First of all, the hiking trail is not open every day, and just like the summit of El Teide, a reservation is mandatory to access it. 

The path is open from 8:30AM to 11AM during the summer period, which runs from March to October (until the clock changes), with 25 places available every 30 minutes. After 11AM, no more hikers can access the trail for the rest of the day.

During the winter period, which goes from October to March, the path is open from 8:30AM to 10:30AM, with 30 places available every 30 minutes.

Please note that the hike must start from the village of Masca. It is not possible to start from the beach and then come back down.

We were there in October, and the path was only open on Saturday and Sunday. We managed to book two tickets on Thursday, at noon. A very nice local lady in the city of Los Gigantes told us the portal for reservation opens on Thursday at 12 sharp for hikers to book the hike on Saturday of the same week. To book the hike on Sunday, the portal opens on Friday, at noon too. We managed to book two tickets on Thursday, at noon.

We had to be reactive and super fast when booking a slot for ourselves as they were running out very quickly.

The hike starts from the village of Masca. It is recommended to get there by public transport. There is a shuttle departing from Santiago Del Teide and taking you all the way up to Masca in about 45 minutes. Parking spaces are rare around the village. There is a parking lot, however it is not allowed to stay there for more than two hours. We were able to find a spot for our car not far from the village, but only because we were lucky! 

Before going on the hiking trail, it is requested to go to the Visitor center where your booking will be checked. Remember to bring an ID with you. Your shoes will also be inspected, so make sure you wear proper hiking shoes. If the surface of your shoes’ sole is too smooth, you might not be allowed to access the trail. If you don’t have hiking shoes, it is possible to rent some at the visitor center. 

Instructions will be given to you at the visitor center before going on the trail. We were given a helmet to wear during the entire duration of the hike (the risk of rockfall is real in Masca) and a number that we had to memorize and communicate to a ranger at the start of the hike, on arrival at Masca beach and finally, at the end of the ascent. Everything is organized for the visitor center staff to know exactly where you are on the trail.

The trail is 4.8 km long from Masca village to Masca beach. It is broken down into sections, and a ranger stands halfway. The section number 48, indicated in red on the markings, is considered dangerous due to possible rock falls. It is mandatory not to stop there.

Three hours are estimated necessary to go down to the beach. We did it in just over two hours, without taking too many breaks. I was a little apprehensive after receiving all the safety instructions in the visitor center as they made it sound like a very dangerous hike. However, going down was quite easy. We took the time to identify the most challenging parts that might give us trouble on the way back. Overall, the trail is marked out and arranged with ropes, stairs and one tunnel. Also, we were probably too impressed by the Masca ravine to care about how challenging the hike was. The trail goes down the valley and becomes narrower as you get closer to the beach. It is quite amazing to find yourself in the hollow of the ravine. We felt very small!

After walking down the ravine for two hours, we heard the sound of the ocean and reached Masca beach quickly. As expected, someone picked up our number and we were able to swim and spend a good hour on the beach. La Playa de Masca is a gorgeous Black sand beach, very wild and located right at the foot of the Gigantes cliffs. 

We were asked to leave the beach at 2PM, in order to leave enough time to go back to the village.

I won’t lie, walking the trail up to the village is a bit more technical. Four hours are estimated to be necessary to hike up the 4.6 km distance. We did it in just over 3 hours, once again taking our time and several breaks.

Starting from the beach, a good portion of the path is in the shade and you have to step over several large rocks to reach section 48, the one where you should not linger too long!

For this part, a staircase is dug in the rock and a rope is there to help pull yourself up a little if you struggle. That’s the part where our legs started to burn. 

The next portion is a little bit more exposed to the sun and rises slightly. Some parts are carved into the rock. Our leg muscles were on fire but the beauty of the landscape helped us to forget about the remaining 2 km to climb.

Finally, the last section is the most difficult one as it is only a series of stairs till the village. It is also fully exposed to the sun. Make sure to save a large part of your water for this last part of the hike. We did it by paying attention to where we were stepping, taking many breaks instead of rushing to the village, and by enjoying the last part of this incredible hiking trail.

For reference, we are in good physical shape but we are no athletes. We rarely do long hikes like this one, except when traveling. We found this hike to be difficult only at the end. Once again, by being careful and taking breaks along the way, everything turns out fine.

In total, it took us 2 hours to go down to the beach, and a little over 3 hours to go back up to the village. Almost 5 hours in total, plus the hour we spent on the beach. We started the hike at 10:30AM and left the village of Masca around 4:30PM.

When we made it back to the village, we couldn’t help it and had a (well deserved) beer while enjoying the view of the village one last time.