Article for tourists planning a vacation in Gran Canaria Island. Learn about the island’s features, the best beach resorts, how to check public transportation schedules, and which part of the island has less wind and more sunshine. You’ll find tons of useful information to help you organize your dream vacation on this beautiful Canary Island.

General Information about Gran Canaria Island

Tenerife and Gran Canaria are the main islands of the Canary Archipelago, the most popular among tourists. Here’s what you need to know about Gran Canaria:

  • The island measures 1502 square kilometers. Among the seven islands of the archipelago, it ranks third in size, after Tenerife and Fuerteventura.
  • In terms of population, Gran Canaria ranks second, with around 900 thousand inhabitants. By the way, Tenerife has almost the same number of residents, 950 thousand.
  • The capital of the island: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, or simply Las Palmas – the largest city in the Canaries with a population of 380 thousand people.
gran canaria canary where located
The main promenade of Las Palmas is Las Canteras Beach. Further in the article, there will be more information about this beach, as it is special.

Interesting to know:

The Canary Islands have two capitals. The capital changes every 4 years. The capital moves from Santa Cruz de Tenerife to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and vice versa. There are even more interesting facts about the Canaries.

The island, like all the islands of the archipelago, is of volcanic origin. But unlike other islands, all the volcanoes of Gran Canaria have long been extinct. The highest peak of the island is 1956 meters, it is the Pico de las Nieves mountain.

Features of the Island

In summary, the island’s features for tourists, so you understand what kind of vacation awaits you.

  • Since it is a volcanic island, almost the entire coastline consists of cliffs and solidified lava. Gran Canaria does not have kilometers of sandy beaches like Thailand. But there are beach resorts here, and more information about them will be below.
las palmas gran canaria holidays
Almost the entire coastline of Gran Canaria looks like this.

Important note:

Gran Canaria, and the Canaries in general, are not just beach resorts, as many believe. The Canaries are about active recreation, hiking, viewpoints, national parks.
  • The island’s only international airport welcomes around 10 million people annually. This is a huge number, considering that the island’s population is less than 1 million. The season on the island is year-round, even in January-February. And throughout the year, there are a lot of tourists here, especially in the peak summer season. Beaches are crowded (there will be photos below), parking lots are insufficient, and there are traffic jams on the roads. You should know this before your trip.

Among the advantages: Gran Canaria and Tenerife are the two main and most infrastructural islands. There are huge shopping malls, stores of world brands, entertainment for every taste, architectural and natural attractions in large numbers. And prices on these two islands are the lowest. On other islands of the Canaries, prices are 10-20% higher on average for all categories of goods, even for gasoline.

Everything about the budget of a vacation in the Canaries by expense categories, and how much money to bring with you.

Best Beach Resorts

I’ll list where the best beaches are, how to choose the perfect resort for your vacation. I’ll provide coordinates and links to the map. But first, the main feature of the island.

Where are the best resorts in Gran Canaria:

If you’re planning a summer vacation, in the high season, there’s no significant difference where to stay. If you’re coming here from November to March, you should know that during this time, predominantly northern winds blow. In the center of the island are mountains almost 2 km high, which block almost all winds and clouds from the north. As a result, there is less wind, fewer clouds and rains, it’s warmer, and there are more sunny days in the south of Gran Canaria. That’s why all the best resorts in Gran Canaria are located in the south.
canary islands gran canaria
Both photos were taken on the same day with a one-hour difference. Top photo: north of Gran Canaria, clouds and green hills. Bottom photo: mountains in the south near the resort of Mogan, desert-like and lifeless rocks and blue sky. Here’s an example of two completely different climatic zones on one small island, although scientists say there are 5 different zones on the island.

I often travel around the island for work, and the most common sight is this: in the capital, Las Palmas, there are clouds and no sun for the third day already. But in the south of the island at the same time, just 40 km further south, there isn’t a cloud in the sky.

Now let’s move on to the best resorts on the island:

  • Maspalomas, the southernmost point of the island. Here you’ll find hundreds of hotels, entertainment, two of the longest sandy beaches in Gran Canaria, each stretching for 2.5 km, a promenade, and the “mini Sahara” – the famous sand dunes. This is the best and most popular beach resort in Gran Canaria.
    • Coordinates: 27.76025328766561, -15.58462035055757
    • Moreover, the Maspalomas dunes are one of the main attractions of Gran Canaria. Read more about the TOP 15 attractions of the island by following the link.
    • Drawbacks of Maspalomas: if you choose a hotel or apartment without considering the location carefully, you might have to walk far through the dunes under the scorching sun to reach the beach. And there’s no shade on either of the beaches, unless you rent a sunbed with an umbrella.
    • Hotels and apartments in Maspalomas.
season and weather in Gran Canaria
This is how the Maspalomas resort and the famous dunes look. It’s important to pay attention to where you book accommodation. Not all places have the beach and ocean within walking distance. Study the map in advance.
  • Puerto Rico and Amadores Beaches. They are located nearby, within 500 meters of each other. These are sandy beaches, quite small, located in artificial bays. Pros: there’s no wind, waves, or strong currents here, and the water is warmer. The beaches are fully protected from natural forces. Cons: it’s very crowded here, as the size of the beaches is limited. It’s an ideal place for a family vacation.
holidays Gran Canaria tips
In the photo, Playa de Amadores. I want to draw your attention that I took this photo in February. Look at how many people are on the beach. There are even more tourists in the summer. It might be tough for someone with social anxiety here.
best place to stay in Gran Canaria
In the photo – the end of January. The beach resort in the south of Gran Canaria is year-round. The cliffs perfectly protect the resort from the wind.

