The pretty streets of ARONA 's tiny centre are good for a short stroll and the modest, typically Canarian, seventeenth-century Iglesia San Antonio Abad at its heart is also worth a peek, but the town is primarily of use as a good base from which to make the hike (4hr return) to the thousand-metre high flat-topped summit of the Rogue del Conde for rewarding views over southern Tenerife and La Gomera.
For the large part, the shadeless route up Conde follows a steep, loose path along an old pack-road - developed to allow cultivation of the plateau on the top of the hill - though the irregularly spaced painted waymarks occasionally deviate from this. To find the trailhead, leave the plaza in front of the church by the road that runs uphill to the left and cross the main road onto an unmarked road. After a couple of bends this road straightens, leaving town in the direction of the mountain. Turn left at a statue of Jesus and right at C/Vento 30. Here, painted trail markers follow a route that immediately crosses a gorge and then heads up the left-hand side of the hill, the path getting steeper and steeper until it reaches the summit.
Bus #480 connects Arona with Los Cristianos (36 daily; 45min; ( Euros1). There are a number of tapas bars in town, but for a proper restaurant meal try El Patio Canario, C/de Dominguez Alfonso 4 (closed Sun). Run by a Belgian-Canario family, the restaurant sources its dishes from both culinary traditions. The food is good and the prices moderate. If you have your own transport, another option is a rustic restaurant by the road to Ifonche, west off the Arona-Vilaflor road. Refugio (tel 922/725 894; closed Wed, Sat & Sun) has a small, though relatively expensive, range of tasty home-made dishes and fantastic views over the southern coast from the patio. It also offers B&B ( ( Euros48-60) and is run by keen hikers and paragliders, happy to advise (in English) about local routes and conditions.
Video of Arona
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