UNIQUE FIELD TRIPS FOR UNIVERSITIES

WHO ARE WE?

GeoTenerife provides outstanding and unique educational opportunities for students to widen their knowledge and transferrable skills.

GeoIntern: GeoTenerife is the specialist UK science tour operator behind the highly successful GeoIntern summer training programme. Run in association with local, national and international experts and institutions, it’s a programme that places undergrad and postgraduate students in active research projects where they can learn a range of highly transferable skills over the course of four weeks. The programme is heavily oversubscribed year after year, and we have trained students from across the globe and a range of universities. You can see their progress on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Their video testimonials are posted on our GeoTenerife YouTube channel.

Field School: Through our Field School we develop and run courses across a range of subjects throughout the year in association with local and international institutions: MarineSciCamp (in association with the Spanish Oceanographic Institute); HydroCamp and VolcanoCamp.

Scholarships: We are committed to opening our programmes as far as possible to enable access to deserving students. For this purpose we offer scholarships to extraordinary candidates. To date our scholars have come from Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ethiopia, India, Senegal, Trinidad and Tobago, UK and the USA and you can see their progress on our Twitter feed @GeoTScholar, and their testimonial videos on our GeoTenerife YouTube channel. We are passionate about making our programmes accessible to talented young scientists.

VolcanoStories: When Volcán de Tajogaite erupted in Cumbre Vieja ridge in La Palma on 19 September 2021 we were in a unique position to document the event. As a geoscience education company based in Tenerife with a focus on science communication, we wanted to ensure our unique resources could be put to good use during the volcanic emergency and beyond. Our VolcanoStories open access resource is now an extensive tool for education and research. We are amplifying our research with two new projects: Sustainable Tourism and Volcanic Readiness.

PLANNING A SCIENCE FIELD TRIP?

Tenerife is an extraordinary destination for science field trips – a biodiversity hotspot in the Atlantic with more geological diversity than Hawai’i. Despite its small size, it has six distinct ecosystems with 140 plant species endemic to this island alone and an array of microclimates from shoreline to mountaintop.

It is also beautiful, with the best weather on the planet with steady year-round temperatures and sunshine thanks to the prevailing trade winds.

Tenerife is the largest of the seven Canary Islands. It is punctured by over 1500 water galleries reaching down to some 5 km deep and a complex network of lava tunnels. Its “laurisilva” forests are some of the surviving few in the world. Of genuine interest to botanists and naturalists, they are home to many rare endemic species of animals and plants. Tenerife is also home to the world’s third largest volcano, Teide, a World Heritage Site. It measures 7,500m from ocean floor to summit.

The uneven and steep orography of the island and its variety of climates gave rise to a diversity of landscapes and geographical and geological formations. From the National Park, with its extensive pine forests, to volcanic landscape at the summit of Teide and Malpais de Guimar, to giant cliffs at Los Gigantes with their vertical precipices. Semi-desert areas abound in the south with drought-resistant plants and other areas range from those protected and enclosed in mountains such as Montaña Roja and Montaña Pelada, valleys and forests with subtropical vegetation and climate, to the deep gorges and precipices at Anaga and Teno.

All of this in an island you can drive right round in under two hours.

WHY CHOOSE GEOTENERIFE?

Our students and teachers rate our trips as “excellent” or “very good” and our groups rebook with us year after year. Here’s why:

UK Accreditation: We are a British company and members of ABTA, the UK Travel Trade Association.

Local Knowledge: GeoTenerife has a fully-owned subsidiary and fulltime staff on the island of Tenerife (Viajes y Prácticas Científicas GeoTenerife SL). This is important, as it means we are:

• Fully recognised by the local authorities to carry out educational trips and courses on the island.
• We have a range of signed collaboration agreements with leading institutions on the island to enable us to offer extraordinary learning opportunities.
• In terms of liability and insurance, our trips are doubly covered – by our UK membership of ABTA and our local affiliations.
• We employ full-time local, bilingual scientific field trip coordinators and back-up staff in Tenerife to accompany your groups throughout your time on the island and oversee the smooth running of every aspect of your trip.

