Tenerife Uncovered

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More and more young people want to work abroad for short periods of time for what is called a working holiday. Playa de las Americas and Los Cristianos provide great places to start your working life in Tenerife.

What jobs are available in Tenerife?
Before we talk about the jobs, its important you understand that people work in Tenerife for the experience and not to make big bucks. If your expecting to make a lot of money over there then your very likely to be disappointed. With that said, lets talk about the jobs!

The first thing you want to be aware of is the type of jobs which you can pick up. Generally speaking, most short term jobs will revolve around bar work or PR work and this is readily available in most resorts. By far the easiest and most common job to do is PR work for bars or restaurants and this will most likely be on a commission basis. The rate you are likely to get per person is normally around the €1 mark although rates will vary. To be a good PR you ultimately have to be very outgoing and persuasive, especially in and around the busy night life areas where competition for punters is rife. Bar work is harder to come by as most of the jobs go to longer serving staff members. It’s not uncommon for people to work in resort for a year or more so getting your foot in the door of the bar work could be very difficult.

It's all a bit daunting! How should I get to Tenerife?
By far the easiest method is to sign up to one of the companies offering working holidays abroad. By doing this the company will arrange your flight, accommodation and will even find you a PR type job ready for your arrival. All you have to do is turn up and start working. While this is a good method for the more shy amongst you, it does come at a premium and you could end up paying a lot more than doing it yourself.

If you don't fancy paying the premium for the easy life then you can easily do it yourself. The best way to go about this, in the most secure manner, is to book a 2 week holiday to the resort you plan to work in. If all goes wrong and you can’t find a job, you still have your hotel for the 2 weeks and you have your flight home. What you shouldn't do is think of that 2 week period as a holiday. Get to work as soon as you arrive! Use the 2 weeks to find your workers accommodation and find yourself a job that suits you. You're unlikely to find much advertising for the PR jobs that most people go for so you'll need to get in and around the bars and restaurants asking for a job. Getting a job is never easy and you're likely to be up against a lot of other people after the same jobs so you'll need to get in quick. arriving early on in the Tenerife summer season will certainly boost your chances of getting a decent job and the price of the 2 week holiday will also be cheaper the earlier you book.

To find accommodation, simply ask any of the PR's you see and most of the time they will point you in the right direction. Remember that most people have been in your position so they are sympathetic to your needs and can give some good advice. Be prepared to live in a basic apartment unless you want to be paying a lot of cash for that rooftop penthouse suite! The cheaper the better, especially if your working a commission only job as you may find that some times of the year your earnings will be lower than the peak summer months.

Need more information? Head on over to the Tenerife Workers Forum in our Tenerife Message Boards