It is very hard to avoid stereotypes when a German blogger is writing a posting about bananas. Preparing for our October trip to Tenerife, my wife and I found out about Finca Las Margaritas in the Southern part of the island – a plantation where you can not just only see these wonderful guys grow, but also to learn how they are in fact handled. Sounded cool – we tried it.
Finca Las Margaritas – Location & Admission
The large plantation is located at the very North of the touristic village of Las Galletas. The easiest way to get to the plantation is by car. There is a small and stony car park around, which is quite easy.
In fact, you just walk through a minor part of Las Margaritas, which is a running plantation. You can do self-guided tours, which are 7 Euro per adult. The tours are available Tuesday to Thursday 10:00 to 13:00hrs and Saturday 10:00 to noon. There are also guided tours for major groups available.
Finca Las Margaritas – Self-Guided Tour
At the self guided tour, you walk through given paths of the plantation. You are encouraged to walk into the aisles of plants in a limited way. The tour works in a way that there are several stations, which give you information in six languages, Spanish, English, German, French, Italian and Russian. The first station, for example, is about the vulcanic background of the islands, other are about the plants, how to seed, how to harvest, how to pamper them – and also the products. The final stage is tasting, of course.
The different stages are very well done. The language on the signs is good, which is definitely key for this kind of tour. Here and there, you can also be a bit of a voyeur and watch the people working in the plantation. There are a lot of interesting facts about how banana is grown and different species of the plant.
There are not just bananas in Las Margaritas. Some two per cent of the space of the plantation is used to grow papaya, mango, orange and avocado. There are also some nice flowers to spot. It is really nicely done and arranged, so that you see more than just bananas growing.
Finca Las Margaritas – Tasting & Services
As mentioned above, the final stage is the tasting. You can grab a banana from the plantation out of a box. There is also a hut, which serves as shop for banana products. After the banana tasting, you can also see how gofio, the typical Canary Island cereal, is done and try gofio products as well as banana preserve and liqueur. Of course, there is a marketing reason behind it and you can purchase the items in the shop (banana preserve is amazing, by the way).
The hut also features the toilet, which is in quite nice state, regarding that you are in the middle of a running plantation. From the shop and tasting area, you walk the same way back to the entrance.
Finca Las Margaritas – My View
Visiting the banana plantation Finca Las Margaritas was definitely a nice time. The place is driven with a lot of love, the people are very charming and it is more informative than you might feel like on first sight. In addition, it is a comparably quiet place, which I enjoyed as well. The tasting is a lovely add-on which finally justifies the price. If you are around Southern Tenerife, this is definitely a place worth keeping in mind for a visit, also with kids.
