Visit to El Puertito de Armeñime – while you still can

Situated in a beautiful bay, El Puertito is one of the few remaining authentic coastal villages in the municipality of Adeje. The village itself reminds me of how La Caleta looked when I first moved to the island. Back then, in the '90s, La Caleta had only a handful of simple fishermen's houses and a few excellent seafood restaurants.  

Exploring

An alarming newspaper article reported an upcoming construction project to transform El Puertito into yet another tourist resort. As if enough damage hasn't already been done to Adeje's coastline. Nothing against tourism, of course; after all, I make my living from it. But have you ever seen Adeje's coastline from the water?

Since I wanted to learn more about this project, I immediately embarked on a mission. Armed with a camera and walking stick, I set out on the beautiful sandy path that connects La Caleta with El Puertito.

For the more experienced hikers among you, this trail is categorized as 'Easy' on Wikiloc. I'd personally rate it as 'Moderate' since there's a bit of climbing and scrambling along the way. I was glad I had my walking stick with me.

Beautiful memories

Arriving in El Puertito, luckily no bulldozers or cranes were to be seen. Business as usual: a sleepy village located in one of the most beautiful bays of the south coast.

The bay itself is perfect for snorkeling and is a popular spot for local diving clubs. The crystal-clear waters offer stunning underwater visibility. Until recently, it was also known for the presence of a few sea turtles. However, I haven't been snorkeling there since the COVID-19 pandemic, and insiders suggest that the turtles have disappeared.

Project

Whether the turtles will ever return is the question. Because if the project goes ahead, I can imagine that the bay will be so overrun with tourists that the turtles would rather find another spot.

I have meanwhile found an article from 2014, the year the project was first announced. What do the inhabitants of the village themselves think about the planned changes? No idea. The construction project states that it should only bring benefits to the village. Such as better electricity supply, extension of the beach, a bicycle path, a walking path and expensive villas. What the latter benefits the 33 inhabitants of the village is a big question mark.

Whether the plan still stands and when it will be executed...only time can tell.

All pretty nice on paper, but it's a shame that a piece of authentic Tenerife is swallowed up to make way for 'prosperity'.

Well, maybe I'm getting nostalgic. Fortunately, heading more to the north, there are still plenty of quaint coastal villages where time has stood still. So, there's still hope!

Until then: stay safe and ¡Hasta Pronto!

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