Lanzarote through our road trip to the Canary Islands
Where did we land? The American West, the Omani Desert? This volcanic island, only 3 hours by plane, has something surprising: the island of Lanzarote. An island much less touristic than the other Canary Islands.
Nevertheless when we arrive we are first of all delayed with 1 hour less than an hour, then the grandiose landscapes, the white architecture signed César Manrique, the roads coming out of nowhere planted in the black volcanic rock and the deep blue beaches. We present you our favourite places and our best pictures of Lanzarote's landscape during our road trip of this island during 6 days and its neighbour Fuerteventura.
Our aim is not to introduce you to the known tourist places Folk-Travel has vocation to get off the beaten track.
How to get to Lanzarote?
We took a direct flight to Lanzarote depuis l’aéroport de Bordeaux with Easyjet, which operates 2 flights a week on Mondays and Thursdays from 18/05/2020 to 22/10/2020. To reach Arrecife, our flight took 3 hours.
Pour laisser la voiture au parking pendant nos vacances nous avons utilisé l’application ZenPark , on a ainsi une place dédiée et on retrouve sereinement notre véhicule.
Sur place, nous avons opté pour une location de voiture mais il y a un réseau de bus qui dessert toute l’île ArrecifeBus
An island where the human impact is discreet.
The first thing that strikes you is to see many colourful abstract works as soon as you arrive at the airport by the same signed artist. César Manrique It should be known that without him this island would be just a pile of ashes and a field of ruins as some tourists wrongly characterized it.
You will not see large hotel complexes with more than 2 floors on Lanzarote (except in the south of the island).
The white houses contrast with the black volcanic rock, some with pink bougainvilleas make the landscape dreamlike. This makes This island was the first to be classified in its entirety as a "Biosphere Reserve" by UNESCO in 1994.
Lanzarote is also an island on earth where the climate is at its mildest all year round. Not too hot, not too cold and rain is rare. Across the Sahara, the island can be prone to sandstorms, but they're rare.
What to do or see in Lanzarote?
We present you our road trip from the north to the south of the island: a car rental is essential, the roads are in remarkable conditionReally, it's a joy to drive through this breathtaking scenery.
Pour louer une voiture à Lanzarote, nous avons choisi l’agence local de Lanzarote Cicar This makes it easy to take the vehicle north and leave it south at another agency.
We thus left the vehicle at playa Blanca before putting on the ferry for the second part of our road trip: the discovery of another island of the canaries: Fuerteventura, find our article soon.
Please Note : – en louant le véhicule vous n’êtes pas assuré sur les routes non goudronnées. Ce qui est le cas de la majorité des lieux à voir comme Papagoyo (vous êtes prévenus).
– optez plutôt pour un SUV votre confort sera meilleur surtout sur certaines pistes sinueuses.
Visiter le nord de l’île : criques et villages de Lanzarote
The Mirador del Rio
This point of view is the highest of the island and allows to admire in front of the magnificent Graciosa Island . From the morning, the island of Graciosa is bathed in sunshine with turquoise blue waters and salt marshes at the foot of the watchtower.
There is no need to go to the paying area (4,50€), you can admire the view for free on the left side. Being the highest point, it is very windy and the fresh wind can get chilly very quickly, especially when there's little cover because the temperature below is mild.
On the way, you can do the Cactus Garden in Guatiza ...but the influx of tourists has made us give it up. Tariff 2019 : 5,80€.
Translucent Beaches: Caleton Blanco
Don't miss the natural swimming pool beaches starting from Orzola first you will find the Caleton Blanco Beach then the one in Caleta del Mojon Blanco. Our favorite was Caleton Blanco! The white sand makes the water as milky white and transparent, never seen before. Not very deep you can walk far, ideal for children.
We advise you to get there early as the parking lot is quickly taken over as well as the volcanic stone castles to shelter from the wind lying on the sand.
The flowered house Casa Carmelina
Located on the east coast above Arrieta, Punta Mujeres has two natural swimming pools but also a small colourful house with its vertical hanging vegetable garden : Casa Carmelina .
This small white house contrasts with its green paint and hanging plants. Held by an elderly lady, be respectful of the place and the locals! Do not touch, admire with respect.
Natural pools in Punta Mujeres
Just upriver from the plant house you have a large natural pool whose water comes in with the tide and is warmed by the sun.
The village of a thousand palm trees: Haria
Start by walking along the Leon y Castillo Square bordered by palm trees, oleanders and eucalyptus. Then head to the constitution square is a must see for its architecture, the bougainvilleas where you will find the 19th century town hall in neo-classical style. Good Map: go up to the covered market: Mercado Municipal de Abastos.