Tip:

Open Puerto de Mogán on the map, and the entire coastline to the south up to Maspalomas is one continuous resort. There are dozens of small beaches and resort villages in this part of the island. It’s sunnier, less windy, and cloudier in the south. There’s less rainfall throughout the year, and as you can see from the photos above, the landscapes are desert-like. Whereas in the north, everything is green, but there are hardly any beaches or beach resorts.

Make sure to read the article about the best beaches and lava pools in Gran Canaria. Firstly, because there are not only equipped beaches at resorts but also cool beaches in wild places. And secondly, you’ll learn what lava pools are and where to find them on Gran Canaria.

And now for the bonus, my personal favorite. It’s the main capital beach, Playa de Las Canteras. The special thing about it is that there are usually no beaches in capital cities; in the capital of Tenerife, for example, the whole city has a big port.

Resorts of Gran Canaria
Playa de Las Canteras in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is a sandy and very beautiful beach in the city center.

What you need to know about Playa de Las Canteras:

  • A sandy beach over 3 km long. Located in the city center.
  • There’s an excellent promenade along the entire beach.
  • You can’t imagine a more convenient location. Shopping centers, restaurants, bike rentals, surfing schools.

Interesting fact:

Playa de Las Canteras is among the top ten urban beaches in the world. It’s located in the center of a metropolis and meets all high ecological standards for recreation. This list includes famous beaches like Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro and Barceloneta in Barcelona.
  • Beach coordinates: 28.143115758161166, -15.433801810004988
  • Since the beach is long, there are places for tourists of all kinds. For children, where there are fewer waves and wind, is the northern part of the beach. And in the southern part, there are many surfing schools. Oh, and on the south of Gran Canaria, there’s no wind, waves, or surfing. Playa de Las Canteras is ideal for beginners who want to try surfing. Everything about surfing and kitesurfing in the Canaries.
canary las palmas resort
You can sit on the promenade of Playa de Las Canteras for hours and watch the ocean, or you can, like these guys, go conquer the waves. Surfing is year-round here.

Despite the fact that sunbathing on Las Canteras Beach in winter is not as comfortable as in the south, it’s still a cool resort, and there are way fewer tourists here. Because everyone goes to the overcrowded Puerto de Mogán and Maspalomas.

Transportation from Tenerife to Gran Canaria and Buses Around the Island

If you’re arriving on another island but want to vacation in Gran Canaria, moving between the islands is very easy. Here are two detailed articles that will fully answer all your questions about schedules, prices, how to buy tickets, and more:

  • Ferries in the Canary Islands. There are daily ferries from Tenerife to Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura to Gran Canaria, with up to 5 ferries per day on each route. All ferries arrive at the main port in the capital, Las Palmas.
  • Local airline flights between the islands. It’s only 20-50 minutes, not 3-4 hours like on a ferry. But you’ll arrive at the airport in the south of the island.
gran canaria canary islands tips
These planes fly between the islands in the Canaries. From the window, you can almost always see Mount Teide.

The north and south of the island are connected by a high-speed, wide highway along the eastern coast, which is the main transportation artery of the island. All other roads are mostly serpentine roads through the mountains with endless ascents and descents.

You can reach all major cities on the island by regular buses. The island has its own bus company called GuaGuas, which serves all routes. Check the schedule, prices, and routes on their official website: https://www.guaguas.com/. There’s also an app available; it’s not the most convenient, but you can still check the necessary routes and schedules

Tip: To plan a bus route around the island, you can use Google Maps, which will even show you bus numbers, and this information is almost always accurate.

Important note:

According to statistics, more than 80% of tourists in Gran Canaria rent a car. It’s cheap, deposits are low, roads are free, and most importantly, without a car, you won’t reach half of the top locations on the island by bus. Everything about renting a car specifically on Gran Canaria, personal experience, features, and nuances.

Travel Tips

Here are some tips for your trip to the island that will help you prepare even better.

  • If you’ve read reviews of Tenerife or La Palma, you’ve seen that there are no beaches with yellow sand there, and all the beaches on these islands have volcanic black sand. Gran Canaria Island is of the same volcanic origin, but in the south, all the resorts have yellow sand. Why is that?

Interesting to know:

The Maspalomas Dunes are the result of the influence of calima. Five to six times a year, calima winds blow, bringing sand from the Sahara Desert to Gran Canaria, which is only 100 km away from Africa. Over millions of years, huge dunes have formed in the south of the island. Read more about calima, and how it can be dangerous for tourists, in the article: weather and seasons in the Canaries.
gran canaria map
This is a satellite image of the Canaries during a calima. You can see how tons of sand are carried from Africa by the wind. The influence of calima mainly affects the islands of Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote, while the other islands are further away.
  • Advice for those renting a car. Never leave belongings in the car visible; always hide everything in the trunk. Gran Canaria is a densely populated island, and there are many tourists here. Car thefts are not uncommon on the island; someone might break a window for a couple of euros visible on display. This mostly happens in parking lots near tourist attractions.
  • Also, don’t leave your belongings unattended on the beach.

Such situations with thieves are only on Tenerife and Gran Canaria; the other islands are much calmer.

In conclusion: Gran Canaria is a beautiful island. Thanks to its relief, beach vacation on the island is possible even in January and February. I’m sure now you know where to look for your dream resort. But remember, in the archipelago of 7 major islands, they are all very different. Gran Canaria Island is one of the most popular among tourists because many flights arrive here, but it’s not the best. On the pages of this guide, there are reviews of other islands; I recommend reading them (spoiler alert: pay attention to the islands of La Gomera and La Palma).

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.