For a small island Lanzarote is big on visitor attractions.  Boasting one of the most popular national parks in Spain.  Along with lots of picturesque whitewashed villages, a host of natural wonders and the breathtaking man made attractions of a local artist called Cesar Manrique.

Lanzarote Island Map

The island measures just 38km by 58km – making it easy to circumnavigate and tour.  Whilst both petrol and car hire in Lanzarote are very affordable – with the latter starting from as little as €13 per day.

Natural Wonders
The raw and majestic scenery of the Timanafaya National Park is undoubtedly Lanzarote´s best known and most popular attraction.  Home to mile after mile of lava fields and hundreds of multi hued volcanoes – all now fortunately dormant.  This wasn´t the case when they erupted in the 1730´s though – causing massive devastation.  But today over 900,000 tourists a year flock to enjoy the other worldly vistas at Timanfaya.

The volcanic El Golfo

Elsewhere other volcanic marvels include the green lagoon at El Golfo.  Where a land locked lake located on black sand beach has been turned emerald green by the interaction between sea water and algae.  A striking sight which has been used by the makers of many movies – most recently Pedro Almodovar -who features this scene in his latest release Broken Embraces.

Village Vistas
The white washed village of Haria in the north of Lanzarote is located within the folds of the Valley of 1000 Palms.  An area as lush and verdant as the south of the island is barren and volcanic.

Haria Village in Lanzarote

This is all the result of a politically incorrect policy dating back centuries.  With villagers planting a new palm tree for every new born girl and two for a boy.  Either way the effect is striking – as the entire valley resembles an African oasis.

The former island capital of Teguise also figures highly on most visitor itineraries.  This is the oldest settlement in the Canary Islands – dating back to the early 1400´s.  And is home to some fine examples of Spanish colonial architecture.  Such as the Palacio Spinola – the former home of a wealthy merchant and now a popular house museum.

Magic of Manrique
Locally born artist Cesar Manrique worked with Lanzarote´s volcanic scenery to build highly imaginative and extremely unusual visitor attractions that were all designed as an alterative to mundane and ecologically unsound water parks and golf courses.  A factor of great importance on an island with so little rainfall.

Amongst Manrique´s best known creations are the Mirador del Rio – an incredible lookout point perched 460 metres up on the Famara massif range of cliffs.  Which grants birds eye views across to the small neighbouring island of La Graciosa.  And the Jardin de Cactus – where Manrique assembled over 1000 types of cactus to create his own personal homage to the plant world’s spiniest species.

This post submitted by Nick Ball

The Canary Islands have something of a reputation in the UK as a cheap and cheerful holiday destination. But these seven little specks of Spain located off the coast of Africa are not all birds of a feather. As on Lanzarote – the most easterly link in the chain – tourists are able to enjoy an unspoilt island bursting with unique cultural attractions.

Lanzarote was first conquered by the Spanish crown in the early 1400´s – rapidly emerging as in important strategic staging post in the nascent empire. As Spain opened up the New World and galleons traversed the Atlantic with Inca silver.

The island has been welcoming tourists since the 1970´s. But despite Lanzarote´s undoubted popularity as a holiday destination, welcoming over 1.5 million tourists in 2008, the island still remains surprisingly undeveloped. Especially in comparison to larger Canarian cousins such as Gran Canaria and Tenerife.

Hail Cesar

This can largely be attributed to the work and influence of Cesar Manrique – an artist who was born on Lanzarote and went on to head up the Spanish surrealist movement in the 1950´s. Manrique was deeply in love with his birthplace – seeing great beauty in Lanzarote´s eerie volcanic landscapes. And was working in New York just as tourism started to take off.

Fearing that the island could become buried beneath a sea of hotels and golf courses Manrique returned to Lanzarote. And with the help of the island governor and close family friend Pepin Ramirez campaigned for the controlled development of tourism.

As a result there are no high rise buildings or ad hoardings on Lanzarote. The three main tourist resorts are all well contained. And artistic sculptures and wind toys adorn roundabouts and public spaces.

Manrique also created a series of alternative tourist attractions. Eschewing the conventional route of theme parks to construct sites such as the Jameos del Agua. Where he united Lanzarote´s volcanic scenery with his own creativity by converting a collapsed lava tube into a concert venue and underground grotto.

Thanks to Manrique Lanzarote was declared a UNESCO protected biosphere in 1994. The first island in the world to be awarded this status.

Places To Stay

There´s a wide range of good quality accommodation options on the island. Hotels account for around 40% of all tourist beds. But many visitors prefer to book private rental accommodation. With apartments and villas in Lanzarote proving especially popular in recent years.

Getting There

The island is serviced by the one international airport at Arrecife. With flights to Lanzarote available from all major UK airports with prices starting at around £200 return.