When we mention our visit to the Canary Islands, we are always asked… “Where are the Canary Islands?” They are located 60 miles off the coast of Morocco, Africa in the Atlantic Ocean.
Considered to be Europe’s own Hawaii, these unique islands are quite popular as a beach and sun destination for Europeans living in colder climates. Island temperatures steady in the upper 70oF during the day and mid-60oF in the evenings… just perfect for year-round outdoor recreation, sun-bathing, island-hopping and day tours, and our favorite, outdoor patio dining.
In 1999, we spent three weeks during the month of November… an off-season time for tourists and rains for a six out of seven island exploration. We selected islands for variety, convenience and interest… each with their own unique landscapes and appeal.
Lanzarote ~ Our first impressions of this island were stark, bare and prickly… no signs of grass, lush trees nor any flowers; just black and rust hues of volcanic rocks with the splattering of cacti and palm trees. Even the buildings highlight the dark grounds as they were painted all white with a splash of green trim to coordinate a stark contrast and clean appearance. However, it was the abundance of stray cats that threw us off to this orderly looking island… (read more in our LANZAROTE blog)
Fuerteventura ~ After a wavy 50-minute ferry ride from Lanzarote, we arrived on the island covered mainly of sand dunes and long stretches of sandy beaches, resembling the Sahara Desert. Maybe that’s because this island is the closest to Morocco and receives most of its sands directly from this neighborly mainland in their steadily prevailing winds. So you can imagine that sand art is quite popular on this island. Sunglasses are a must… and not just to protect eyes from the blinding sun off the sands… (read more in our FUERTEVENTURA blog)
Tenerife ~ It was easier to take a flight from Lanzarote to this popular island than it was for our taxi cab driver to find our hotel in port city of Puerto de la Cruz. Most tourists would head off to Los Cristianos or Playa de Americas, but not us… we started our adventure on Tenerife looking for local appeal. We found the flavor of Puerto de la Cruz similar to the Spanish Caribbean, very old-world cutesy but also quite cosmopolitan, with lots of shopping, amusement parks and museums to explore. No shopping for us, we head off in a rental car to Spain’s highest mountain peak for a better view. And don't miss our interview with Dr Thor Heyerdahl... (read more in our TENERIFE blog)
La Gomera ~ Just a short ferry ride southwest from Tenerife will land you on the petite rocky island of La Gomera, full of earthy and natural wonders unique only to this island. More hiking and biking trails than roads, we were thankful that we brought along our own rental car, even though we had to sign our life away back on Tenerife as a guarantee its safe return. Amazingly, our little red tin can of a car held together as followed a smoke-belching delivery truck along a narrow and bumpy road up to the island’s only Parador… (read more in our LA GOMERA blog)
La Palma ~ After successfully returning our rental car back to Tenerife, we caught a flight over to the lush, green island of La Palma. It’s interesting to note that the island of Lanzarote displays a stark and arid landscape with over 300 extinct volcanoes, and this gorgeous green, tropical island has a spark ready to blow… an active ridge of volcanoes lying dominant. The last eruption on this island was just in 1971. However, before exploring volcanoes, it was a must for us to try their homemade Sangria… (read more in our LA PALMA blog)
Gran Canaria ~ For our last island excursion, we arranged for a private guide to cover the island’s nooks and crannies to see as much of this “miniature continent” as we could during our brief stay. Our guide provided a wealth of useful and useless information… learning that this island’s capital is home to more than half of the entire archipelago’s total population… and where we had selected our first night’s accommodations was more than an hour’s drive away from civilization on the top of a mountain peak in a lodge called El Refugio… (read more in our GRAN CANARIA blog)
Check out our adventures on each of these islands. You can click our EL Travel Bugs logo to follow along island by island, starting with Lanzarote…and don’t miss our best and worst experiences on each island.
