Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz de La Palma - Overview:

The capital of La Palma, Santa Cruz is a pleasant, small, historic city with many interesting old Colonial buildings with their typical Canarian balconies, attractive little squares, museums, street market and a seafront promenade. There is no purpose-built tourist accommodation in Santa Cruz (this can be found at nearby Los Cancajos) but there is a variety of shops and restaurants. We think Santa Cruz makes an ideal alternative to staying in a resort if you are looking for authentic Canarian culture and atmosphere.

Santa Cruz de La Palma - Geography:

Santa Cruz de La Palma (Spanish for the Holy Cross) is the capital of the island and is situated on the east coast. The name is sometimes written S/C de La Palma, or just Santa Cruz. On the island it is sometimes, confusingly, referred to as La Palma. Santa Cruz de La Palma is linked with a main highway encircling every part of the island and is located north of the La Palma Airport.

Santa Cruz de La Palma has characteristic steeply inclined alleys and offers a really lively ambience. Among the most important sights there are the Town Hall and the church Iglesia del Salvador, both 16th century, and the interesting Museum of Natural Science. A few kilometers out of town is located the Santuario de la Virgen de las Nieves, a sanctuary of the island's patroness.

Behind the picturesque port-town of Santa Cruz, like a colossal natural amphitheatre, is the mighty volcanic crater Caldereta. The coastline and the valley areas comprises mostly of farmland, the remaining area around Santa Cruz de la Palma and the east-central core are made up of small residential urbanisations.

Santa Cruz de la Palma has a port serving ferry routes to the neighbouring Canary islands of Tenerife (Los Cristianos and Santa Cruz de Tenerife), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Arrecife. Other vessels leave for the nearest large Iberian port in mainland Spain - Cadiz.

Santa Cruz de La Palma - History:

The city was founded by Alonso Fernandez de Lugo on May 3, 1493. It was located between a river which is situated by a cave named Tedote (now Cueva de Caras, located north of the city). The city, originally called Villa del Apuron, served as a port that connected routes to the Americas, exporting goods from the island such as sugarcane.

The city was invaded by pirates and was later reconstructed and fortified against future pirate attacks. Famous fortifications include the Castillo de Santa Catalina and Castillo de la Virgen.

An economic crisis that affected the island's agricultural industry brought the greatest loss of population in the city's history. This limited its expansion and caused the population to stabilise and drop to 11,000. The population did not approach its original 18,000 again for the next hundred years.

Santa Cruz - Our holiday accommodation and service:

If you travel with secretdestinations.com holidays you can choose from many hand picked hotels, privately owned holiday apartments and villas with pools in privileged secluded destinations in La Palma, including Santa Cruz, in beautiful coastal, rural, mountain locations with an authentic taste of unspoiled La Palma.

Additionally, all of the Canary Islands are ideal for a spot of winter sun. So if you're looking for an activity holiday walking, cycling or trekking, exploring the Valle Aridane or volcanoes in the Caldera de Taburiente Natural Park, or simply sunbathing and relaxing, call our holiday team today. We can also assist you with Canaries flights to La Palma (via Tenerife), ferry travel and island car hire.