Gran Canaria itinerary

1. 1

   Maspalomas Dunes - Shifting Sands and a Protected Reserve in the South

   The Maspalomas Dunes cover roughly 400 hectares between Playa del Ingles and the Faro de Maspalomas lighthouse, and they are a protected nature reserve, the Reserva Natural Especial de las Dunas de Maspalomas. Sand…

   Address

   Mirador de las Dunas, Paseo Costa Canaria s/n, Playa del Ingles, 35100 San Bartolome de Tirajana, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus line 30 (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to Faro de Maspalomas), Playa del Ingles stop, 5-min walk

2. 2

   Roque Nublo - The Volcanic Monolith at the Centre of the Island

   Roque Nublo stands 80 metres tall on a plateau 1,813 metres above sea level, and it is the image most visitors carry away from Gran Canaria. Geologists date the eruption that formed Roque Nublo to around 4.5 million…

   Address

   Aparcamiento de La Goleta, Carretera GC-600 km 5, 35360 Tejeda, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   No bus serves the trailhead - about 1 hour 15 minutes' drive from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria via the GC-15 and GC-600

3. 3

   Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Vegueta - The Capital's Oldest Quarter

   Las Palmas de Gran Canaria was founded in 1478, and Vegueta is where that story began. The quarter's cobbled grid holds the Catedral de Santa Ana, where a lift carries you up a tower for a rooftop view across terracotta…

   Address

   Plaza de Santa Ana s/n, Vegueta, 35001 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus lines 1 and 30 terminate at San Telmo station, 10-min walk; city Guaguas Municipales lines 1 and 12 stop at Teatro

4. 4

   Playa de las Canteras - A Three-Kilometre City Beach with a Natural Breakwater

   Playa de las Canteras runs three kilometres along the northern edge of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and a volcanic reef called La Barra lies offshore, flattening the Atlantic swell across most of its length. That reef is…

   Address

   Paseo de las Canteras s/n, 35008 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus lines 1, 30 and 60 stop at Santa Catalina station, 5-min walk to the northern end of the beach

5. 5

   Puerto de Mogan - A Canal-Threaded Harbour Town on the Southwest Coast

   Puerto de Mogan was a fishing village before the low white apartments and footbridges went up over its saltwater canals in the 1980s. What remains is walkable and low-rise, with bougainvillea spilling over the lanes and…

   Address

   Avenida de los Marreros s/n, Puerto de Mogan, 35138 Mogan, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus line 1 from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria or line 32 from Faro de Maspalomas, Puerto de Mogan terminus

6. 6

   Tejeda - A Mountain Village Ringed by Volcanic Rock

   Tejeda sits at 1,050 metres inside the eroded basin islanders call the Caldera de Tejeda, and Miguel de Unamuno famously described the landscape around it as a petrified storm. Whitewashed houses with terracotta roofs…

   Address

   Calle Doctor Hernandez Guerra 15, 35360 Tejeda, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus line 305 from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria via Vega de San Mateo, Tejeda village stop

7. 7

   Pico de las Nieves - The Highest Viewpoint on Gran Canaria

   Pico de las Nieves reaches 1,949 metres, the highest point on Gran Canaria, and on a clear day the view takes in the whole central caldera, Roque Nublo below and the cone of Mount Teide about 130 kilometres away on…

   Address

   Mirador del Pico de las Nieves, Carretera GC-134, 35100 San Bartolome de Tirajana, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   No bus reaches the summit - about 55 minutes' drive from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria via the GC-15 and GC-150

8. 8

   Guayadeque Ravine - A Cave-Dwelling Valley Between Aguimes and Ingenio

   The Barranco de Guayadeque cuts seven kilometres inland from Aguimes, and people have lived in caves carved into its walls since before the Castilian conquest. Some of those caves are still occupied today. Others have…

   Address

   Centro de Interpretacion de Guayadeque, Camino de Guayadeque s/n, 35260 Aguimes, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus line 11 from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to Aguimes, then a 15-minute taxi up into the ravine

9. 9

   Playa de Amadores - A Sheltered Man-Made Bay Beside Puerto Rico

   Playa de Amadores is an engineered beach, a curved bay of imported pale sand held between two breakwaters and opened in the 1990s just west of Puerto Rico. The water inside those arms barely moves. That makes it the…

   Address

   Playa de Amadores s/n, Puerto Rico de Gran Canaria, 35130 Mogan, Las Palmas

   Nearest transit

   Global bus line 32 or 91 to Puerto Rico, then a 20-minute coastal walk or short shuttle to the bay

10. 10

    Caldera de Bandama - A Volcanic Crater Half an Hour from the Capital

    The Caldera de Bandama is a near-perfect volcanic crater roughly a kilometre wide and 200 metres deep, formed about 2,000 years ago, which counts as recent in the geology of Gran Canaria. It is the closest serious…

    Address

    Mirador de Bandama, Carretera GC-822 km 6, 35310 Santa Brigida, Las Palmas

    Nearest transit

    Global bus line 311 from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to Santa Brigida, then a 20-minute taxi to the Pico de Bandama viewpoint

From the trip1 travel guide “10 Best Things to Do in Gran Canaria” · trip1.com