Holidays in Lanzarote with children
Lanzarote is the island with 110 volcanoes! Yes, just that... The black pearl of the Canaries as it is called. What is striking when setting foot on this island is that it is entirely covered in black lava. I loved the contrast of colors with the small white houses with green shutters, it contrasts well with the black of the ground. This lunar landscape grabs us from the first minutes and the change of scenery is there. A very seductive aesthetic contrast.
OUR ONE WEEK TRIP TO LANZAROTE WITH KIDS
- Day 1 : Arrival on the island, discovery of our apartment in Tahiche, swimming pool and giant chess game
- Day 2 : Discovery of the North-East: Punta Mujeres
- Day 3 : Discovery of the North-West: Mirador del Rio, Haria, Risco de Famara, Teguise***, Famara beach, Santa port
- Day 4 : The South-West: Timanfaya, El Golfo, Janubio
- Day 5 : Manrique Foundation, Tahiche, the Géria vineyards, Los Hervideros, Papagayo
- Day 6 : Arrecife + swimming pool
- Day 7 : Al campesino, Monte Corona, Orzola,
- Day 8: Back home!
DAY 2: PUNTA MUJERES & LAS PARDELAS / MIRADOR DEL RIO
MORNING: NATURAL POOLS OF PUNTA MUJERES
A nice walk in the fishing village of Punta Mujeres, here we come to see the pretty natural pools, if the sun is out the water will be a breathtaking color. Very pleasant in summer, in October it was a little cool to jump into the water.
We wanted to start the holidays gently and please the children, so we found this small animal park in the northeast of the island. A small park with horses, goats, pigs, ... to feed. The scenery is magnificent since all around there are volcanoes ... After feeding the animals, we can do a small pottery workshop. A first for my 4 year old daughter who loved it.
We chose to have lunch here and were able to taste the island's specialty: papas arrugadas. On site there is also a large playground with a slide and a playhouse for children.
END OF THE DAY: MIRADOR DEL RIO
A stroll along the beautiful winding roads that lead to the Mirador del Rio, not to be missed if you want to enjoy a magical view of the island of Graciosa. Take your raincoats, it's blowing up there!
Dinner in Teguise to end the day. The prettiest village on the island in our opinion :) Typical with white houses and green shutters.
El Patio / C. Duende, s/n, 35530 Teguise. Good cocktails & tapas.
DAY 3: TIMANFAYA NATIONAL PARK
MORNING: TIMANFAYA NATIONAL PARK
The most magical place on the island to discover the volcanoes up close. A lunar landscape, here we enter the heart of the volcanoes. I advise you to arrive early to avoid too much waiting, even if once arrived everything is very well organized. Access to the site is paid but it includes a 45 min bus tour (no other way to go around it) which is worth the detour.
Continuing the road towards the south of the island, we come across the Camel Ride. 12 euros for a camel ride for 4, with children it's really nice to do. A nice souvenir once again a change of scenery since we feels like I'm in the middle of the desert.
AFTERNOON: EL GOLFO & FLAMINGO BEACH (PLAYA BLANCA)
A quick tour of Lago Verde, as its name suggests it is a green lake, it comes from an old crater! The emerald color is breathtaking. Once again, an astonishing landscape sculpted by fire, sea and wind.
El Golfo is also a cute, authentic fishing village where you can eat very good fish.
We finished the day with an ice cream and a swim at Flamingo Beach. Touristy and overbuilt, for our taste, we didn't really like the area around Playa Blanca.
DAY 4: CUEVAS DE LOS VERDES / JAMEOS DEL AGUA / CACTUS GARDEN
MORNING: VISIT TO THE LOS VERDES CAVES
A tip: try to arrive at the opening. A one-hour visit to a cave formed by a volcanic eruption, it is the lava that formed the underground cavities. We had never seen this before. Our 4-year-old daughter really enjoyed this mysterious visit. To do with children.
Lunch on Garita beach, swimming and nap for our 11 month old baby.
AFTERNOON: JAMEOS DEL AGUA LAVA CAVE & CACTUS GARDEN VISIT
The Jameos del Agua cave is a work of César Manrique, the chief artist of the island. I loved walking around this whimsical place. The artist, as with each of his works on the island, wanted to build on a site naturally shaped by nature. The result is really crazy, inside there is a performance hall, a swimming pool, a cave... A big favorite for me.
