Vacation and Travel on the Island of Gran Canaria
Additional articles about the Canary Islands:
♦ Vacation and Travel in the Canary Islands - General information about flights, weather, and more
♦ Lanzarote - An Island in Black and White
♦ A Trip to the Island of Tenerife
♦ A Trip to the Island of La Palma La Palma
Introduction
On the island of Gran Canaria, which belongs to Spain's Canary Islands, it is recommended to stay in the south of the island, where the weather is sunny and pleasant, and where you will find the most abundant and diverse family accommodation options. These range from charming all-inclusive resorts with swimming pools, beaches, water parks, sports facilities, and plenty of activities for children and adults alike, through more modest hotels at very attractive prices, to a wide selection of apartment hotels. It is important to emphasize that many hotels rated at 3 or 3.5 stars would easily receive a 4-star rating or higher in many other countries (due to lower taxation, hotel owners sometimes prefer to receive a lower rating than they actually deserve).
In the south, there is a wealth of active recreation and water sports options, including parasailing, banana boats, jet skis, kayaks, paddle boats with slides, and more. You can also go on cycling trips, horseback riding, and even camel rides.
It is worth noting that the prices of lodging, food, and even shopping in the Canary Islands are lower compared to mainland Europe, mainly thanks to the islands' low purchase taxes. Additionally, it is good to know that admission to all beaches across all the islands is free, including the beaches adjacent to the most luxurious hotels. Entrance to national parks on the island is also free of charge.
In my opinion, the beaches in the south of Gran Canaria are the best beaches for swimming compared to all the other beaches in the Canary Islands.
Thanks to the relatively compact size of the islands, they are an ideal destination for a hub-and-spoke "star trip."
You can spend several days in the south of the island and combine day trips to other parts of the island, with driving time in each direction not exceeding an hour and a half.
Recommended Hotels on the Island of Gran Canaria
Staying in the Maspalomas Area, in the South of the Island:
♦ The Lopesan chain has 11 hotels in Gran Canaria. Some are adults-only, some focus on wellness, some are all-inclusive family hotels, and more. Everyone can find a hotel suitable for them, their travel party, and their budget. Their largest hotel is called:
Lopesan Costa Meloneras Resort, Spa & Casino . This is a 1,030-room hotel that sprawls across a massive area in Maspalomas, located between a lovely seaside promenade—which also belongs to the chain and connects two beaches, including the lighthouse—lined with quality restaurants, shops, cafés, and bars.
It features numerous pools, including a huge infinity pool, and a wide array of leisure and entertainment facilities with a rich entertainment program, nightly shows, and activities for children. The main dining room is vast and beautifully designed, offering an enormous variety of food stations of all culinary styles. It is a top-quality 5-star hotel and comes highly recommended.
♦ The hotel Lopesan Villa Del Conde by the Lopesan chain is a sprawling hotel spread over a vast grounds with over 500 rooms of various sizes. You do not necessarily need a suite; a deluxe room is plenty to get an enormous room with an expansive balcony overlooking a wonderful view. It is a family resort with six swimming pools (4 of which are heated), with restaurants and bars, situated along a scenic promenade between the Maspalomas lighthouse beach and Meloneras beach in southern Gran Canaria. It features an entertainment program for both adults and children. The hotel operates on a half-board basis with rich, varied breakfasts and dinners, and fast, efficient service. Recommended for anyone looking for an active vacation with great weather throughout the entire year.
♦ An excellent 5-star boutique hotel for adults only from the Marriott chain in Gran Canaria is Bohemia Suites & Spa, located in the south of the island near the sand dunes of Maspalomas. The hotel has eighty rooms, a gourmet restaurant overlooking breathtaking views, a private spa (each couple visits privately) with hot tubs, saunas, waterfalls, and intimate seating areas, two swimming pools (one with salt water), and wonderful service. Perfect for those who appreciate personal attention, fine cuisine, and pampering amenities in a central and convenient location for exploring.
♦ Seaside Palm Beach - 5-star hotel
♦ H10 Playa Meloneras Palace - 5-star hotel
Villas in the area:
♦ Villa Lovisi - 4-star standard, small pool, kitchenette, free internet and parking.
