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Travel // Going Around // Canary Islands // Arrecife
Travel // Going Around // Canary Islands // Arrecife
Travel // Going Around // Canary Islands // Arrecife
Arrecife is a city in the Canary Islands (Spain) situated in the centre-east of the island of Lanzarote. The city owes its name to the rock reef which covers the beach located in the city. Arrecife the capital city of the island of Lanzarote is also a sea port serving the Canary
Islands as well as to Europe and mainland Africa.
Getting There
The island's only airport is just to the west of Arrecife. In addition to the charter flights that serve Lanzarote from Northern Europe, there are scheduled flights operated to some of the other Canary Islands, to the Spanish mainland and to few international locations, most notably London (Gatwick).
Some of the airlines serving Lanzarote include: Iberia, Spanair, AirEuropa, EasyJet, Binter, Monarch, Thomsonfly, Thomas Cook, Hapag Lloyd, Air Berlin, Jetair, Lauda Air, Aer Lingus, Ryanair and Jet2.
Getting Around
Bus and taxi are good value on the island. Car hire is also relatively cheap and is the best option for discovering the remote wilderness regions. It only takes about 40 minutes to cross the entire island from North to South by car, and about 25 minutes across. Lanzarote tends to be a bit windy, and often a bit more in July, making motor scooters or bicycles a little difficult and risky.
The Airport is served only by a small bus that stops at both terminals to the city of Playa Honda and the Capital Arrecife, so it would be necessary to go there to connect to other destinations by bus. Buses leave about twice per hour daily for most of the day, except for Sundays when there is a reduced schedule.
Talk
Lanzarote islanders speak Spanish (Castilian) with a distinct Canary Island accent and some vocabulary not found on the Spanish mainland.
Lanzarote's principal economic activity is tourism, and a large proportion of tourists are from Ireland and the U.K. so most people working with tourists can speak at least some basic English.
Most restaurants offer menus in Spanish, English, and German. Although, do remember that this is a Spanish speaking island and try not to get too flustered if the local people cannot understand you. Many residents speak some English or German as a second language, but it helps immensely to speak slowly and using simple words/grammar when not being able to speak Spanish.
Activities
There are also water activities such as snorkeling, scuba diving, surfing, windsurfing, parasailing and canoeing. There is also a water park (with bus service from Puerto del Carmen), a Zoo Park (Guinate Park), an aquarium-type park and a wild-west themed animal park (Rancho Texas). You can also take submarine trips from Ports in Puerto del Carmen and Puerto Calero. One of the island's most enjoyable things to do is relax, lie at the beautiful beaches during the day and enjoy a nice meal in the evening. There is an array of shops ranging from digital hardware shops to bazaars but be wary, you can get a good bargain if you can haggle a little with the shopkeepers. Don't worry, these guys are well used to people asking for a better deal than what they are offering.
Try Scuba Diving from Costa Teguise, Playa Blanca or Puerto del Carmen. Lanzarote offers some of the best diving in Europe.
Gastronomy
Traditional
The local cuisine is typical of the Canary Islands:
Mojo which means sauce.
The most common varieties are:
- mojo picón (hot, spicy) made from red chillis
- mojo verde (green) made either from green pepper or coriander (cilantro)
- mojo hervido (boiled) made from spices and lemon
Papas arrugadas ("wrinkly potatoes") are cooked unpeeled in salt water then baked dry. Customarily served with a mojo sauce.
Gofio is a flour substitute milled from a variety of cereals like wheat, corn (maize), barley, etc., or a mixture of them. It is sometimes served by local restaurants in entreé dishes as a small patty of moist dough, and also forms the basis for local pastries and pie bases.
Restaurants noted for local cuisine:
La Era, Casa Monumento al Campesino, Restaurante Museo Internacional de Arte Contemporaneo (on the coast just to the north of Arrecife located inside a Castle turned museum).
However, it is worth noting that in many of the resorts there are very few true Canarian restaurants. Most of those present tend to focus on English food (English fried breakfast, Roasts etc). If you are going on a package holiday it would be a huge saving to pay the extra for all-inclusive, especially if you're not likely to travel far from the resort.
Non Traditional
There are many non-traditional places to eat out in the main resort towns, serving a wide range of food such as Greek, Chinese, Indian, and Mexican.
Drink
The tap water is treated sea water, brackish, and not recommended for drinking. Try to drink bottled water which is affordable.
There are many bars in the tourist areas, in particular Irish bars in Puerto del Carman. Alcohol is very cheap in supermarkets. There is no duty on alcohol purchased in Lanzarote (other than VAT at 5%) so restaurants tend to make a lot of their money from selling of alcohol at a significant - but to foreign visitors seemingly imperceptible - markup. Again, if a package exists which is all-inclusive, it might be a good idea to pay the little bit extra in the long run.
