Published: Tue 18 Dec 2012 at 16:32
Updated: Tue 18 Dec 2012 at 16:34
Those booking cheap flights to Tenerife with Jet2.com next summer may well find themselves rubbing shoulders with this summer’s sporting heroes, as the largest of the Canary Islands continues to be a favoured warm-weather training ground for top athletes.
The Island of Eternal Spring, Tenerife is the perfect year-round beach holiday destination. Despite sharing its latitude with the Sahara, the cooling effects of the trade winds, Atlantic currents and varied terrain ensure that, even in the height of summer, the temperatures remain pleasantly within the 26 – 28°C range.
Even during winter, the unique climate rarely drops below 20 °C, making the island a hot favourite with British athletes, who often train there. Swimmer Joanne Jackson visits Tenerife around five times a year, quoting the perfect weather, superb facilities and small time difference as major advantages. Cyclist Bradley Wiggins went on to win the Tour de France after completing an extreme training programme there.
However, it isn’t only pro athletes who go to Tenerife. A growing number of holidaymakers are booking sports and fitness breaks there too. For example, the T3 Tenerife Top Training centre offers a range of sports-specific packages, with accommodation if needed. Another company working in partnership with local clubs and hotels offers sports camps and fitness breaks at resorts across the island, with a growing level of four and five-star accommodation.
Around a third of passengers booking cheap flights to Tenerife in 2012 were from the UK, many of them flying from Manchester and Birmingham - two of the top three airport hubs.
