The article provides general information about the Canary Islands for tourists. If you’re planning a vacation here, the facts from this article will help you better understand the Canaries, what to expect, and what peculiarities exist in the archipelago. I’ll talk about the region’s political structure, economy, climate, local population, and more.

General information about the Canary Islands: which country

Since I often help tourists organize trips to the islands, I’ll start with the most common questions I get:

  • The Canary Islands are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean consisting of 7 major islands and several dozen smaller ones. But it’s commonly believed that it’s an archipelago of seven main islands: Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro.
  • Geographically, the Canary Islands belong to Africa. They are located 100 km from Morocco and the Sahara Desert.
information about the Canary
The green islands on the map in the lower left corner are the Canary Islands. Look at how far they are from Europe and Spain and how close they are to Africa.

Which country owns the Canary Islands – the most common question

Despite the Canary Islands being part of the African continent, the entire archipelago is a region of Spain.

And since it’s Spain: the currency in the Canaries is the Euro, and a regular Schengen visa is required for a trip to the islands. Read about visas, where it’s easier to obtain them today, and whether a Spanish Schengen visa is mandatory in the article: Visa for the Canary Islands.

  • The population of the Canary Islands is just over 2 million people. Of these, 1.7 million people live on two main islands: Tenerife and Gran Canaria. The remaining 400 thousand are on the other five islands.
  • It’s important to know: the capital of the Canary Islands moves every 4 years from one island to another. Therefore, there are officially two capitals here:
    • Santa Cruz de Tenerife
    • Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
canaries flag dogs
The flag and coat of arms of the Canary Islands. On the coat of arms, you can see two Canary dogs holding a shield, on which seven volcanic islands of the archipelago are symbolically depicted. And above the shield is the Spanish crown.

Read about the history of the Canary Islands at the link, find out why they are called the Dog Islands, and why there are two dogs on the coat of arms of the archipelago.

About the economy of the Canary Islands

It’s important to know:

The Canary Islands are an autonomous region of Spain with their own government. And most importantly, the entire archipelago is a special economic zone with favorable taxation. Therefore, prices for basic goods and consumer basket items here are some of the lowest in Europe. And many products are even cheaper than on the Spanish mainland, although logistics here are quite expensive, the islands are more than 1000 km away from Europe.

As an example, to make it clearer, throughout the European Union (in mainland Europe), today gasoline prices range from 1.7 euros to 2.3 euros per liter. In Spain and Italy, prices are around 1.7-1.9 euros. And in the Canaries, gasoline costs 1.3-1.5 euros per liter. You won’t find such prices in any European Union country.

Today, the mainstay of the economy of the Canary Islands is tourism and agriculture. These two industries account for about 80-85% of the archipelago’s GDP. Here’s what you need to know about this:

  • Remember that there are 2 million people living on all the Canary Islands. So, more than 14 million tourists come to the Canaries annually. This is a colossal number, and during the high season, there are a lot of tourists. Beaches are overcrowded, there are parking problems, and queues at attractions.
  • Bananas, potatoes, and grapes occupy a special place among agricultural crops.
canary islands what country
This is what banana plantations look like on the Canary Islands.

Bananas are the main agricultural crop exported by the Canarians. Columbus brought potatoes here when he returned after his famous voyage from America. And grapes grow here like nowhere else, on the slopes of volcanoes, and local Canary wine has a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) classification and is highly valued.

canaries europe or africa
In the photo are the vineyards of the island of Lanzarote. Here, the grapes grow just like that, and the semicircular fences made of lava stones protect the vines from the wind. As far as the eye can see, it’s one big vineyard.

Tourism in the Canaries

14+ million tourists come here every year for a reason. Aside from the downsides for tourists mentioned earlier, holiday on the Canary Islands is simply magnificent. There are numerous mega-cool locations and attractions, untouched nature, mountains, and volcanoes, as well as Spanish colonial-style architecture

A summary of general information about the Canary Islands, what you need to know about vacationing here:

  • All islands are of volcanic origin. Some islands have dormant volcanoes, while others have active ones. The most recent significant eruption in the Canaries was quite recent, in 2021 on the island of La Palma.
  • Mount Teide on Tenerife is the most famous attraction in the Canaries. Its height of 3718 meters makes it the highest peak not only in the Canary Islands but also in all of Spain. You can either hike to the summit or take a cable car. Details about Teide National Park: prices, routes, how to get there.
  • There is a water park on Tenerife that has been recognized as the best in the world 9 times in a row. All about the lava pools on the ocean shore and water parks in the Canaries.

An important point:

The Canary Islands are not just about beach vacations. For those who need only endless beaches with white sand, this is not the place to go. The Canary Islands are perfect for active tourists who want to combine beach relaxation with island hopping, hiking in the mountains, visiting mega-cool locations, towns, and Spanish villages.
Which country does the Canary Islands belong to
This is what the coastline looks like on most of the Canary Islands. In the photo are the Los Gigantes cliffs on the island of Tenerife. There are beaches here, and you’ll find places to sunbathe, but you need to choose the right resort and explore the island you’re flying to for vacation in advance.
  • The Canary Islands are called the islands of eternal spring because of their very comfortable and favorable climate. The season is all year round, with tourists sunbathing on the beaches in February, the sun shining, and the air temperature at 20+ degrees. This is the warmest region of Europe in winter.

Here’s what you need to know about the climate and weather in the Canaries, briefly:

  • The season is year-round, all 12 months of the year.
  • The ocean is cold year-round because the islands are bathed in the cold Canary Current of the Atlantic Ocean.
  • The climate is dry year-round, with no rainy season. It’s warm and dry in winter, and there’s no scorching heat in summer, also dry.
  • The most unpleasant weather phenomenon in the Canaries is the African hot wind called calima. It’s very dry and carries a lot of sand from Africa. It’s quite difficult for asthmatics. Calima occurs about 5-6 times a year.

If you’ve already bought tickets to the Canary Islands, I recommend reading the article: cities and resorts of the Canary Islands for tourists.

In conclusion: I hope the general information about the Canary Islands from this article has helped you better understand what to expect on vacation and what the islands are like. This is only a small part to give you the right first impression of the country. There are more articles on the pages of this guide about each fact I mentioned above.

Useful links to help you plan your dream trip to Canary Islands:

  • Car Rental: LocalRent or DiscoverCars – the most popular car rental platforms.

  • Accommodation:
    • Trip.com – the largest accommodation booking platform.

    • or TripAdvisor – to compare prices among other platforms and choose the best one.

  • Budget-friendly vacation packages to Spain and Canary Islands: CheapOair.

  • Tours and activities: GetYourGuide or Viator – hundreds of offers, whales and dolphins, entrance tickets with discounts.

  • eSIM and internet: Airalo.

  • Flights: WayAway compares prices among dozens of companies.

  • Travel Insurance: EKTA.