El Bollullo or Los Gigantes: the Tenerife verdict
Published 2026-09-29. Conditions described are typical and never guaranteed.
The verdict first
These two beaches share a colour and almost nothing else. Both are black volcanic sand, both sit under dramatic rock, and both photograph beautifully. Then the sea decides everything. If you are a surfer, a bodyboarder or someone who wants a wild cove with real character and does not mind earning it on foot, go to El Bollullo on the north coast. If you want a calm scenic swim, or you are here to get on a boat to see whales and dolphins or paddle a kayak along a cliff wall, go to Los Gigantes on the west coast.
Put plainly: El Bollullo is a beach you read before you enter, an exposed Atlantic spot with swell, shore break and current and little lifeguard cover. Los Gigantes is a beach you can settle into more easily, sheltered by a harbour breakwater and usually staffed by a lifeguard in season. Neither is a swimming pool, and conditions on any coast change day to day, so treat every claim here as typical rather than guaranteed. But the broad split is honest and it holds: one is a session beach, the other is a swim and boat beach.
The rest of this guide is about the details that flip the answer, and there are a few of them.
The sand and the setting
El Bollullo is the wilder scene by some distance. It is a dark cove tucked below ochre cliffs and banana terraces near La Orotava, and the walk in through the plantations is part of the day out. There is no road to the sand. You park up near El Rincon, then descend a track and path to the cove, or take the longer coastal walk from the Puerto de la Cruz side. Bring proper shoes for the descent, because it is a genuine walk rather than a stroll from a car park. That effort is exactly why the cove keeps its character and its space.
Los Gigantes is smaller and tidier, a compact black sand beach called Playa de los Guios sitting right beneath the tallest sea cliffs on the island. The dark sand against the ochre rock and the blue water is a big part of the draw, and you reach it easily from the town above rather than hiking in. It is a cove rather than a long resort strip, so it fills up, but the access could not be more different from its northern rival.
One quirk of Los Gigantes worth planning around: those giant cliffs throw the beach into shadow earlier than open sand would, so the sun leaves well before sunset. Come in the morning to early afternoon for full light and the calmest water. If you want the cliffs glowing gold in the late afternoon, watch them from the harbour wall or from a boat instead.
The water is the whole argument
This is where you actually choose. El Bollullo faces the open Atlantic and picks up swell all year, with bigger winter surf and calmer summer seas. It is a powerful north coast beach break with rocks and current to respect, which makes it a real draw for experienced surfers and bodyboarders when the conditions line up. It is not a learner wave and it is not a safe dip on a big day. On a small calm day a confident swimmer can enjoy it, but when the surf is up it is for experienced water users only, and on the biggest days the smartest move is to watch the sets from the beach bar rather than paddle out.
Los Gigantes is the opposite proposition. The harbour breakwater shelters Playa de los Guios so that on a typical day the water is settled, and the west coast is often calmer than the south. That makes it one of the more relaxed swims on this side of the island. There is a catch to note honestly: the sand shelves into deep water quickly, so it suits swimmers more than small paddlers and toddlers. Follow the flags and read the sea before you go in, as you should anywhere, but the everyday mood here is calm where El Bollullo's is lively.
Short version: if the sea being alive is the point, El Bollullo. If you want the sea to leave you alone so you can float and then get on a boat, Los Gigantes.
Facilities and crowd
Neither of these is a full resort beach with a promenade of cafes, but there is a clear gap between them. El Bollullo is deliberately minimal. There is a simple beach bar above the cove that typically serves drinks and food, and it is a fine spot for a barraquito coffee with the view over the sets. Beyond that the facilities are limited, so bring water and sun cover and confirm the bar's opening hours locally, because they vary with the season and the weather. Lifeguard presence is to be confirmed and is best treated as little or none. This is a wild beach and you should plan for it as one.
Los Gigantes is more equipped. There are showers, toilets and changing rooms, the town sits right above, and sunbeds and parasols are available to hire in season. A lifeguard is usually on duty in the busy months, with hours to be confirmed. The crowd skews toward swimmers, sunbathers and people heading out on the water, and because it is small it can feel busy quickly at peak times, so an early arrival pays off twice: better light and more room.
The El Bollullo crowd is self selecting. The walk in filters out anyone after an easy sunbed day, so you tend to share it with surfers, bodyboarders and people who came specifically for the wild scenery. That is precisely its appeal, and precisely why it will frustrate anyone expecting services on tap.
When the other one wins
Here are the situations that should override the headline verdict.
- You came to be on the water, not just in it. Los Gigantes is one of the best launch points on the island. The sheltered waters off the cliffs hold resident pilot whales and dolphins year round, and boat trips, kayak hire and other activities run from the marina beside the beach. If whales, dolphins or a paddle along the cliff wall are on your list, this beach wins outright, whatever your surf ambitions. Book ahead in the busy months, and treat operators and prices as to be confirmed.
- The swell is big and you are not an expert. On a large winter day El Bollullo is a beach to admire rather than enter. If your day falls then, the calmer sheltered water at Los Gigantes is the safer and more pleasant swim.
- You want wildness and a wave over comfort. If the surf is running clean and you can read the ocean, El Bollullo is the one with the character and the ride. No amount of Los Gigantes shelter replaces that if a session is what you are chasing.
- You are travelling with small paddlers. Neither of these is ideal for tiny children. El Bollullo is exposed, and Los Gigantes deepens fast. For a genuinely gentle family dip you are better on the south coast entirely, at somewhere like Los Cristianos behind its harbour, or on the wide groomed sand of Playa Fanabe.
Geography, honestly
Do not forget these beaches sit on opposite coasts. El Bollullo is a north coast experience near La Orotava, best paired with the greener, wilder end of the island. Los Gigantes is out west under the cliffs. You would rarely do both in one relaxed day, so let your base and your plans steer the choice as much as the sand does. If your trip already leans toward the windswept and the natural, El Bollullo fits the mood, much as the open expanse of La Tejita does further south for the windsurf and kitesurf crowd. If you are on the west or south coast and want scenery with an easier swim, Los Gigantes slots in neatly.
For more on the wider island and the best months to travel, the Tenerife beach hub and the seasonal timing guide are the sensible next reads. Couples chasing the dramatic end of the island might also weigh the more off the beaten track shores before deciding.
So which one
If I had to hand you a single sentence: choose El Bollullo for a wild cove, a walk in through banana terraces and a wave for those who can handle it, and choose Los Gigantes for a calmer scenic swim and the finest whale, dolphin and kayak launch on the west coast. The day's swell, your swimming confidence and whether you want to get on a boat are the three levers that decide it. Get those straight and neither choice can disappoint you.
Planning a club day in Tenerife
If you want to build a beach day around loungers, service and a booked spot rather than a wild walk in, browse the options and enquire on the Tenerife beach clubs page. It is the easiest way to line up a day that matches the coast and the mood you are after, and to check current details before you travel.