What's on in La Guancha

La Guancha is a small farming town on the green northern slopes of Tenerife, climbing from the coast up towards the pine forest and the edge of the Teide caldera. It's potato and vine country, quiet and unshowy, with terraced fields and old chestnut woods on the higher ground.

Its fiestas keep distinctly local customs alive. The patron saint festivities for the Virgen de la Esperanza are the main celebration, and the Bajada de las Hayas — a procession in which villagers carry beech branches down from the mountain — is a tradition you won't find anywhere else. The Fiestas of the Cruz de la Asomada round out the year. Here's what's on while you're here.