"Early the ensuing morning I set off on horseback, and just after leaving this town, ascended a steep hill, in a winding direction; and all of a sudden there burst upon me a most charming view of the Valley of Orotava. The scene before me was so enchanting, that a description of it, to bear even a faint resemblance, would appear like romance...In short, it is a vast garden, decked out in aromatic groves, which realize the beau ideal of Paradise. There can be but few spots on the globe that present a spectacle more beautifully romantic and wildly picturesque than the Valley of Orotava."

—An American Sea Captain, August 1833