gran canaria - spain

Gran Canaria is an island of contrasts. A busy international port for Commercial and Cruise ships, alongside coves and beaches which focus upon the needs of much valued tourists. Las Palmas is the hub and provides easy access to the island attractions. Great base to benefit from a long weekend in the sun, with heartfelt service and overall helpfulness. 

Finally arrived, unpacked and had the ‘let’s celebrate I’m here, glass of wine or cup of coffee’... so what next! We talked earlier about immediate local attractions, time to travel further afield. Why not take the Hop on/ off bus to orientate and inform future tactics and plans. The bus stops a few minutes walk from the Bex Hotel, alongside a very helpful tourist information kiosk. See it all from the open top, sit in the breeze and sun, whilst you select where best to pounce for greater exploration.

Taster Tours

For stress free travel, take advantage of the clean, efficient and good value, local bus transport system. A car free way to visit the island and it’s natural sights, with a birds eye view in all directions. The local service takes you to a range of sights and shopping areas or better still the old market, for the freshest of colourful local produce.....a feast for tired eyes. Ideally placed alongside the narrow cobbled streets and historic buildings of 1478, once the centre of political, religious and administrative life of the island. It has a past influenced by Christopher Columbus and Francis Drake.

The Cathedral,Theatre, Churches, Town Hall and Museums are all clustered around small squares and gardens, just waiting for you to wander and look inside. Tapas bars, restaurants and cafes pour out on to the streets, buzzing with animated locals and tourists.....a great place for night time atmosphere. Bus number 1 or 91 takes you from bus station Catalina, on a one and half hour journey through the southern countryside and coastal regions to Puerto de Mogán, known locally as little Venice. A buzzy coastal destination with atmospheric bars, restaurants and musicians, situated on the walkway alongside the parasol clad beach and coves.....great for people watching and meandering. There are colourful buildings, mini ocean inlets accessed by over arching bridges.

Market day on Saturday is a bonus, with its tempting array of goods and local artisan products to help you spend those euros. Take one of the boat trips from the boat filled harbour to maybe Puerto Rico, it’s more commercial neighbour. A roof top seat let’s you enjoy the sun and sea breeze in your hair and face, whilst you admire the fish and geological variations of the coastline, amidst the banter of the knowledgeable captain. Hop off to find a glass of wine at a port side bar, before walking up to the bus stop and the road journey home, which hugs the coastline with its crashing waves and banana plantations. At Bus station Santelmo take the number 103 bus to Agaete and Puerto de las Nieves in the north of the island, an original unspoilt fishing village.

The one and a half hour drive alongside the craggy coast, through mountains and countryside, takes you to this characterful village, exposed to the robust and thrashing waves of the Atlantic.  Clear turquoise water with crisp white curling waves pound the rocks time and time again. Small fresh fish restaurants and bars abound and for the adventurous, wooden bathing platforms to top up that tan. For the adventurous , a ferry service connects with an overnight stay on the island of Tenerife,  to complete that holiday experience.

Time to Linger

So many cafes and bars in which to sip that delicious chilled local white wine ......just add those large home grown olives. Each venue offers an array of  their own local tapas specialities, to tempt those hungry eyes. Local crafts of colourful pottery and baskets peer out of quirky small fronted shops, to draw you in to the meandering caverns which sit behind. Small squares and lush gardens in which to ponder, watch the locals go about their daily life and of course refresh those aching feet.