As soon as you book with us, you will be assigned your own dedicated coordinator in Tenerife who will help you from start to finish:

• ORGANISE your tailor-made itinerary according to study subject and fieldwork requirements
• LIAISE with you in the lead-up to your trip, to answer any queries and make any adjustments required
• SECURE the perfect experts to teach your students if needed – for evening lectures at the hotel or for a full day out in the field.
• BOOK all your accommodation, transport and logistics requirements
• SECURE access to specific sites, facilities and installations to enhance the educational content of your trip
• SECURE any work permits required for fieldwork from the local authorities. Over 50% of the island is protected, and failure to secure the proper permits for fieldwork can result in hefty fines
• ACCOMPANY you throughout your time on the island. You will be met at the airport on arrival and be accompanied by your dedicated coordinator during your whole trip to ensure the smooth running of all aspects of your stay in Tenerife
• ADJUST any elements as necessary when you are in Tenerife (eg. if snow or high winds on Teide means the cable car closes on the day you hoped to take your group up)
• BACKUP: If one of your students requires medical attention for example, your coordinator can ensure they receive prompt attention either at the accommodation or a nearby medical centre or hospital
• ASSISTANCE: Our coordinators are trained by the Spanish Red Cross in first aid (particularly important for large groups out in the field) and are qualified lifeguards. They always carry a first aid kit.
• KIT: need hard hats, high vis vests, torches, measuring tapes, compasses, calipers, reference books geological maps and other geographical material? Don’t over-burden your luggage -we can help.
• RISK ASSESSMENT: we assess all of the activities we run for you as well as the transport, accommodation and logistics we provide, which means GeoTenerife takes responsibility for all aspects of your trip while you are on-island, as long as you abide by our common sense Field Trip Terms and Conditions**.
• EXPERTS: We are the only travel company to have signed collaboration agreements with a range of leading local institutions. This allows us to run internationally-renowned programmes (GeoIntern) and courses (Field School) for university students. It also means we can supply extraordinary bilingual experts to teach your students during your time in Tenerife.

THE FIELD TRIP CENTRE

We own our very-own Field Trip Centre on the island. Having worked with hotels for our groups in the past, we came to the conclusion that having our students share their accommodation with tourists was not ideal for educational purposes. We wanted to provide an environment for accommodation that was conducive to learning. In 2018-20 we have undertaken a large capital investment to fully renovate and restore our historic HQ to accommodate groups of up to 36, with all the parallel facilities and amenities required for science groups.

For groups larger than 36 we work with a selection of suitable hand-picked hotels in the north and south of the island. We regularly accommodate groups of 60 and over, and will be happy to discuss the associated logistics with you if your group size is XL (or a combination of different subjects requiring parallel logistical arrangements). You will still have added benefits like free WIFI and a dedicated presentation room for your group to work in.

We are dedicated to the Canary Islands. We have invested heavily in our infrastructure to enable us to deliver the best educational trips at competitive prices.

We don’t run field trips anywhere else. We like to work in 12-month a year sunshine, with the longest hours of daylight on the planet. It means we get a lot crammed in! We are also passionate about Tenerife science education destination, and we constantly strive to improve all aspects of your students’ learning experience.

Take a look at our Testimonials:

• “Thank you so much for organising our trip – everything ran very smoothly and we couldn’t have done this without you.”
• “The Department is currently planning its fieldtrip programme for next Easter and I feel confident that we will wish to return with you next year”
• “The collaboration with GeoTenerife worked really well”
• “The trip was really great thanks. The students really enjoyed it. Thank you very much for organising such a great tour.”
• “The university’s collaboration with GeoTenerife was great”
• “Visiting so many unique areas, as well as having a lot of in depth information – all round a great learning experience!”

…or you can see our latest announcements in our NEWSROOM

You may already associate volcanology, geology and geography to Tenerife, but we cover other incredible subjects here too. As a world-recognised biodiversity hot spot Tenerife has so much more than volcanoes to offer.

GeoTenerife also organises field trips to cover a range of other fields of study, including:

Astronomy: Its clear skies, pure air and strategic geographical location close to the Tropic of Cancer mean that Tenerife is one of the best places in the world for astronomical observation. Tenerife even has a Law on the Protection of the Astronomical Quality of Observatories, also known as “The Canarian Sky Act”, which regulates the level of light, atmospheric and radio-electric pollution, as well as flight paths. There are, of course, several tourist excursions available for stargazing in Tenerife, but GeoTenerife works closely with the nationally-renowned Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC) and Teleférico del Teide to offer expert lectures and private trips behind the scenes not available to the average traveller.

