Tour details
- 4.3/5:GetYourGuide rating, more than 6,100 reviews
- $103:From, per person, checked 20 Oct 2026
- 7 hours:Listed duration, with hotel pickup
- 1 hour:At the 3,555 m upper station
- 24 hours:Free cancellation before the tour
What to Expect on the Volcano Teide Cable Car Tour
Volcano Teide, the Teide cable car’s operator, also sells a seven-hour coach day from the resorts that bundles the ride with hotel pickup and a guide. Its Mount Teide Tour with Cable Car Ticket & Transfer started from $103 per person when we checked on 20 October 2026, and it includes a return cable car ticket, an official guide and transport from the north and south of the island.
The calendar below shows which pickup areas and languages run on your dates. The listing currently offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before, and you can reserve now and pay later.
Entry to Teide National Park is free, and the cable car is the main paid part of a visit. It reaches the upper station at 3,555 metres in under eight minutes. From there, two short trails lead to the La Fortaleza and Pico Viejo viewpoints without a permit, and on a clear day La Gomera is visible on the horizon.
You can do all of this without a tour. A return ticket bought from Volcano Teide costs €42 for a non-resident adult. The trouble is the parking: the car parks at the cable car base station are usually full from about 10:00 to 15:00, and the roads into the park climb through long series of bends.
This tour takes the driving and the ticket off your hands. A coach collects you near your hotel, the guide hands out cable car tickets at the base station, and you have an hour at the upper station before the group heads back down. GetYourGuide’s category scores for the tour are 4.5 out of 5 for the guide and 4.5 for transport. Many reviews name their guide and praise the drivers on the mountain roads.
The tour is rated 4.3 out of 5 from more than 6,100 reviews. Four points are worth knowing before you book:
- The cable car closes in strong wind or ice, sometimes at short notice. The tour still runs on those days, with a different route and a refund for the cable car part only.
- Much of the day is coach time. Collecting and dropping off guests across the resorts can take more than an hour at each end.
- Commentary can be given in two or three languages on the same coach, which slows it down.
- Pickup times are confirmed shortly before the day and can change, so a missed message can mean a missed coach.
The closures and the one-hour limit at the top are both in Volcano Teide’s own booking information. How long the pickup round takes depends on how many hotels are on your coach’s route.
For a first visit without a car, the tour gets you up the cable car with no driving or parking. It gives you little time to walk in the park itself.
Would a Cable Car Ticket and Your Own Car Suit You Better?
If you have a hire car and are happy on mountain roads, booking the cable car yourself costs less and lets you choose the time. The return ticket is €42 for a non-resident adult. Volcano Teide lets you move or cancel it free until 18:00 the day before, and free on a day the cable car is closed, so in a windy week you can switch to a calmer day.
The tour makes more sense if you don’t want to drive or would rather not hunt for a parking space at the base station. On Volcano Teide’s own site the tour starts from €92 and the ticket alone is €42, so about €50 per person pays for the coach, the guide and the pickup. For two or more people, a day’s car hire can cost less than that. Our guide to whether it is cheaper to rent a car or take a tour works through the figures, and driving or a guided tour covers who each option suits.
Five Tips Before You Book
- Check which days the coach serves your area before you pick a date. Volcano Teide runs pickups from the north and south every day, but Playa Paraíso and Los Gigantes only on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and Santa Cruz and Candelaria only on Mondays and Fridays. The French-speaking tour does not run on Wednesdays, Thursdays or Sundays.
- Ask which languages the guide will use on your date. Some coaches carry guests for two or three languages, and the guide repeats each part in turn.
- Check your email and phone the day before for your exact pickup time. The time on your booking is provisional, and some travellers who missed a changed time lost the tour without a refund.
- Check the cable car status page the day before, while you can still cancel for free. Volcano Teide’s Teide Today page lists the cable car and trail status for the day.
- Wear closed shoes with grippy soles and bring a warm layer. Sandals, flat-soled and open shoes are not allowed on the cable car, and the upper station is much colder than the coast.
How the Cable Car Day Runs
The listing gives a seven-hour day, with 56 pickup points across the north and south of the island and about 80 minutes on the coach to the park. Reviewers describe a similar pattern: the coach collects guests at several hotels and stops, makes a coffee stop on the way up and reaches the cable car base station mid-morning. The group then has about an hour and a half to two hours there, including any queue and the ride. On the way down they describe a stop at Roques de García and sometimes a shop before the drop-off round.
Several reviewers were back sooner than seven hours, some after four and a half to six. Those picked up first and dropped off last reported days of up to eight and a half hours. Your place on the pickup route makes a large difference to how long you spend on the coach.
Stop 1: The Coffee Stop on the Way Up
Reviewers describe a café stop of about 20 minutes on the climb. One reviewer had a stop in Vilaflor, which the guide used to help the group get used to the altitude. Toilets at some stops cost about €1, and with a full coach the queue can take much of the break, so bring a snack from your hotel.
Stop 2: The Teide Cable Car and the Upper Station
This is the main stop. The guide hands out tickets at the base station, where the Science and Legend exhibition is free to visit, and the ride takes under eight minutes. Volcano Teide limits the stay at the upper station to one hour. Some summer reviewers queued 30 to 40 minutes for the ascent, while others had almost no wait.
From the top, the trails to the La Fortaleza and Pico Viejo viewpoints are rough and rocky. One recent reviewer said the hour was just about enough to walk to one of them, so pick one before you go up. The tour includes the Teide Legend digital audio guide for these trails. The trail to the summit, Telesforo Bravo, needs a separate permit and is not part of this tour. Cabins hold up to 44 people, and some reviewers found them crowded.
