Playa San Juan

The town of Playa de San Juan is located in the south of Tenerife and is part of the municipality of Guía de Isora. Its history began with the first salt factory founded by Juan Cumella and Juan Blanich. Playa San Juan was the last port on the southern route of the island and was previously known as Port No. 7.

Over time, the town became an important center for the packaging of goods imported and exported through the ports of Puerto de Guía and San Juan de Guía. However, the first population censuses in the municipality (1823, 1828, 1854) did not mention any inhabitants on the coast of Guía de Isora.

In 1884, the British writer Olivia Stone arrived at Playa de San Juan by boat and described her impressions of the area. She mentioned small fishing huts built of volcanic stone and clay, as well as picturesque verandas with climbing plants.

The first demographic surge was linked to the success of the “Los Florios” canning industry, founded by the Italian brothers Ignacio and Vincenzo Florio in the 1920s. However, due to the tuna crisis in the 1930s, the factory downsized its staff, leading to a reduction in production. The factory closed in the 1950s.

In recent decades, Playa de San Juan has revived again thanks to the expansion of banana and tomato production in the 1980s, as well as the construction industry that began in the 1990s and 2000s.

Beaches

• Playa de San Juan is the main beach in the town, with somewhat dirty water due to the port.
• Playa de Aguadulce is a continuation of the town beach
• Playa Rosalía is an almost non-swimmable beach with rocks
• Playa Barranco del Roque is a small beach outside the town, good for snorkeling

What to see in the town?

• Cola de Alcaraván – an art object in the shape of a whale’s tail, visible from the beach
• Antigua casa embarcadero – a ruined pier building resembling a chapel (featured in my video)
• Horno de la Cal – a restored lime kiln
• Pier de San Juan – the pier in the port, nice for a stroll