Castillo de San Miguel

The Castillo de San Miguel is a small 16th-century fortress presiding over the seafront of Garachico, in the north-west of Tenerife. It was built to defend what was then the island's most important port, a prosperous hub devoted to Atlantic trade in the first centuries after the conquest.

Its greatest distinction is having been the only building to withstand the devastating volcanic eruption of 1706, which buried the harbour and much of the town beneath lava. Today this sturdy stone survivor lets visitors recall the history of Garachico and take in the view over the ocean from its walls, standing as a symbol of the town's resilience.