A Teide Tour in Winter: When the Cable Car Stops
Teide in winter: cable car closures for wind and ice, what a tour refunds when it shuts, snow on the summit trails, and the tours that never needed the cable car.
From autumn into winter, the Teide cable car often does not run. We read the 350 most recent reviews of Volcano Teide’s cable car tour, dated 12 September to 9 November 2026: of the 170 with a comment, at least 35 say the cable car did not run on their day, for wind, ice or a technical stop. If the ride to 3,555 m is the reason you are going, book it knowing what comes back when it shuts: the cable car’s share of the price, not the tour’s. If you want the park whatever the wind does, book a day that never included the cable car, such as Atlántico Excursiones’ Tenerife: Teide National Park, Masca, Icod & Garachico Tour, from US$65 a person (checked November 2026).
The calendar above is the coach day. It crosses the park and stops at the Roques de García, then goes on to Icod de los Vinos, Garachico and Masca. The cable car is not part of it, so a closure changes nothing on your booking; the trade is time in the park, which most reviewers between September and November 2026 put at 20 to 40 minutes. Free cancellation runs until 24 hours before.
What reviewers met in autumn 2026
These are reviews of Volcano Teide's cable car tour, translated where they were not in English.
| Date | What the reviewer reported |
|---|---|
| 9 November 2026 | The cable car was not working, and it seemed to be known in advance (three stars) |
| 7 November 2026 | Closed for the day; “Good thing was that we got a partial refund because of this” (four stars) |
| 7 November 2026 | The summit trails were closed by snow, which the group learned only at the start of the trails (two stars) |
| 5 November 2026 | No cable car because the cables had frozen (four stars) |
| 4 November 2026 | Closed for technical reasons, announced on the bus (three stars) |
| 3 November 2026 | At 8:30 the tour announced that the cable car was closed, with no option to cancel; part of the price came back (two stars) |
| 31 October 2026 | Wind; GetYourGuide wrote the same day to announce a refund of €42.32 a person (one star) |
| 29 October 2026 | Closed, the trip went somewhere else instead; “Still have not received any info on cable car refund” (four stars) |
| 28 October 2026 | Not running, “like the two days before” (four stars) |
| 23 October 2026 | “It’s so cold up the top of the mountain that the cable car got iced up” (two stars) |
| 21 September 2026 | Wind; the group got no higher than 2,344 m (two stars) |
Not every day goes that way. A reviewer on 18 September 2026 rode up with “minimal queues”, and one on 16 October was handed the cable car tickets on arrival. The dates cluster in late September, late October and early November, which is only what one autumn’s reviews show, not a forecast.
What comes back when it shuts
On a tour, the listing decides. Volcano Teide's cable car tour offers a partial refund in these words: “In case the cable car is closed due to strong wind, the tour will still be conducted, and you will be refunded the price of the cable car only. An alternative route will be offered.” On that tour, bad weather, “especially during the winter”, can make the roads to the cable car unsafe (snow, ice, falling rocks), and visits may be cancelled without notice.
If you buy your own ticket from the cable car company, Teleférico del Pico del Teide, its terms are different (checked November 2026):
- It notifies ticket holders by email or text “at approx. 8.30am” when the cable car cannot run, so an early session may already be on its way up.
- If a stop for weather or a technical fault delays your session by at least 90 minutes, you can ask for a full refund of unused tickets.
- If the cable car runs but the trails at the top are closed, the ticket stays valid and is not refunded.
- The Visitors’ Centre, with its “Science and Legend” exhibition, shop and restaurant, can still be visited when it is open.
Those are the company’s rules for its own tickets. A tour booking follows its listing, not them.
Snow and ice on the summit trails
When we read Tenerife ON, the Cabildo de Tenerife’s trails site, on 10 November 2026, it carried a notice of restricted access because of ice and snow on the trails of the Teide volcano: special access conditions on PNT 07 Montaña Blanca to La Rambleta, PNT 09 Teide to Pico Viejo and the Mirador de las Narices del Teide, PNT 10 Telesforo Bravo (the summit trail), PNT 23 Los Regatones Negros and PNT 28 Chafarí. Walkers must accept a declaration of responsibility and meet the safety requirements. This is a live notice, so look at Tenerife ON again before your day.
Ice also changes what a cable car ticket buys. The cable car company says that when ice or snow close the trails from the upper station, you can go no further than the La Rambleta viewpoint. With snow or ice on the summit trail, Tenerife ON adds crampons, an ice axe and a declaration of mountaineering experience to the summit permit rules.
Days that do not depend on the cable car
Tenerife: Mount Teide Tour with Cable Car Ticket & Transfer
Volcano Teide: 7 hours with pickup by area and the cable car ticket included. If wind closes the cable car, the tour still runs, an alternative route is offered and only the cable car's price is refunded. Rated 4.26 from 6,330 reviews.
See the tour →Tenerife: Teide National Park, Masca, Icod & Garachico Tour
Atlántico Excursiones: 9 hours by coach, up to 35 guests. One stop in the park at the Roques de García, then Icod de los Vinos, Garachico and Masca. No cable car, so no cable car to lose. Lunch is optional and extra.
Check dates →From South Tenerife: Teide National Park Tour
Tenerife Stars: 4 hours from the south coast in a group of up to 8, with Vilaflor, the Pino Gordo pine and an hour at the Roques de García. The cable car is not included. It needs at least 2 participants.
See the tour →Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.
A day without the cable car still meets the weather. The coach day’s itinerary “may change due to official alerts, adverse weather, road closures or access restrictions”, and a reviewer of it on 26 September 2026 found Teide closed because of the weather. Volcano Teide's day trip without the cable car is another option: 7 hours with pickup in the north, the south and around Santa Cruz, a digital audio guide and the exhibition at the cable car’s Visitors’ Centre, from US$58.
Cold at the top
The cable car tour asks you to bring warm clothing, sunglasses and sunscreen. Closed shoes are compulsory on Volcano Teide's cable car tour: mountain or sports shoes with grip, and nobody goes up in heels, platforms, beach shoes or open shoes. The coach day recommends closed shoes and a light jacket. A reviewer in September 2026 put it plainly: “Definitely need warm clothing at the top as cool and windy.”
Where to look on the day
We do not print whether the cable car is open: it changes through the day. The cable car company’s own site carries its status and sends its notice at about 8:30 to people holding its tickets, Tenerife ON carries the trail notices, and a tour sends its own message to the contact on your booking. If a windy week rules out the mountain, tenerifewhalewatchingtour.com explains what changes month to month on a boat trip off Tenerife.
More from Tenerife
Tours in Tenerife with Open Dates
Day tours and evenings on the island with live availability. The pickup, what is included and the cancellation terms show before you book.
Teide, Masca and the North Coast, No Cable Car Needed
Atlántico Excursiones' 9-hour coach day: Teide National Park and the Roques de García, then Icod de los Vinos, Garachico and Masca, with pickup in the south or around Puerto de la Cruz. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Check tour dates