Botany: Tenerife is the largest and highest of the Canary Islands, which explains why it boasts the greatest biological diversity in the archipelago. There are over 800 species of fauna and flora living here that are unique in the world. With over 1,400 varieties of plant life found on Tenerife, some of which are endemic to specific areas such as the National Park, there’s an abundance of flora to explore and study in detail. Tenerife’s vegetation can be divided into six distinct ecosystems depending on altitude and orientation: coastal spurges and tabaibas; thermophilic forest; prehistoric laurel forest; Macaronesian heath; pine forest and high mountain. GeoTenerife coordinates exclusive tours with experts to these environments so that students can study indigenous species within their natural habitats.

Marine Biology: The marine life found in the Canary Islands is interesting as it’s a combination of North Atlantic, Mediterranean and endemic species. Tenerife boasts the greatest variety of whales and dolphins throughout Europe, such as the resident Pilot whale population. GeoTenerife works closely with private companies and public institutions that monitor the heavily populated seas and coasts using a range of associated disciplines including hydrogeography, hydrodynamic modelling and remote sensing which means they have privileged access for undergraduate students wanting to learn from those at work in the field.

Renewable Energy: As far as renewable energy goes, Tenerife is setting a precedent and leading by example. Bioclimatic and sustainable housing, windfarms, biodigestors and solar photovoltaic power plants are all present on the island, amongst other industrial installations related to sustainability, such as urban waste treatment plants, desalination facilities, composting and recycling. Those wishing to study such sites need look no further. GeoTenerife can facilitate privileged access to these sites and installations to ensure your students can see everything up close and learn as much as possible.

Itineraries can include:

• Research institutes (specialising in renewable energy, volcanology and astronomy)
• Solar panel factories and installations (thermal and photovoltaic)
• Bioclimatic and sustainable houses (and urbanisations)
• Desalination plants (industrial and hotel trade)
• Natural waste treatment plants
• Guided tours to volcanic tubes and sites of interest, led by senior geologist.
• Tailor-made tours and lectures in English led by leading geologists, geochemists or environment specialists based in Tenerife can be arranged, to cater for your field of interest.
• Private boat charters led by a marine biologist or specialist of your choosing, to impart lectures on the high seas. Can include food, sight-seeing and swimming.
• Water galleries, wells and water resources
• Guided walking tours to areas of volcanic, scientific and natural interest

HOW IT WORKS

We assess your accommodation, transport and logistics needs and once you have booked*, we assign you your dedicated field trip coordinator who will help you to put together an innovative itinerary to meet your educational requirements and organise all the relevant elements for you.

We risk assess all our accommodation, logistics and activities, so you don’t have to. GeoTenerife takes responsibility as long as you abide by our common sense Field Trip Terms and Conditions**.

We are members of ABTA, the UK Travel Association, which means all our trips are fully underwritten and you can book with confidence. We are also members of the School Travel Forum and fully expect to achieve accreditation in the coming months

PLEASE NOTE: If your group intends to carry out any fieldwork on the island, you must secure a relevant permit from the local authorities. GeoTenerife can organise this for you. Failure to do this can result in hefty fines for the group concerned.

Interested?

• Email enquiries@geotenerife.com outlining the size, subject and level of study of your group plus the number of nights you’d like to stay and any additional requirements or comments. We will check availability and send you an estimate and agree a basic outline for your trip.
• Once you book* we put you straight in touch with your dedicated field trip coordinator who will spend time assessing all your specific requirements for your trip before scheduling your detailed itinerary and setting everything up on your behalf.
• The same coordinator will meet you at the airport on arrival, and accompany you throughout your time in Tenerife to ensure the smooth running of every aspect of your trip.

*To book, we require a 25% deposit. Please note your booking is not secure until you have paid your deposit. Balance due 16 weeks before travel.

Please note our trips do NOT include flights and those are your responsibility to book. We do collaborate with a local partner that can organise your flights for you and we would be happy to put you in touch, or you can use online comparison sites like SkyScanner. There are so many low cost options available to Tenerife, we just concentrate on what we’re good at…

Delivering great educational trips in the Canaries!

**Please note that all our trips are subject to our common sense Fieldtrip Terms and Conditions. You must read these thoroughly prior to travelling with us and adhere to them throughout