Things to do in Lanzarote
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Lanzarote
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months overall: warm sea and easing wind in autumn, long days and pre-peak prices in late spring.
Winter escape season with 20 to 23 degree days, cool evenings, best surf and calima risk in February to March.
Hottest, busiest and priciest, and often windiest on the east coast, so base south for calm water.
Worst honestly: August for crowds, prices and wind, late January to February for cool sea and calima chance.
What's on
- Carnaval February to early March
Biggest party season, staggered by town with Arrecife parade and Burial of the Sardine.
- IRONMAN Lanzarote late May
Europe oldest Ironman, famously hard, filling Puerto del Carmen with athletes and road closures on race day.
- Día de Canarias 30 May
Island holiday of food stalls, folk dress, music and Canarian wrestling in town squares.
- Lanzarote Wine Run June
Run or walk through La Geria vineyards ending in a food festival of island restaurants and bodegas.
- Noche de San Juan 23 June
Midsummer bonfires and midnight sea bathing on beaches island wide.
- Fiestas de San Ginés mid-to-late August
Arrecife two week patronal festival around the Charco with concerts, regattas and closing fireworks.
- Fiesta de Haría Encarnación mid-August
Standout village patronal fiesta in Haría among the July to September village fiestas.
- Fiestas de Los Dolores mid-September, island holiday 15 September
Island most important traditional fiesta, a romería to Mancha Blanca with craft fair and folk music.
- Arrecife en Vivo late September to October, Friday nights
Free street music festival taking over the capital centre over several Fridays.
- Fiesta de Las Mercedes, Famara late August to early September
Famara village fiesta famous for its white party, among the standout summer village fiestas.
Worth the trip for
Best things to do in Lanzarote
Timanfaya National Park
Volcanic national park with a coach loop, geothermal demos and a landscape unlike anywhere else in Europe.
Jameos del Agua
Manrique turned a collapsed lava tube into a lake, pool and auditorium that feels quiet, strange and beautiful.
Cueva de los Verdes
Guided walk through raw lava tube galleries, the geological counterpart to the art of Jameos del Agua.
Mirador del Río
Manrique viewpoint high on the Famara cliff framing La Graciosa and the Chinijo Archipelago below.
Fundación César Manrique
Manrique home built into volcanic bubbles that explains how he reshaped the whole island.
Casa-Museo César Manrique
Manrique final home in Haría, smaller and more intimate than the Tahíche foundation house.
La Geria
Protected valley where Malvasía vines grow in black ash pits sheltered by semicircular stone walls.
Bodegas El Grifo
The Canaries oldest winery, with tastings, a museum and historic vines in the La Geria ash fields.
Where to stay in Lanzarote
Playa Blanca
best overall base, especially winter, families and luxury
Calm town beaches, Papagayo at its door and the deepest bench of upmarket hotels, but far from the north.
Puerto del Carmen
all-rounder, nightlife and first-timers without a car
Most central base, best nightlife and accommodation at every price, with a nicer old town harbour end.
Costa Teguise
families with young children and wind and watersports
Flat, low rise and sheltered coves like El Jablillo, but the windiest resort especially in summer.
Puerto Calero
quiet marina luxury for couples
Smart marina with good restaurants and almost no beach or nightlife, exactly its market.
Arrecife
local, cheap, city option
Real working capital around Charco de San Ginés with local priced tapas, shopping and Reducto beach.
Rural and north
returners and the resort-allergic
Fincas and village houses in Haría, Teguise and La Asomada, quiet and local but you must have a car.
Think twice about
- Far-west Playa Blanca and Faro Park without a car
Pretty villas but a long dark walk or taxi to every dinner, so first-timers feel marooned.
- La Santa village
Genuinely isolated with minimal dining unless you are there for Club La Santa sport.
- Matagorda for nightlife
Flat and pleasant but quiet to the point of dull for under-40s, though perfect for mobility-limited travellers.
- Steep lanes behind Puerto del Carmen old town
The hills are real, so avoid these streets if anyone in your party has mobility issues.
Best restaurants in Lanzarote
Kamezí Restaurant
Island only starred table, a single tasting menu built entirely on Lanzarote and Canarian produce.
Isla de Lobos
Refined Canarian fine dining in the Princesa Yaiza above Playa Dorada, using Finca de Uga produce.
Restaurante Lilium
Small serious restaurant by Charco de San Ginés with market driven modern Canarian cooking.
Coentro
Inventive tapas format dishes from island ingredients by chef João Faraco at Puerto Calero marina.
El Risco
Seafood rices and fish of the day on a terrace facing Famara beach and cliffs.
