Car hire from Los Gigantes to Los Cristianos

How long is the drive from Los Gigantes to Los Cristianos?

About thirty-three minutes and thirty-one kilometres without traffic. From Los Gigantes, Playa de las Americas is about twenty-eight minutes and twenty-eight kilometres, and Costa Adeje is about twenty-seven minutes and twenty-five kilometres. Tenerife South Airport is about fifty-one minutes and forty-four kilometres, which is the drive to allow for a one-way return there.

On the way down, Playa Paraiso is a city delivery point as well, and at the quieter bays at Playa Paraiso a car is brought to an address in the resort. Los Cristianos, Playa de las Americas and Costa Adeje are city delivery only too, so a car for the southern half of a stay is brought to the address you give in that town rather than collected from a named point.

Fuel, parking, fines and toll roads during the rental are the renter's to pay, and Tenerife's motorways are toll-free. Rental cars may travel on paved public roads only. The drive times on this page leave out traffic.

Where can I park in Los Gigantes and in Los Cristianos?

In Los Gigantes, Parking El Mirador is open 24 hours and has a 2.10 metre height limit. In Los Cristianos, the car park on Calle Valle Menendez is covered, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and has a 2.2 metre height limit.

On the street, both towns follow the kerb colours used across the south, the standard Spanish ones: blue lines are metered bays with a time limit, unmarked white bays are free, and yellow lines mean no parking. Parking charges and parking fines during the rental are the renter's to pay.

Where do I fill up, with no fuel station in Los Gigantes?

There is no fuel station in Los Gigantes or in Puerto de Santiago. The nearest is a DISA on the TF-454 above the resort. In Los Cristianos, the BP at Bulevar Chajofe 2 is open 24 hours, and in Playa de las Americas the BP at Avenida de los Pueblos 6 is open 24 hours.

In Costa Adeje, the BP at Siam Mall is open 24 hours, the DISA at San Eugenio is open from 08:00 to 17:30, and the TGAS Trebol station stands at the La Caleta and Adeje junction. Near Tenerife South Airport, the Repsol on the airport access road and the BP at Carretera Atogo km 0.5 on the TF-1 are both open 24 hours.

The car goes back with the fuel level it was delivered with. If the level is lower, you pay the difference at the rental company's rates, and if it is higher, you are not compensated for the difference. A car returned so dirty that it cannot be inspected is washed at the renter's expense.

Can I hand the car back at Tenerife South Airport?

Yes. Choose Los Gigantes as the pick-up and Tenerife South Airport as the drop-off in the search, and the car is returned in the arrival area, which is the named handover place at the airport. Los Gigantes is among the smaller one-way pairings with Tenerife South Airport, in both directions, and the cars listed for it change with the dates searched. The one-way fee is shown with the price on each car.

The minimum chargeable period is 24 hours, so a car rented from Monday morning to Tuesday afternoon is charged as two full days. Extending the rental means telling the rental agent in advance. Golf del Sur and Guía de Isora can be a pick-up but not a one-way drop-off.

What do I need when the car is delivered in Los Gigantes?

The physical licence card, with its details in Latin script and an expiry date no earlier than the last day of the rental. Copies and electronic licences are not accepted. If the licence is valid only in the country that issued it, an International Driving Permit is strongly recommended and should be provided on request.

A physical embossed credit card in the main driver's name may be required; where a debit card is accepted instead, the booking and the voucher say so, and it too must be physical, personalised, embossed and in that name. The deposit, how it is held and its refund timeline are shown during booking and in the rental voucher.

The minimum age and driving experience are listed on each car's page and can differ between similar models, and the rental agent may refuse the handover to a driver who does not meet them. The phone number given at booking, with the correct country code, has to be reachable on the day before pick-up and throughout the rental.

Can I take the car up to Masca or into Teno first?

Masca village is twenty-four minutes and twenty-one kilometres from Los Gigantes on the Masca road, the TF-436, which is the only road in and out of Masca. While a fire-risk alert is declared, access to the TF-436 is controlled from 09:00 to 16:00 at control points at Las Lagunetas and Santiago del Teide, and vehicles driven by visitors for purely recreational purposes are refused. The control is switched on and off with the risk, so check before setting off; the bus, line 355, is the alternative.

Rental cars may travel only on paved public roads, so the unpaved tracks in Teno are outside the rental terms. At the standard level of cover, damage to the parts of the car standard cover excludes, the wheels, the undercarriage, the windscreen and the interior, is not paid for, and the higher levels offered for a car are listed on that car. After an insured event, notify the rental agent immediately and obtain a police report, unless otherwise agreed with the agent; the insurance is invalid where damage comes from intentional vandalism or neglect.