Supermarkets vary greatly in price The most expensive are Netto (about 25% more expensive), then Hiperdino supermarkets, these are the larger ones and tend to have good local produce at reasonable prices. Lastly there are SPAR stores.
Sleep
Lanzarote has a broad selection of hotels and other forms of holiday accommodation. Most hotels are clustered in and around the major resorts of Puerto del Carmen, Playa Blanca and Costa Teguise.
Hotel Gran Meliá Volcán Lanzarote
The hotel counts a total of 255 bedrooms (49 of them in the Royal Service) spread over 20 typical houses. The rooms provide spectacular views over the islands Fuerteventura, Isla de Lobos, the Papagayo Beaches, the Yacht-Harbour "Marina Rubicón", Playa Blanca and the extensive pool and gardens areas of the hotel.
Gran Melia Salinas
Situated in the north of the Lanazarote Island and is in close proximity to the architecturally historical capital of Teguise, as well as Arrecife airport, Jameos del Agua, and Cueva de los Verdes.
Hesperia Lanzarote
This hotel is located on the coast, offering fantastic views and pure luxury. Spa, Games room and swimming pools are available in and around the hotel.
Castillo Schlaraffenland
The apartments of Castillo Schlaraffenland that are built in César Manrique style are situated in the middle of the island, just 250m above Puerto Calero. All three apartments have been built into volcano rocks and have a stunning view over the Atlantic coast and Fuerteventura Island.
Interesting Places / Sites
Timanfaya National Park is a volcanic landscape that has barely changed since its eruption in the 1730s and covers a quarter of the island's surface. For many, this is the highlight of their visit to Lanzarote.
Montañas del Fuego (Mountains of Fire)
Entrance is by bus or car leading to the Islote de Hilario, where a sloped car park leads up to a shop, bar and restaurant which were designed by César Manrique. The admission fee includes a bus tour around the interior of the park with a narrated history in Spanish, English and German. The restaurant has a panoramic view of the park, and the meat is roasted over the underground heat of the islote, which reaches hundreds of degrees at a depth of only a few metres.
Timanfaya National Park Visitors' Centre
Is located just outside the northern limit of the park, on the road to Mancha Blanca and Tinajo. The permanent display and audio-visual presentations explain the origins of the island, the recent volcanic activity that formed the park, the flora and fauna of what appears at first glance to be a dead landscape. Admission is free.
Jameos del Agua
Is located in the Malpais de La Corona in the north of the island. A jameo is a volcanic formation formed when the ceiling of an underground lava tunnel collapses, exposing a section of the tunnel to the sky. A bar, restaurant, swimming pool, and concert hall were all built within one such formation near the coast under the guidance of César Manrique, and opened to the public in 1966.
Cueva de los Verdes ("Green's Cave")
Is located a few hundred metres inland from the Jameos del Agua and is part of the same tunnel. A guided tour takes you through a succession of caverns and tunnels formed by an underground river of lava. The melted rock and mineral formations are well lit, and the demonstration of their acoustical qualities is truly surprising.
Mirador del Rio
Is located at the northermost tip of the island. It has a comfortable bar and lounge offering a magnificent panoramic view of the small islands to the north of Lanzarote. Jardín de Cactus ("Cactus Garden")
Fundación César Manrique
Visit César Manrique's superb house. The house was built inside 5 volcanic bubbles.
Casa Monumento al Campesino ("House of Monument to the Peasant")
Whales and Dolphins Museum
The Museo de Cataceos de Canarias is a very informative museum with friendly and knowledgeable staff. Ideal for family holiday trips in Lanzarote located in Puerto Calero's attractive marina space. It's certainly an appropriate museum for the Canary Islands, as dolphins and whales abound in the surrounding Atlantic waters. Outside the museum is a giant skeleton of a whale - giving you an idea of what to expect inside. The museum explores the evolution of whales and dolphins in detail through life sized reproduction models, skeleton collections, sounds and interactive displays, photographs and biological samples.
Agricola Museum
This is a great place to see what life used to be like on Lanzarote for the farmers and settlers. There are lots of exhibits covering everything from tools and implements to a typical household layout on this large and interesting site. Two flour mills, a winery, animals and a working farm are all on offer for visitors to see. Often missed by tourist buses this site is easy to find an well preserved.
Lanzarote's Beaches
Lanzarote has a number of beautiful beaches and a rugged, fabulous coastline to explore.
Stay Safe
While a generally safe country, as always beware of pickpockets and keep hold of any personal belongings. There are local police stations in all major cities and somewhat frequent police patrols around the streets. Emergency service phone number is the European standard "112".
