Municipality description

Santa Cruz de Tenerife is situated in the northeast of the island of Tenerife. It's the capital of the island, as well as the capital of the Autonomous Community together with Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

It has a territory of 150,56km² in the slopes of the mountains of Anaga. The Plaza de España, meeting point, and its Monument to the Fallen, in the same place where the first Castilian conquerors arrived to the island, receive the visitors coming to Santa Cruz Harbour. The building of the Cabildo Insular (Island's Council), a monument in eclectic style, faces the sea, too. Not far from there rises the white, smooth lines of the modern Auditorium of Tenerife.

In downtown, García Sanabria's Park, with more than 200 plant species from all over the World, is a little botanic garden surrended by the town's hubbub. The Rambla goes near the Park, constitutes the axis of the town's streets and shows in its course a permanent, open-ais exhibition of twenty sculptures made by outstanding international contemporaneous artists.

The calle de la Noria is the only remain of old Santa Cruz. It goes from the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, whose tower was built between 1776 and 1782. In this street is where many groups participating in Santa Cruz's Carnival, a Feast of National Touristic Interest, have their seat.

More information

Símbolos de Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Flag

Granted by Royal Order of King Charles IV of 28 august 1803.

On a white cloth, the town's coat-of-arms.

The white, the colour of the Bourbon Dinasty, alludes Santa Cruz's loyalty to the Spanish Royal House.

Coat-of-arms

Granted by Royal Order of King Charles IV of 28 august 1803.

Or, a Saint Jame's cross gules, charged with a latin cross sinople. In base, three lion heads sable placed two and one, the central one pierced by the point of Saint Jame's cross. Bordure azure wavy argent, charged in chief with an island, and in the rest with three castles alternating with four anchors, all argent. Ensigned with a royal crown. Under the base, the First Class Cross of the Order de Beneficence.

The Saint Jame's cross alludes to the victory over Admiral Nelson on 25 july 1797, the day when this saint is celebrated. The green cross alludes to the town's name, due to the fact that the Castilian conquerors held their first mass on 3 may 1494, Holy Cross' Day, after landing in the shores of the current municipality. The lion heads represent the three victories again English assaults, those led by Blake (30 april 1657), Jenning (6 november 1706) and Nelson. The bordure represents the ocean; the island, Tenerife; the castles, those that in the past defended the town; and the anchors, the port. The decoration hanging from the shield was granted for the extraordinary behaviour of the town's inhabitants during the cholera epidemic suffered in 1893; the same fact made the town earn the title of Very Benefic.

 

In the same island...

• Adeje
  
• Arafo
  
• Arico
  
• Arona
  
• Buenavista del Norte
  
• Candelaria
  
• Fasnia
  
• Garachico
  
• Granadilla de Abona
  
• La Guancha
  
• Guí­a de Isora
  
• Güí­mar
  
• Icod de los Vinos
  
• La Matanza de Acentejo
  
• La Orotava
  
• La Victoria de Acentejo
  
• Puerto de la Cruz
  
• Los Realejos
  
• El Rosario
  
• San Cristóbal de La Laguna
  
• San Juan de la Rambla
  
• San Miguel de Abona
  
• Santa Cruz de Tenerife
  
• Santa Úrsula
  
• Santiago del Teide
  
• El Sauzal
  
• Los Silos
  
• Tacoronte
  
• El Tanque
  
• Tegueste
  
• Vilaflor