Canary Islands – “So where are the canaries!” (introduction)

Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria – the most famous among the Canary Islands. Our “European Caribbean” has a lot to offer, as we had the opportunity to see for ourselves in the fall.

We went to Tenerife, but our travels did not end on one island. We also took the opportunity to go to Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria.

The archipelago of volcanic origin consists of 7 main islands and 6 smaller ones. Canary Islands They belong to Spain, and the Canary Islands authorities alternate offices in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Santa Cruz de Tenerife – the cities could not agree, so it was agreed that they would exchange :)

The islands are not far from each other so you don’t have to limit yourself and can easily take a trip to another island (even for a day). There are frequent local airline flights and ferries between the islands – of course, ferries are a much longer option, so here day trips only come into play to the nearest island. We chose to fly from Tenerife to Gran Canaria. In addition, we managed to spend some time in Fuerteventura on the way back.

As many people as many opinions about the Canary Islands. Some people are crazy about them, while others hate them.

In our opinion, the islands have so much to offer that there is something for everyone: sandy beaches, ideal conditions for windsurfing, water parks, mountainous areas with many hiking trails, winding mountain serpentines, resorts full of bars and clubs… but also small towns where tourism has not yet developed.

It all depends on what attitude you come with and where you end up. Driving the length and breadth of one island, one will find resorts for families with children, retirees and young people alike who are going to go out.

As mentioned, we had the opportunity to see a total of four islands: Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura with the most time spent on the first one. It is Tenerife that we recommend for longer trips – there are plenty of attractions for both big and small :) Gran Canaria and Tenerife have large capitals, with an old town, several monuments worth seeing. Also, these two islands are characterized by more mountainous terrain (next to them Fuerteventura seems completely flat).

On each you will find resorts with boardwalks, plenty of restaurants and stores mainly for English, German and Spanish tourists. You will also find more unspoiled areas on all of them, you just have to look well :)

And what will NOT be found in the Canary Islands? KANARKS! We haven’t seen any in the wild :(

Maybe we didn’t search well enough, or maybe it’s true that, the canaries owe their name to the Canary Islands, and not the other way around? ;) Apparently, the name of the archipelago comes from dogs – from the Latin ‘canis’, which were very abundant in these areas (we didn’t see these in the wild either…).

Enjoy our trip report, we especially recommend our post Which Canary Island to choose (and how they differ)!