fits
Both of these are session and scenery beaches rather than easy family days. If you are travelling with young children who want calm, shallow water and full facilities, look instead at the sheltered town beaches; the family beach guide points you to the gentler options. And if solitude is the real goal, the quieter corners of the island are worth a scan before you decide.
When each one wins outright
Here is the honest flip test, because conditions change the answer more than opinion does.
La Tejita wins when there is wind, when you want space, when you plan to swim first thing, and when you want a long natural beach with a naturist option. It also wins for the rider who wants reliable summer trade winds, roughly June to September being the peak of the season.
El Bollullo wins when the north coast is working for surf, when you want the most dramatic setting of the two, and when you are happy to earn your beach on foot for a cove that feels genuinely hidden. It also wins for the scenery seeker who values a striking, enclosed view over open sand.
The situation that flips a La Tejita day into an El Bollullo day is a flat, windless spell in the south paired with a clean swell in the north. The reverse flip is a big Atlantic north swell that closes out the cove, on which the wide, wind friendly southern beach becomes the sensible call. Check both coasts before you drive. For a broader sense of the seasons, the timing guide is a useful companion, and the island overview ties the coasts together.
Plan a beach club day
Neither of these wild beaches is a beach club beach, and that is precisely the point of choosing them. If you want the other half of a Tenerife trip, a comfortable sunbed day with service and shade, use our Tenerife beach club page to enquire about a club day and pair your wild morning with an easy afternoon.