Alison’s Canary Islands Bucket List Island: Lanzarote

Referred to as the ‘Hawaii of Europe’ I knew that I would feel right at home on this island of 1,000 volcanoes located off the coast of West Africa.

Here are my top recommendations when visiting this incredible island:

1. Surf! Of course, the first thing on my to-do list was to find some waves, which wasn’t hard to do with lots of local breaks firing.

Photo by @bom_photography

2. Visit Castillo Santa Barbara: Perched atop a mountain in Teguise the castle offers panoramic views of the island which were used in the 16th Century to help spot pirates approaching.

3. Discover the unique vineyards
On Lanzarote, the grapes grow in volcanic soil and these half moon lava wall structures protect the plants from the wind.

4. Explore underground lava tunnels
A journey deep underground took me through an ancient lava river know as the Atlantis tube. Legend has it that Lanzarote is the last remains of the lost continent of Atlantis!

Photo by @bom_photography

5. Check out the mysterious green lagoon
On the search for surf, I came across this green sulphuric lake in the midst of a Mars like crater in El Golfo. The water is a luminous shade of green due to algae which lives in the water.

6. Watch sunset while roasting marshmallows
There’s nothing quite like roasting marshmallows over a bonfire while listening to the waves crash and watching the sun go down.

7. Ride a dromedary
Often mistakenly referred to as camels, dromedaries actually only have one hump on their backs.

8. Take in panoramic views
For a truly stunning vista had north to Mirador del Rio.

Looking for a place to stay? Check out Oasis Surf House