La Casa de la Playa
Whole grilled fish by weight, fish churros and house white right on Arrieta beach, with a queue.
La Puerta Verde
Slow food village restaurant in Haría with grilled octopus, local wines and garden calm.
El Navarro
Small chef led dinner only restaurant in Costa Teguise plating Mediterranean Canarian dishes.
Outdoor things to do in Lanzarote
Playa de Famara
Five kilometre beach break under high cliffs with year round swell for lessons and experienced surfers.
Museo Atlántico
Underwater museum of life size figures on the seabed off Playa Blanca, now colonised by marine life.
Playa Chica
Shore diving hub off the jetty in Puerto del Carmen with seahorses, cuttlefish, octopus and angel sharks.
La Graciosa
Car free eighth Canary Island reached by ferry from Órzola, with sandy streets, bikes and wild beaches.
Caldera Blanca
Free loop walk to the rim of an enormous pale crater with views across the Timanfaya eruption field.
Volcán de El Cuervo
Short easy path into the crater of the first volcano to erupt in 1730, through a breach in its wall.
Lanzarote Golf
Par 72 course among volcanoes with ocean views between Puerto del Carmen and Tías.
Costa Teguise Golf
Palm lined 18 hole course at the foot of an old volcano in Costa Teguise.
Best hotels in Lanzarote
Princesa Yaiza Suite Hotel Resort
Benchmark big luxury hotel on Playa Dorada in Canarian colonial style with multiple pools and restaurants.
Kamezí Boutique Villas
Villa complex with private pools and space, home to the island only starred restaurant.
Iberostar Selection Lanzarote Park
Strong mid to upper resort near the Flamingo and Dorada beaches in Playa Blanca.
Barceló Playa Blanca
Newer large resort property near Playa Dorada in Playa Blanca.
Hotel Lava Beach
Adults leaning five star at the quiet, flat eastern end of Puerto del Carmen in Matagorda.
La Isla y el Mar Hotel Boutique
Boutique, adults focused splurge in the centre of Puerto del Carmen.
Seaside Los Jameos
Beloved garden filled all rounder resort at Los Pocillos in Puerto del Carmen.
Aqua Suites Lanzarote
Modern aparthotel sweet spot a short flat walk from the beach, away from the loudest Strip blocks.
Is Lanzarote expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €75 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €140 a person |
| Splurge | €320 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Timanfaya National Park: a few days ahead
- Playa de Famara: a few days ahead
- Museo Atlántico: a few days ahead
- Playa Chica: a few days ahead
- La Graciosa: a few days ahead
- Lanzarote Golf: weeks ahead
- Costa Teguise Golf: weeks ahead
- Papagayo Catamaran Cruise: a few days ahead
- Timanfaya is online timed tickets only, so book when you book flights in high season.
- Buy the CACT multi-centre voucher online and arrive at Jameos and Cueva for opening to beat coaches.
- Kamezí books out weeks ahead, Lilium, El Navarro and Isla de Lobos need days, and La Graciosa ferries need return slots in summer.
- Museo Atlántico dives and Famara surf lessons need 3 to 5 days in peak weeks, golf mornings a week ahead.
Is Lanzarote safe?
- Sea currents at Famara, El Golfo and Playa de las Conchas have drowned swimmers, so obey flags and lifeguarded beaches.
- Sun and UV are extreme year round and volcano walks have zero shade, so carry water and protection.
- Petty theft targets unattended rental cars at remote trailheads and Papagayo, so leave nothing visible.
- In Arrecife take normal big town care late at night away from the Charco and seafront core. Emergency care is in Arrecife.
Lanzarote travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Touted restaurants on the Puerto del Carmen Strip with photo menus, greeters and sangria specials.
- Timeshare and holiday club scratchcard touts on the promenades, where the prize always needs a presentation.
- Teguise Sunday market at midday for peak crowds, prices and coach park chaos, and El Golfo viewpoint café pricing.
- Golf green fees at headline price, VIP Grand Tour upsells, and spending the week on waterparks instead of volcanoes.
Getting around Lanzarote: public transport and more
- Hire a car, ideally from CICAR or Cabrera Medina, as sights spread across a 60 km island and buses are infrequent.
- Driving is easy with free parking almost everywhere, but give cyclists 1.5 m and watch crosswinds and goats.
- Buses are cheap for resort, Arrecife and airport hops but poor for sightseeing, especially on Sundays.
- Taxis are metered and plentiful at resort ranks, and there is no Uber or Bolt service of consequence.
Who Lanzarote suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Good |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Lanzarote your trip
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