Things to do in Canary Islands
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La Cucina
Run by Italians, this tiny place is predominantly a takeaway with a couple of outside tables. The pizzas come highly recommended, and there is also a limited range of pasta dishes and salads, plus the obligatory creamy tiramisu.
reviewed
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Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Las Palmas is the big smoke, the only place in the Canary Islands, apart from Santa Cruz de Tenerife, with an unmistakable big-city feel. While it oozes the kind of sunny languor you'd associate with the Mediterranean or North Africa, its snarled traffic, bustling shopping districts, chatty bars and thriving port all give off the energy of a city, Spain's seventh largest.
The historic centre, though small, is rich in interest and undergoing a rebirth as an entertainment precinct. Combined with Playa de las Canteras, it could keep the average hedonist busy for days. The flavour is Spanish, with a heavy international overlay. You'll find a lively mix of Chinese, African,…
reviewed
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Parque Natural de Corralejo
The beach dunes of the protected Parque Natural de Corralejo stretch along the east coast for about 10km from Corralejo. It can get breezy here, hence the popularity with windsurfers and kite boarders. The locals have applied their ingenuity to the sand-sticking-to-the-suntan-lotion problem by erecting little fortresses of loose stones atop shrub-covered sandy knolls to protect sun-worshippers from the wind. The area is free to enter, and sun lounges and umbrellas are available for hire in front of the luxury hotels.
reviewed
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Travelin' Lady
Companies offering two-, three- and five-hour boat cruises to check out whales and dolphins are set up at the end of Playa de Los Cristianos, near the port, and in Puerto Colón in Costa Adeje. Most trips include food, drink and a quick swim. Though all are basically the same, we recommend the smaller Playa de Los Cristianos-based companies. Travelin' Lady offers personal service, small boats, and lower prices than many other outfits in the area.
reviewed
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Golf del Sur
Constant mild weather means that Tenerife is a place where golfers can play year-round. It's not the most ecologically sound activity on the island (water is a constant problem, and golf courses need plenty of it) but that hasn't stopped sprawling courses from emerging all around Playa de las Américas. One of the best courses is Golf del Sur.
reviewed
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Azzurro
The restaurant is located near the lighthouse in the Los Lagos part of town with its shallow pools and scrubby desert setting. At this place overlooking the beach, with a pretty peach-painted interior, the menu includes fish fillet in lemon and basil and a tasty pasta dish with mushrooms and prawns in a nest of parmesan cheese.
reviewed
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Osteria da Andrea
This sophisticated Italian restaurant has an arty, minimalist interior and daily-changing menu; the sign of an innovative chef. Each day's menu usually includes a risotto and unusual pizza among the dishes, such as the delicious berenjena al parmesano (aubergine with parmesan cheese). There's a tapas bar out front.
reviewed
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Mercado de Nuestra Señora de África
This market has a Central American look with its arched entrance, clock tower and flower sellers. It's not large by Spanish standards but is still tantalising, with its mountains of fresh fruit and vegetables and variety of fish. You can also buy bread, fabulous local cheese and meats.
reviewed
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Calle Castillo
The main shopping strip is the pedestrianised Calle Castillo and surrounding streets. Some promising deals are available on electronics and watches but there are also some great little boutiques, stocked with clothes from Spanish and international designers.
reviewed
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La Cazuela
Drenched in Canary yellow with a pretty, flower-filled terrace, this place is heartily recommended by locals for its solid traditional fare. Settle in for a long, filling lunch and try the cazuela (a casserole made with fresh or salted fish).
reviewed
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Camel Safari Park La Baranda
After the water rides and Guanches, how about a trip to the Orient? Camel Safari Park La Baranda has 70 camels and is located in a lush property with palms and avocado and citrus trees and also has a restaurant, bar and small zoo.
reviewed
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Aguayre
This is a trendy Tex Mex-cum-Italian-cum-vegetarian restaurant. Come here with an appetite and tuck into one of the piled-high salads, California wraps or a sizzling volcano pizza with chilli, mushrooms and hot peppers.
reviewed
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Tapas Arcón
Papas arrugadas (wrinkly potatoes) with mojo (spicy salsa), or the Arcón special sauces of almond and sweet pepper or parsley and coriander are the must-have tapas here.
reviewed
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El Lagar
Everything from curries to pizzas to fresh Canarian fish is served at this sprawling beach-side restaurant at the back of the Centro Cancajos. By day, enjoy great ocean views.
reviewed
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El Corte Inglés
Monster-sized, and will keep you stocked in whatever your heart desires. It also has an excellent, albeit pricey, supermarket with interesting imported goodies.
reviewed
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Restaurante Vasco Iratxe
Widely hailed as the best eating in town, this dark little Basque restaurant serves up fabulous cod and other Basque specialities.
reviewed
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K-16 Surf
K-16 Surf rents out fibre surfboards and provides tuition for only slightly more than the price of rental.
reviewed
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Free Motion
The slickly run Free Motion offers a range of tours for small groups and has bikes and quads for rental.
reviewed
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Torre del Conde
Set in a park just off the coast, Torre del Conde is considered the Canary Islands' most important example of military architecture. Here, Beatriz de Bobadilla, wife of the cruel and ill-fated Hernán Peraza, had to barricade herself in 1488 until help arrived.
