Cuando + Present Subjunctive is When or Whenever?

Question

In another lesson titled "Como, cuando, donde, quien with indicative or subjunctive in Spanish," it states that "Hablaré con ella cuando llegue a casa" translates to "I will speak to her whenever she arrives home." The term "whenever" implies uncertainty, suggesting that we do not know when she will arrive and indicating a future context. However, in this lesson, the sentence "Cuando vaya de vacaciones a Tenerife me hospedaré en el hotel Olimpia" only implies a future context without conveying the sense of uncertainty as in the previous example ("whenever she arrives"). Therefore, I am curious: does "cuando" + present subjunctive mean "when" or "whenever"? Both examples refer to the future.

Accepted Answer

Buenos días
In Spanish, "cuando" + present subjunctive can mean both 'when' and 'whenever', depending on the context.
The use of the subjunctive after "cuando" often implies an action that has not yet occurred and may convey a sense of uncertainty about the timing.
For example, "Hablaré con ella cuando llegue a casa" can be translated as 'I will speak to her whenever she arrives home', emphasizing uncertainty.
In contrast, "Cuando vaya de vacaciones a Tenerife me hospedaré en el hotel Olimpia" refers to a specific future event without the same sense of uncertainty, but still uses the subjunctive to denote a future action.
The difference often depends on the degree of certainty or specificity the speaker wants to convey.
Saludos
Silvia