Around Easter time last year, I got a message from a close friend asking if Sam and I wanted to join her and two others for a group holiday in the summer. I rarely get the opportunity to travel with friends so happily got on board with the plan!
The original idea was to get an Airbnb, but due to some people dropping out and changing plans, we ended up just going with a (surprisingly affordable) 4-star hotel in San AgustÃn, Gran Canaria. I’ll be honest that the Canary Islands would not have been my first choice for a holiday, but I was willing to give it a shot and see what Gran Canaria had to offer beyond the Brits-abroad tourist resorts.
Being our usual budget-conscious selves, Sam and I flew separately from the others on a very early Ryanair flight from Manchester. This was actually a win-win for us as it meant we both saved money and also basically had an extra day in Gran Canaria, rather than arriving in the evening like our friends.
Day 1: San AgustÃn
After landing at the island airport on the far east of the island, we took a bus down to San AgustÃn in the south. We actually intentionally overshot our destination and continued onto to Playa del Inglés in order to grab some supplies at the Lidl, and then walked back along the promenade to our hotel instead of getting another bus. This was a nice idea in theory – but in reality, lugging around an 8 litre bottle of water in the midday heat is not much fun! The walk did however give us a chance to scout out the nearby beaches and get a feel for the area.
Eventually we arrived back into main San AgustÃn and almost immediately spotted our hotel – you can’t exactly miss it…
Again, the hotel was not something I would have personally chosen (we usually prefer smaller local hotels or B&Bs) but we were happy to go there with our friends, and I was looking forward to a bit of luxury for once! We had chosen the cheapest room available, but it was essentially identical to the more expensive rooms the others had booked, just without a sea view.
On checking in we were also delighted to be gifted a 2-hour access voucher for the thalasso spa attached to the hotel, as a thank-you for booking direct instead of going through an agent. I’d always wanted to go to a spa but had never been able to justify spending the money on it, so I was excited to be getting the experience for free!
We spent most of the remainder of the afternoon at the hotel pool, another novelty for us as our we’ve never really done the all-inclusive resort holidays. It wasn’t too crowded at this time since the temperatures were dropping, and we easily found some sun loungers where we could relax and read for a while. Of course we also had to try out the pool itself!
Another advantage of our stay here was the relatively cheap half-board upgrade, which saved us a lot of time and money for our evening meals. Tea was a 3-course buffet-style affair in a bright and cheerful restaurant, and we also got to try our limited Spanish with the waiters who came to take our drinks order.
Afterwards we headed out of the hotel and down to the nearest beach for a sunset walk. The coast path took us around a few rocky outcrops and eventually onto a boardwalk at Playa de San AgustÃn. It was quite a pleasant route, and shortly we also got word from our friends that they had landed!
We reunited with them at the hotel, and spent a while catching up and sharing our experiences so far. It was definitely a lot of fun to have a bigger group with us this time!
Day 2 and 3: Beach days at Playa de las Burras and Playa de San AgustÃn
The week got off to a relaxing start as we spent the majority of our first two days either on the beach or in the hotel pool. There isn’t much more to say than that!
Playa de las Burras, the nearest beach, doesn’t win any prizes from me for prettiness (the greyish sand is a result of the tectonic rocks which form the Canary Islands) but the calm seas were a lot of fun to play in.
We spent the first morning here as a group, and then Sam and I came back alone the following day whilst the others stayed around the hotel. This separation became a bit of a common theme… I began to realise that Sam and I had different ideas of relaxation than everybody else! But we always came back together for food in the evenings, and it was still nice to have the group around.
Sam and I spent the first afternoon back at the hotel pool (still a novelty for us) and ended up unexpectedly taking part in an aquarobics session. It was surprisingly fun! The instructor played upbeat dance tunes and directed us to follow various strength exercises using the resistance of the water – I was sceptical at first that it would be effective, but some of the exercises were actually pretty challenging. We also bought a beach ball to play with and spent a considerable amount of time playing variations of catch in the pool.
But by the following afternoon I had already seen enough of the hotel and was eager to do something else, so Sam and I headed down to Playa de San AgustÃn, the other local beach. The waves here were much bigger than at Playa de las Burras and we had a fabulous time finally being able to bodysurf on some proper waves!
Day 4: Maspalomas
Already halfway through our time here, I was keen to start seeing more of Gran Canaria beyond the hotel and the local beach. Together as a group we decided to visit Maspalomas, which is the largest town on the south coast and the gateway to the Maspalomas sand dunes.
Maspalomas town itself left me underwhelmed and unimpressed, to be honest. There was just no atmosphere, it felt like a dead town full of hotels and resorts but not much else. There were none of the waterfront restaurants or charming cafes that I was used to experiencing in other Mediterranean destinations like Malta and the Greek islands, and everything seemed a bit shut up and deserted even in the peak summer season.
Having said that, the Maspalomas sand dunes were really cool! I’d always wanted to see some “proper” sand dunes and I really enjoyed the short walk we took through the dunes area to the beach.
Being in the dunes is a completely different world. We felt a bit like we were on another planet with the dry baked ground beneath us and towers of sand around, it was a great experience.
At the end of the path through the dunes was Maspalomas beach, a long strip of sand all around the headland, and where we planned to spend our afternoon. What we didn’t realise was that the section by the dunes is a nudist beach – I take it in my stride now and it doesn’t bother me, but it seems disrespectful to set up there if you aren’t partaking in the nudism, so we ended up walking further down to the non-nudism section.
With the whole group together, we got to play some new ball games in the sea and it was much more fun with more people! We had to be mindful of a relatively strong sideways current at this beach, but as long as we mostly kept to our standing depth and kept walking back in the opposite direction to the current, it was okay.