Or alternatively:
About a fifteen-minute drive west of Maspalomas, a great resort, Radisson Blu Resort:
Radisson blu resort gran canaria - 5-star hotel
Or a bit further west, on the wonderful Taurito Beach, a great resort:
Mogan Princess and Beach Club - 4-star hotel
The best resort area for families is Taurito, where in addition to the beach there are plenty of family attractions. A recommended hotel chain operating on an all-inclusive basis is Paradise Hotel & Resorts, which has three charming resorts in Taurito that share a joint water park. Especially suitable for families is Hotel Paradise Lago Taurito.
Map Model of the Island of Gran Canaria:
The island is mostly mountainous with sparse vegetation due to low rainfall. Around its perimeter, you can drive on highways, and through the mountainous center on paved yet winding roads.
Tours Across the Island of Gran Canaria
Tours tailored for cruise passengers with port pickup:
Tours from Las Palmas in the North of the Island:
Booking recommended tours on the island from the trusted Viator website:
♦ Full-day guided tour to attractions from the north of Gran Canaria to the south of the island -
Full Day Across the Island Tour from Las Palmas
Lasts about 8.5 hours, departs from the city of Las Palmas, in an air-conditioned vehicle.
Tours from the South of Gran Canaria
♦ Whale and dolphin watching cruise - Dolphin and Whale Cruise in Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria
Includes pickup and drop-off from selected hotels in the south of the island, lasts 2-3 hours, departs from Puerto Rico harbor in the southwest of the island, includes soft drinks, and the 3-hour cruise option includes a swimming stop.
♦ Popular jeep safari tour departing from the south of the island into the mountains and towns in the island's center:
The tour lasts about 8 hours including hotel pickup and drop-off. Can be booked via the GetYourGuide website:
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On this jeep tour, you will see impressive views of mountains and valleys featuring charming small towns:
At the lake, which due to drought continues to shrink in size:
At an aloe vera plantation where plants grow under desert conditions:
And you will tour mountain villages:
In the town of TUNTE with its colorful houses and stone-inlaid walls:
And a trip to the charming town of FATAGA with its picturesque alleys, where lunch is also enjoyed:
♦ Tour of an ancient rural estate including vermouth tasting accompanied by a special dessert. The estate features ancient houses and grows mango and various species of cacti on its grounds, and produces two types of vermouth wine which you taste paired with a special dessert of blueberries and assorted sweets dipped in mango sauce. The tour lasts about two hours. The estate also boasts a recommended high-quality restaurant where it is worth upgrading the tour with a delicious meal. Can be booked via GetYourGuide:
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The estate houses:
The mango plantation
Wine tasting and dessert:
A Trip to the North and Center of the Island
Another full day should be devoted to the towns and mountain villages in the north and center of the island. The town of Aguimes, located in the east of the island, features a charming town square abundant with sculptures and vegetation, alongside exposed brick houses. It is wonderful to wander on foot through the alleys, discover another statue of a donkey, camel, or local townsfolk, and visit the visitor center with its small museum illustrating local history, which even exhibits mummies of the "Guanches" (the indigenous inhabitants).
Not far from there, you can visit the caves where the indigenous people once lived, which are still used for habitation today (after renovation and construction).
In the town of "Arucas" lies the island's large rum distillery, where you can take a tour to learn about rum-making methods and watch the bottling and packaging machines in action. In the tasting room, adults can freely sample the excellent local rum in various versions, including honey rum, chocolate rum, and banana rum. The factory shop is exceptionally cheap! Visitors always leave in high spirits...
In the town of "Firgas" there is a lovely center featuring "water steps"—cascading fountain steps flanked by the coats of arms of the various Gran Canaria municipalities, colorful tiled benches, and relief maps of the seven Canary Islands.
Another charming village in the mountains, despite its ominous-sounding name, is "Teror," renowned for its colorful market and narrow streets. From there, it is recommended to continue to the highest point on the island, Cruz de Tejeda, where you can look out across the entire island and, on days with clear visibility, see some of the neighboring islands as well.
You can embark on a guided mountain jeep tour, an ATV/quad bike tour, or even enjoy donkey riding.
South of Gran Canaria
Dedicate the rest of your travel days to the south of the island, which is filled with vibrant towns, fantastic beaches, and a diverse range of entertainment and vacation options.
Maspalomas
In the town of Maspalomas, do not miss a visit to the sand dunes: an expansive field of dunes stretching all the way to the water's edge, where you can climb, sandboard, and hike.