Governor Hernán Peraza the younger had long been hated for his cruel treatment of the islanders. When, in 1488, he broke a pact of friendship with one of the Gomero tribes and, openly cheating on his wife, began cavorting with Yballa, a local beauty and fiancée of one of the island's most powerful men, the natives rebelled. They surprised Peraza during one of his clandestine meetings with Yballa and killed him with…
reviewed
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Santuario de la Virgen de las Nieves
For great views over Santa Cruz and the shore, take the relatively easy 2km hike north of town to La Palma's main object of pilgrimage, the 17th-century Santuario de la Virgen de las Nieves .
To walk from Plaza Alameda, follow the road, which becomes a signposted dirt track, westwards up the gorge of the Barranco de las Nieves. It will take nearly 45 minutes to walk up, but coming back is faster. By car, follow signs from the Avenida Marítima where it crosses the barranco (ravine), then turn right on the Carretera de las Nieves (LP-101) and continue winding up the hillside until you see signs for the sanctuary. The curve-filled 5km trip takes nearly 15 minutes. Bus 10…
reviewed
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Carnaval
Only Rio de Janeiro does it better and even that party does not overshadow Santa Cruz's efforts to make Carnaval a nonstop, 24-hour party-orgy. Festivities generally kick off in early February and last about three weeks. Many of the gala performances and fancy-dress competitions take place in the Recinto Ferial (fairgrounds) but the streets, especially around Plaza España, become frenzied with good-natured dawn-to-dusk frivolity.
Don't be fooled into thinking this is just a sequin-bedecked excuse to party hearty, though. It may sometimes be hard to see or believe, but there is an underlying political 'message' to the whole shebang. Under the Franco dictatorship, Carnaval…
reviewed
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Parque Nacional de Garajonay
Covering 10% of La Gomera's surface, this 4000-hectare (9884-acre) park forms a knot in the island's centre and is a haven for some of the planet's most ancient forest. Over 400 species of flora, including its famous laurel, can be found here. Most trails running through the park were once used by the Gomeros. The majority of the hikes are relatively light, and you can get a solid view of the landscape without venturing too far.
Many independent visitors make for Alto de Garajonay (1487m/4879ft), the island's tallest peak. From here, clouds permitting, you can see the islands of Tenerife, La Palma, El Hierro and sometimes even Gran Canaria. Another favourite stop is La…
reviewed
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Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Concepción
The city's oldest church, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, has a striking bell tower, tiled roof and some traditional mudéjar (Islamic-style architecture) ceiling work. The present church was built in the 17th and 18th centuries but the original building went up in 1498, just after the island was conquered.
At the heart of the shimmering silver altar is the Santa Cruz de la Conquista (Holy Cross of the Conquest), which gives the city its name. Tradition has it that Alonso Fernández de Lugo, the Spanish commander, planted it in his camp to give thanks for his 1494 victory over the Guanches.
Check out the anteroom to the sacristy. The altarpiece in the chapel…
reviewed
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Roque Cinchado
A few kilometres south of the peak, across from the parador, lies this geological freak show of twisted lava pinnacles with names like the Finger of God and the Cathedral. Known as the Roques de García, they are the result of erosion of old volcanic dykes, or vertical streams of magma. The hard rock of the dykes has been bared while surrounding earth and rock has been gradually swept away.
The weirdest of the rocks, the Roque Cinchado, is wearing away faster at the base than above, and one of these days is destined to topple over (so maybe you shouldn't get too close). Spreading out to the west are the otherworldly bald plains of the Llano de Ucanca. This is the most…
reviewed
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Casa/Museo de Colón
The Casa/Museo de Colón is a superb example of Canarian architecture, built around two balconied patios, complete with fountains, palm trees and parrots. The exterior is a work of art itself, with some showy plateresque (silversmith-like) elements combined with traditional heavy wooden balconies.
Although called Columbus' House (it's possible he stopped here to present his credentials to the governor in 1492), most of what you see dates from the time this was the opulent residence of Las Palmas' early governors.
The museum's four sections include fascinating accounts of Columbus' voyages, the Canary Islands role as a staging post for transatlantic shipping, pre-Columbian…
reviewed