There you can buy fish, meat by the kilo and bring your dish to the small restaurant which will cook it with your chosen accompaniments. But beware there are few places so you will have to think about booking before your visit.
Visit to be made in Haria : The house of Caesar Manrique in Haria (entrance ticket 10€ ) It was necessary to pay homage to this great man by discovering his environment. This is what this visit promises, to immerse yourself in the artist's home. We regretted that the visit was so short with so few pieces to see.
Now let's go downstairs and take the LZ10 roadAnd it was a thrill to see her sharp turns and the crossing with the buses! But it is to be done because the view is grandiose on the valley.
The restaurant Mirador de los Valles after a big bend is our favorite in this region. The interior decoration and the quality of the food is worth a stop!
The village of Teguise towards Famara the lively surfers' beach.
Let's go now to the village of Teguise: the plaza de san Miguel is the heart of this small village with its church built in 1428 with its bell tower made of red volcanic stone.
The village was deserted when we came and many places to visit were closed. The best way to discover Teguise is to walk through its narrow streets.
Vous trouverez de jolis village tout le long de la route de Lanzarote mais Teguise est sans l’un des plus étonnants de tous.
Let's not linger before we hit the road to Famara. Namely, no need to head towards the "urban" side of Famara on the right is only bungalow and villa to accommodate kite-surfers.
Set a course towards Caleta de Famara LZ-402. The road comes out of nowhere, it's like the United States.
Upon the arrival of Famara you will see the road buried under the sand with the dunes bordering it, the vehicles with the surfboards, the wetsuits around, the tone is set: "California Vibes" we are there. A lot of wind on this side of the west coast of the island comes to hit us in the face, ideal for kitesurfing.
This small white village is a bit western, sand everywhere, small bushes roll, small terraced bars/café on the land side where surfers rest. On the other side, a small promenade runs along the waterfront to the fishing port.
The large beach of Famara is almost 3 km long and offers the most paradisiacal spot for water sports. Simple swimmer the current is too dangerous to swim there.
Good unusual plan for scuba diving enthusiasts discover the underwater museum Museo Atlantico . Accessible by scuba diving or snorkeling you will discover no less than 400 sculptures by British artist Jason deCaires Taylor. Count 51€ with the entrance included.
To book a dive > Dive College Lanzarote
Find out more about the museum in video > https://youtu.be/oip5M3IJ4bI
On the way to the south of the island between authenticity and creeks
The centre of the island: San Bartolome and the Casa Museo del Campesino
Let's leave the north of the island to join the second half of the island. But first stop at San Bartolomé pour vous rendre à l’écomusée une ferme traditionnelle reproduite : Casa Museo del Campesino. Right from the start, a surrealist work from 1960 by César Manrique is erected as a tribute to the work of the peasants who transformed this island.
Before entering the heart of this farmhouse, outside, one is dazzled by the whitewashed walls and floors and the green painted woodwork. Inside, there is a charge of 3€ to enter during opening hours from 10am to discover the crafts of the time: pottery, weaving, lace...
La route du vin -> LZ-30 : région viticole la Geria
Still heading south, you will cross between the volcanic parks, the black volcanic soil shaped by men in funnels piled up where vines have escaped, allowing an efficient development and protected from the wind.
To taste or buy a bottle, visit the most visited winery in Europe, the Geria.
From there you can see the vine growing in circles de pierre volcanique. Le vignoble de la Géria est principalement composé de cépage de Malvoisie (malvasia) et d’un peu de cépage Muscat (moscatel). Ces délicieux vins corsés ont gagné de nombreux prix internationaux.
Opposite on the coast: the seaside resort of Puerto Del Carmen
A quelques minutes du centre de l’île , vous pouvez vous rendre à Puerto del Carmen et serez frappé de voir autant de touristes anglais ! Une vraie station balnéaire anglaise avec des restaurants de toute cuisine.
Mais nous vous conseillons de faire un break à la plage de Playa Chica au sud de Puerto del Carmen idéal pour le snorkeling avec un fond visible grâce à l’eau cristalline.
Timanfaya Park and the road that crosses the volcanic rock LZ-67
The road to Timanfaya Park comes out of nowhere! It's worth the detour on its own. Enclosed in the volcanic rock it feels like being on another planet. Although many guides recommend the paid visit to the Park, we did not make this visit because Folk-Travel is off the beaten track.
Once parked, it is necessary to know that the visit continues either by camel (the animals carry every day hundreds of kilos, for us it was out of question to make them undergo that), or by bus of which one cannot go down to make photographs and with dirty windows... we pass our way without regret.