Stop 3: Roques de García
On the way back, reviewers describe a stop of about 25 to 30 minutes at Roques de García, the rock formations in the middle of the caldera. There is time for photos from the viewpoint; the circular trail around the rocks takes longer.
Stop 4: The Shop on the Way Back
Some coaches stop at a shop selling local products, with tastings of jams and sauces, and one reviewer had the chance to try a barraquito, the island’s layered coffee. Some reviewers enjoyed it; others would rather have spent the time in the park.
Other ways into the park from the resorts include small-group Teide National Park tours, full-day coach trips that add Masca, Icod and Garachico, sunset and stargazing evenings in the Las Cañadas caldera, and guided summit hikes with the permit arranged.
If Wind Closes the Cable Car
Volcano Teide closes the cable car when wind or ice make it unsafe, and the call is made on the day. This tour still runs when that happens. The listing says you are refunded the price of the cable car only and offered an alternative route. Volcano Teide’s own page for the tour puts that refund at €43 for a non-resident adult and €21.50 for a child.
Reviewers describe the alternative as a longer loop of the park by coach: Roques de García, the exhibition at the base station, a café stop and viewpoints along the caldera roads. Several said they would have cancelled if they had known before boarding, since the cable car was their reason for booking. In some reviews the group was told only after the last pickup or on arrival at the base station. Refund times vary: some reviewers had the money back the same day, others were still waiting days later.
Winter adds a second limit. Even when the cable car runs, the trails at the upper station can be closed for ice, which leaves only the area around the station. Heavy snow can also close the roads into the park.
If the cable car is your only reason for going and the forecast is windy, a ticket you can move to another day suits you better than this tour. Our cable car guide covers the ticket types and what to do when it is closed.
Other Practical Things to Know
- Food and drinks are not included. One reviewer said food was not allowed on the coach, so eat at the stops.
- Children under 3 cannot ride the cable car. The listing says the tour is not suitable for pregnant women or for people with heart or breathing problems, and people with reduced mobility are not allowed on the cable car because they could not be evacuated in time.
- Luggage and large bags are not allowed.
- The roads up are winding. If you get travel sick, bring what you need, since one reviewer found no sick bags on board.
- Reviewers picked up late in the round sometimes found few seats left together, which matters for families.
- The tour runs all year. From December to March snow and ice are most likely to close trails or roads; see the best time to visit Teide.
Is the Volcano Teide Cable Car Tour Worth It?
Yes, if you don’t have a car and the cable car is the part of Teide you most want to see. For $103 per person, checked on 20 October 2026, you get a return cable car ticket, an official guide and transport from your area, with no parking to find at the base station. The guides are one of the most praised parts of the tour.
It suits you less well if you want time to walk in the park, since the day gives an hour at the top, short stops elsewhere and a lot of coach time. The From South Tenerife: Teide National Park Tour caps the group at eight (4.6 from more than 350 reviews, from $78 per person), although it does not include the cable car. If you have a car, a cable car ticket you can move to a calmer day is the safer choice in a windy week. And if you would rather see more of the island than the top of the mountain, the Teide National Park, Masca, Icod & Garachico Tour combines the caldera with the north-west villages (4.6 from more than 3,100 reviews, from $65).
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if the Teide cable car is closed on the day of the tour?
The tour still runs. You are refunded the cable car part of the price (€43 for a non-resident adult, according to Volcano Teide) and the coach takes an alternative route around the park, which reviewers describe as including Roques de García and the exhibition at the base station. The rest of the price is not refunded.
How long do you get at the top of Teide on this tour?
One hour at the upper station, which is Volcano Teide’s limit. Reviewers describe about an hour and a half to two hours at the cable car in total, including the queue and the ride.
Does the tour take you to the summit of Mount Teide?
No. The cable car stops at 3,555 metres. The last stretch to the summit at 3,718 metres needs a separate permit from TenerifeON, and the summit walk does not fit in the hour at the top. See our summit permit guide.
How long are you on the coach?
The listing shows about 80 minutes to the park, but collecting and dropping off guests can add more than an hour at each end. Several reviewers were back in four and a half to six hours; those picked up first and dropped off last reported up to eight and a half.
Is food included on the Volcano Teide tour?
No. Food and drinks are not included. Coaches stop at cafés and shops on the way, and toilets at some stops cost about €1.
Can children do the tour?
Children under 3 are not allowed on the cable car. Volcano Teide charges a child fare for ages 3 to 13.
How We Put This Together
We have not taken this tour ourselves. This page is based on the tour’s GetYourGuide listing, Volcano Teide’s own pages for the tour and for cable car prices and opening times, and the tour’s reviews at every star rating, with particular attention to the lower-rated ones. Prices and ratings were checked on 20 October 2026 and change over time. We may earn a commission if you book through links on this page, at no extra cost to you.
Hero photo: “20250708 Teide Cableway” by Flocci Nivis, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY 4.0; resized.
More on Planning a Teide Day
The cable car, the permit, the day itself and getting there.
- Is the cable car worth it?What the ticket gets you at 3,555 m, and what to do when wind closes it.
- Teide without a carThe once-daily buses, tours with hotel pickup, taxis, and where to sleep in the park.
- One day at TeideAn hour-by-hour plan, the cable car timings and one-day car hire.
- When to book and cancelThe summit permit 56 days out, the cable car a few days before.
- Best time to visit TeideThe clearest months, the busiest hours, and winter snow.
- Teide summit permit 2026How TenerifeON works, the fee tiers, and the Monday-morning release.