We then went down south to visit the cactus garden. Another work of Cesar Manrique. Built on an old quarry, the Cactus Garden is home to no less than 4,500 specimens. To make the visit fun with our daughter, we played who can find the biggest/smallest/largest etc... Another lovely family moment.
For dinner we went to eat paella in the small port of Arrecife.
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DAY 5: THE WINE ROUTE (LA GERIA)
A magnificent road that borders the vineyards. Here the cultivation of vines is quite original and worth the detour. The producers build semi-circular walls using volcanic stone, which protect the vines from the wine but also allow the water to be kept longer. With the island's very particular climate, you have to find tricks and adapt.
A bit frustrating for me not to see more, but with children it is not the kind of visit that excites. If you like wine, you should do a wine testing, there are some all along the road. You can also do a quad tour.
AFTERNOON: EL PAPAGAYO BEACH
We arrived at the end of the morning at Papagayo beach. Access is paid 3 euros per vehicle, but you have access to the most beautiful beaches of the island. A wild beach that deserves 20 minutes of track to get there. The panorama is breathtaking, from the heights of papagayo you can see Tenerife.
We settled down at one of the huts overlooking the beach to enjoy some delicious grilled fish and we had a great time.
DAY 6: LOS HERVIDEROS
I fell in love with these lava cliffs between the sea and volcanoes. The contrasts are crazy and the views of the raging water are breathtaking. A beautiful view of the Bermeja volcano, here we call it the red mountain. There is also a great walk to do, 1 hour to go around this volcano. We gave up with our little family but with children of 5/6 years old it is quite feasible.
Lunch in Teguise & stroll around the village
AFTERNOON: ANTIGUA ROFERA & LA GRIETAS / PLAYA DEL JABLILO
Antigua Rofera is a rather photogenic old quarry, located in Teguise on the LZ-404 road. To find it easily: 29°03'25.1″N 13°30'16.6″W. A unique landscape where we enjoyed walking.
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A place once again so beautiful, the grietas, is a kind of natural canyon. Dug by a volcanic eruption, it's pretty crazy to walk inside. A crazy feeling of being in the movie 127 hours. here for find it gps coordinates 28°58′25.61″N 13°38′07″W.
End of the day at the Jablillo beach in Costa Teguise. Very windy so we didn't swim. We saw a lot of people coming back from scuba diving, I think the seabed is beautiful, we had some a glimpse with our masks and snorkels. The beach is not very interesting but our girls enjoyed walking in the mini pools created by the rocks at the seaside.
Dinner in Arrecife to end the day.
DAY 7: MANRIQUE FOUNDATION & PLAYA MUJERES
Visit to the Manrique Foundation 800m from our accommodation. Here we visit the artist's house, always faithful to his identity, he created his own house in the cavities dug by the lava flows. I really loved the visit, from an architectural point of view it's quite crazy to see what he was able to imagine as a house in a natural environment.
The visit is not included in the pass and is not for everyone, so if you are not a fan of architecture, give it a miss.
Picnic and end of the day at Mujeres beach (not far from Papagayo beach) turquoise water, snorkeling and nap in the sun.
Evening in Costa Teguise, cocktail on the sand at the Luca beach bar. A great place before going to dinner, there weren't many people when we went there.
DAY 8: CHILL & REST >, RETURN FLIGHT
Practical information:
- Travel period: end of October (All Saints' Day school holidays). We had 24-26 degrees and the weather was very nice every day with sometimes a few clouds in the morning and a big blue sky from noon. The sea was at 19-20 degrees. The weather is often good on this very arid island.
- Duration of the trip : one week from Saturday to Saturday
- Plane : 3h20 flight Bordeaux-Arrecife.
- Time difference: 1 hour less than in France
- Equipment for children: We have got into the habit of taking our car seats, since they are included in the price of the child ticket. A good saving when you know the prices of child seat rental and especially you know the quality of our seats,) And our yoyo, the stroller that follows us everywhere.
- Car Rental: We rented a car with Cicar and it was really great. The service and staff take care of it.
- Accommodation: We booked a villa in Tahiche. The location was perfect for exploring the entire island.
- Meals: tapas like in all of Spain and beautiful specialties specific to the island like papas arrugadas (potatoes served with 2 sauces, one green and one red). We also ate paella and fish.
- Visits: I recommend the €35 pass which gives you access to the 6 main sites to visit in Lanzarote (free for children under 7).