The village El Golfo and the green lake Charco de los Clicos
Lovers of colour you will see a bewildering array of colours here. Once parked, walk along the marked path on the left to see behind the cliff this small green lake "lago verde" due to a micro-algae which has adapted to the extreme salinity of the water.
Red rocks, black stone, this small green lake and the blue sea bordering it is a picture of nature.
Tip it is better to take a picture between 1pm and 5pm so that this small lake is not in the shade.
Did you know that the name los Clicos comes from the edible shell that has since disappeared when an unfortunate man dropped two turtles into this lake...
Then walk around in the small village El Golfo with its unusual little houses by the sea. You can stop for lunch at the restaurant : Casa Rafa, Restaurante del Mar the fish is fresh and the prices are very contained, we feast at the seaside.
Los Hervideros and the Janubio Saltworks
Not far away you will find these chasms on the seashore where the waves crash against each other and generate a noise like the belly of a growling monster: Los Hervideros .
Avec les roches volcaniques sombres et l’écume blanche des vagues le contraste des couleurs est saisissant .
Vous avez un grand parking puis ensuite vous marchez le long pour voir d’autres gouffres mais attention à l’afflux de touristes on se sent vite étouffé comme dans ces gouffres.
Before leaving for the south and Playa Blanca, make a stop at the Mirador Saltworks where you'll see those salt flats you see from the road. We suggest you stop by to admire the golden luminosity at sunset. The salt is extracted by the evaporation method because this part is well exposed to the winds.
To the seaside resort of Playa Blanca
We arrive in the south of the island in Playa Blanca this seaside resort has all the equipment for those who want to stay there for a week without moving, but we like to move so we will only stop there for one night, you have beautiful beaches all along where it is nice to swim.
We recommend that you go to lunch at restaurant Gusto a small hippy chic italian restaurant excellent . A little further along the seafront you can swim in warm natural pools . A wild and intimate moment .
A beauty of nature Papagayo
Let's go to the Papagayo beach a few kilometers from the Playa Blanca resort. You will have to pay a right of way of 3 euros per vehicle. But you have to have a strong stomach because despite a suv it is not less than 6 kilometers before arriving at the beach on a rocky sandy track that shakes.
Please note that normally with a rental car you are not insured for driving on unpaved roads.
With the same entrance ticket you can access several beaches such as Playa de las mujeres, caleton de cobre, Playa del pozo and Playa de Papagayo.
La plage de Papagayo est d’une eau cristalline et d’un bleu incroyable.
Our road trip to Lanzarote ends here in order to take the ferry to the island opposite Fuerteventura. Follow our road trip to Fuerteventura here .
What to bring back as a gift from Lanzarote
Pour faire plaisir autour de vous, ou à vous-même, optez pour des cadeaux naturels et écolos comme des produits à base d’aloe-vera ou du vin de La Geria. Gros coup de coeur pour ce savon artisanal à l’odeur d’aloe-vera et de vin qui embaume encore notre salle de bain. Vous pouvez aussi en commander sur leur shop.
Where to sleep in Lanzarote?
Nous vous conseillons de vous loger à Tias. Un emplacement idéal pour se déplacer sur tout l’île. Nous avons opté pour ce superbe hôtel rural de moins de 5 chambres, tenu par un couple adorable Antonio et MariCruz : Los Lirios Hotel Rural
Le jardin intérieur est sublime c’est un vrai lieu de détente. Le petit déjeuner est divin servi à la demande fromages typiques etc.. On vous le recommande fortement !
We hesitated with this bed and breakfast... Buenavista Lanzarote Country avec beaucoup de charme aussi mais ce n’était pas le même budget.
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When to go to Lanzarote?
Nous sommes partis à Lanzarote fin septembre : le soleil et la chaleur étaient au rendez-vous. On peut rarement se tromper car le climat est idéal toute l’année. Voici notre détail par mois du weather in Lanzarote .
Gastronomy in Lanzarote
La principale spécialité de l’île de Lanzarote est un met typique des Canaries : les papas arrugadas : des pommes de terres locales cuite dans de l’eau très salée on mange la peau avec qui est très fine car attaquée par le sel.
They are usually accompanied by salsa : mojos from the Portuguese molho which means sauce.
The mojo verde (green sauce) is a sauce based on coriander, green peppers but if you are recklessly tempted the mojo rojo (red sauce) contains strong pimiento.
Mais qui dit île , dit aussi une gastronomie tournée vers la mer avec plusieurs plats de poissons et des fromages de chèvres divins à accompagner avec un bon verre de vin blanc de la Géria au caractère de l’île.
Epingler sur Pinterest – Teguise, Papagoyo, Lanzarote