"Mogan" Mogan
A beautiful town in the south is Mogan, often called the "Venice of the Canaries" due to the small bridges arching over water canals. It features a fishing and yacht harbor, a lovely beach, and an abundance of souvenir shops, restaurants, and cafés nestled among charming houses built in a uniform architectural style. On Fridays, the town hosts a popular street market.
You can reach Mogan by car along a scenic winding road or via the sea by a water taxi that sails between several resort towns in the southwest of the island. Another wonderful way to experience the southern towns is by taking a yacht or catamaran cruise along the scenic coastline, during which you can swim in calm, clear waters and spot jumping fish and wild dolphins. Children especially love sailing aboard a pirate ship on an adventure cruise with activities. Make sure to check the maritime forecast in advance to ensure favorable sea and wave conditions.
The island offers a variety of golf and mini-golf courses, an excellent go-kart track, as well as a zoo, crocodile park, sea animal park, and water park. However, for those seeking the very best animal and water theme parks, it is worth crossing over to the neighboring island to the west, Tenerife, which boasts the largest and highest-quality theme parks of all.
Beaches in the South of Gran Canaria
As mentioned earlier, this island has the best swimming beaches in my opinion. All beaches provide beach umbrellas and sun loungers.
The best beaches are located about a fifteen-minute drive west of Maspalomas.
Amadores Beach - Playa De Amadores
The finest beach on the island is located about a fifteen-minute drive west of Maspalomas and is named Playa De Amadores.
This is a sandy beach nestled inside a bay protected from waves, with calm and clear water. You can enter the water directly from the sandy shore; for those who prefer not to walk on sand, there are sun loungers and umbrellas on the pier with stairways leading directly into the sea. The beach offers restrooms and showers for a modest fee. Adjacent to the beach are numerous restaurants and shops. In the water, there are inflatable water toys, and you can rent paddle boats equipped with water slides.
Puerto Rico Beach
The second best beach on the island is Puerto Rico Beach, located about a five-minute drive east of Amadores Beach. This beach is also sheltered from waves by breakwaters, featuring calm waters and golden sand.
Playa de Anfi
This beach is adjacent to Puerto Rico Beach and is likewise protected by breakwaters, offering calm waters.
Mogan Beach
This beach is situated slightly west of the previous beaches, about a 20-minute drive from Maspalomas. It is also an excellent beach with calm waters thanks to the breakwater protecting it.
Maspalomas Beach
This is a popular beach due to its proximity to the town of Maspalomas. This sandy beach opens directly to the ocean without breakwaters, so it can occasionally be wavy.
The City of Las Palmas
In Gran Canaria, the drive from the southern resorts to the capital, Las Palmas, takes approximately 40-60 minutes, while driving to the mountains in the east and north takes a little over an hour.
Las Palmas is a vibrant city well worth a full day's visit. It features a long seaside promenade called "Las Canteras Ave," lined with restaurants, cafés, shops, and offering gorgeous ocean views. Directly opposite the impressive auditorium is a bustling large shopping center called "Las Arenas." The neighboring streets are packed with pedestrian walkways filled with brand-name boutiques as well as a branch of the famous Spanish department store "El Corte Inglés."
A short drive away, close to the port, lies the historic quarter of "Triana," featuring a food market, typical Canarian architecture with quaint balconies, pedestrian promenades, and the Columbus Museum (Casa de Colón). The museum chronicles the voyages of the Spanish explorer who stopped in the Canary Islands to repair and restock his fleet—and, as local lore suggests, engage in a passionate romance with the wife of the governor of La Gomera. Columbus is celebrated across the Canaries, with streets named after him and numerous historic sites connected to his journey: the church where he prayed, the tower where he met his lover, the house where he resided, and more. The museum also displays paintings, artifacts, and tools from Columbus's destinations, alongside large parrots roaming freely in the lovely central courtyard. A brief walk down a picturesque street leads to the government building facing a grand cathedral.
It is also worth visiting the "Pueblo Canario" (Canarian Village), which showcases typical local architecture and neighboring botanical gardens. Top off your exploration of the area with a visit to the adjacent marina (Muelle Deportivo), filled with yachts and open-air cafés overlooking the water.
Day Trip to the Neighboring Island of Fuerteventura
You can take a day trip to the neighboring island to the east, Fuerteventura, celebrated for its spectacular beaches (often regarded as the finest in the Canaries) and local markets. It is also delightful to visit the Faro de Jandía lighthouse and a traditional local goat farm in Gran Tarajal where artisanal cheeses are crafted. The ferry crossing in each direction takes less than an hour.