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8 Amazing Facts about Gran Canaria
8 reasons why you should visit this special island!
I have always marvelled at how Spanish territory is vast and diverse. For an island girl, I always somehow get drawn to beaches and islands. Spain has two main sets of islands — Balearic islands in the Balearic sea and Canary Islands off the coast of southern Morocco in the Atlantic sea.
Canary Islands
Of course, this post is about my undisputed favourite of the two sets — Canarias! Canary Islands is an archipelago made up of eight islands — Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, La Gomera, La Palma, El Hierro and the smaller La Graciosa (recently proclaimed not an isleta but the eighth Canary Island!). Each island has its own specificity in terms of nature and topography — beaches, sea life, volcano, mountains, valleys, desert.
Now, the Canary Islands is a world of their own, and each island is different! Tenerife and Gran Canaria are the bigger and more populated islands. Tenerife has the highest mountain in Spain, Fuerteventura has the best beaches, and Lanzarote has wine farms and an active volcano!
I have visited four of the larger islands so far, but, I have ended up spending countless summers and Christmases in Gran Canaria, in part thanks to the joys of working from home. For me, Gran Canaria has the best of the Canary Islands all packed up into one island!
1. Good Connections
Because of its geographical location, it is sometimes hard for me to fathom that Canary islands are still European territory. The larger islands are fairly well connected to many European capitals, with several daily flights from Madrid. The islands also have their own inter-island airlines and boat services. Flying to Gran Canaria from Madrid is only a 2.5 hour flight, but it literally manages to transport you to a completely different part of the world, while technically still being in Europe!
2. Best Climate in the world
The best thing about Gran Canaria has to be the weather — it is mild all year long! In fact, the capital, Las Palmas, has even been awarded as the city with the best climate in the world. Yes, it is still possible to go to the beach at Christmas time in Gran Canaria! What else could you want? The island has several microclimates — for example the weather in the North can be radically different from the weather of the South. Therefore, with some luck, you can have sunny weather for most of your trip. Being so close to Africa, sometimes the wind carries calima to the islands, which is dust from the Sahara desert, which can affect air quality and visibility for some time. Otherwise, I think I experienced rain only once or twice on the island. Most of the time, it is sunny or cloudy with no rain. Best beach weather for sure!
3. Guanches Influence
The most common theory as to why Canarias is called Canarias is that, when discovered by the first European expeditions, the island was full of big dogs, or canis. However, there seemed to be indigenous people, or Guanches, living in the islands before the first European settlers. In the archeological musuem Cueva Pintada of Galdar, you can visit replicas of Guanche caves (I also had one of the best alfresco lunches in Galdar!). Canarians have proudly retained Guanche influence in their culture, especially in terms of phonetically unique names (for example Iones, Iriome, Adai, Acoran, Bentor, Aray, Arminda) and place names (for example Agaete, Tirajana, Arinaga, Tejeda, Guanarteme, Aguimes).
4. Diverse Nature
Gran Canaria is quite diverse in its topography. It will be hard to cover everything, this list is far from exhaustive!
Firstly, there are sandy beaches — the most popular ones being in the South, which is also the more touristy and party part of the island, then there are the natural pools or piscinas naturales, which are naturally formed pools of water, some of them being close to the actual ocean — these are great for those who do not like sandy feet!
Apart from the beaches, the centre of the island is made up of peaks, gorges and valleys, which are great for hikes. The most striking valley or barranquo is Guayadeque — a large 15 km wide valley situated in the south east of the island. Guayadeque is famous for cave restaurants — restaurants actually situated inside ancient caves — a must try experience!
In the South, there is also a large stretch of desert called Dunas de Maspalomas, where you can get lost, catch the best sunset views, or accidentally stumble onto a nudist beach!
Because of its high peaks and clear skies, Gran Canaria is also famous for stargazing! The best viewpoints are found in the higher vantage points, and there are various events organized throughout the year for astronomy lovers.
5. Charming Towns
Gran Canaria also has several charming towns that deserve a visit. In the capital, awalking tour of Triana and the old town of Vegueta, would reveal lots of historical gems, trendy coffee shops and restaurants. Teror is a pretty town in the middle of the island, famous for being the home of Gran Canaria’s patron saint, the Virgen del Pino. Every September, pilgrims make their way to Teror to pay their respects to the Virgen. In the center of the island, there is also the scenic town of Tejeda, from where you can see stunning views of the Roque Nublo, the highest peak of the island. Tejeda is also known for its dulces, or cakes made from almonds. Some charming coastal towns include the small port town of Mogan, which can make you feel like you are somewhere in the Caribbean, and also the pebble beach town of Agaete, which is surrounded by stunning cliffs.
6. Festivals
I will never be forgiven if I don’t mention the festivals in Gran Canaria! True to Spanish culture, Gran Canaria also has its fair share of yearly festivals. The biggest one is probably the Carnival of Maspalomas, which includes a parade, parties and shows, and locals in impressive costumes! Other festivals, just to mention a few, include Festival de la Rama in Agaete, la Bajada del Gofio in Agüimes and Fiestas del Pino in Teror.
7. Amazing Food
It will be impossible to not touch a little bit upon the food offerings of the island. Apart from having a wide array of fresh seafood, the most famous dish from Gran Canaria is mojo, which is a sauce which can be served with almost everything. Mojo rojo is made with red peppers (and can be spicy) and mojo verde is cilantro-based. Bocadillo de pulpo con mojo verde (Baguette with octopus and green mojo sauce) must be one of my favourites! A typical dish that remains at the heart of every Canarian is papas con mojo — basically wrinkled baby potatoes served with mojo. It is available as a tapas in almost every bar and restaurant. Another typical dish is Gofio, which is a cereal based flour — this is used in desserts, and as a side dish by itself. Other Canarian must try dishes are pata de cerdo, chorizo de Teror and yummy Canarian cheese and wine. Also, everything is served with alioli and I love it!
8. People
For me, the most fascinating fact of all is the hospitality of Canarian people. They have a special, musical accent to their Spanish, and are all incredibly friendly and relaxed. They all seem really tanned, sporty, extremely loyal to their island, with a special zest for life. Like with many islanders, a lot of them tend to go to the mainland to look for better jobs, but a significant proportion of these tend to come back home because they missed the lifestyle too much. Very understandable, if you ask me!
All in all, Gran Canaria has slowly grown on me. We all need a little bit of mojo in our lives!