After getting out of the sea I was keen to do a bit of exploring. I had noticed an oasis marked on a map of the dunes earlier and was keen to go check it out, so a few of us headed for a walk down the beach to find it. It turned out that it was right by the Meloneras resort instead of in the middle of the dunes, which was a bit disappointing, but we still saw a few birds and some greenery:
Later in the afternoon we all walked down to Faro de Maspalomas, a lighthouse dating from the 1890s right at the southern tip of Gran Canaria. This area had slightly more going for it than inland Maspalomas and there was also a cool fountain.
From there we took a bus back to the hotel to get ourselves some food. As we walked the short distance between the bus stop and the hotel, we came across a whole crowd of green parakeets! A bit of googling revealed that they were monk parakeets and are not native to the Canaries, but now sustain a population here. We really enjoyed watching them and managed to get close enough for a few photos:
That evening we headed on another coastal walk, this time with the whole gang together and going further than Sam and I had been before. Evening walks are one of my favourite things to do when abroad, especially in summer when the breeze is still warm!
Day 5: Caldera de Bandama and Las Palmas
Although I had enjoyed the relaxation of the beach days and spending time with friends, by day 5 of the holiday I really wanted to explore some of the countryside inland. It felt like I hadn’t seen any of the real Gran Canaria beyond the resort hotspots and southern beaches. Sam was also keen, and together we persuaded a couple of the others to come along as well.
We decided to visit the Caldera de Bandama, a crater formed 5000 years ago by a collapsing volcano. The crater geography actually creates its own microclimate and gives rise to a rich abundance of plants and animals, which can be seen from several walking routes in and around the caldera. All in all it seemed like a pretty cool place to visit.
Despite being easily accessible by public transport, few tourists make the trip up to the caldera. In fact we spent several hours here and saw only a handful of people, often having the place to ourselves.
We set off from San AgustÃn relatively early and caught a bus all the way up the coast before changing at Las Palmas. The inland section of the journey was exciting, following a sharply winding road leading up into the hills that the bus did well to navigate. We were dropped off at the side of the road, seemingly in the middle of nowhere – but almost immediately we spotted a sign leading us to the entrance to the caldera.
After passing through the iron entrance gate, the path led us straight to a viewpoint over the caldera. Our walk around the edge of the crater would later yield better spots, but it was definitely a good starting point!
We continued to follow the path around the crater rim, winding our way through huge cacti with lizards darting across in front of us. Everything was hot and dry, and the gravel path crunched satisfyingly under our feet as we made our way along.
Following a short uphill section, the path came out at a golf course adjacent to the caldera. I couldn’t help but think about the huge amounts of water required to keep the golf field such a lush green, when everything else here was brown and dry… it just seems a bit of a waste.
On a brighter note, whilst walking along the road alongside the golf course we also spotted what would turn out to be the first of many big grey lizards. Lizards are still a novelty for me, but even more so for our friends who had never seen one in the wild before, and we spent a while here watching it.
From there the path returned to the edge of the crater and took on a more ridgeline appearance, with steep drops on either side. It reminded me a little of the CMD arête route I had previously done on Ben Nevis. Generally we had no problems walking in trainers, but sometimes lost our footing and skidded on the loose gravel when descending.
We could see a long way from up here, as far as the coastline and beyond as well as right down into the crater. It was a cracking little route. The only real problem was exposure – there was no shade, and the UV levels are insanely high in the Canaries in the summer. My weather app actually couldn’t put a number to the UV rating, it was quite literally off the scale!
About 3/4 of the way around the crater, we found ourselves amongst a few scrubby trees providing a little shade. It wasn’t enough to shield us from the sun, but was clearly a favourite spot of the big grey lizards we had seen once or twice already. I later did some research and found out that they were Gran Canaria Giant Lizards, a local species which can grow up to 80cm in length. There must have been about 5-10 individuals scuttling around us at one point!
They were not at all bothered by our presence and allowed us to get really close, which was pretty awesome.
A short while later and we were back at the starting point of the crater rim walk. I was eager to head down into the crater as well, but this time just brought Sam along with me, leaving our friends chilling under a palm tree until we got back.
We could really feel the effects of the caldera microclimate as we started to descend into the crater, with the temperature rising noticeably compared to on the rim. There was only about an hour until the return bus we wanted to catch, so we went at quite a pace despite the heat, stopping here and there for a drinks break or to take a photo.
We did manage to make it all the way down to the caldera floor and have a nosy round the abandoned farm buildings. There used to be a vineyard here and there are still some old presses and machinery lying around, which were quite interesting to look at.
Apparently there’s also a cave down there somewhere, but we didn’t have time to go and find it. As it was we had to hurry back up the path in order to make our bus on time and not leave our friends waiting ages for us!
From Bandama we took the bus back down to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the island capital, where we were joined by the remaining member of the group. The architecture here was more interesting than that of the resort towns, with some old-town plazas to wander through.
Again though there wasn’t much of an atmosphere compared to other cities I’ve visited, and there were few bars or restaurants to speak of. We did however find one place where we could try some sangria! Usually I’m not so keen on red wine, but when mixed with fruits as sangria it actually tasted pretty good.
The rest of the day was spent exploring the other parts of Las Palmas, before catching the bus back down to the hotel and chilling out for the night.
Day 6: Thalasso spa and pool day
After the previous day’s excursions, we had a relaxing day planned involving a trip to the thalasso spa, the pool, and potentially the beach later on in the evening.
Thalasso spas are different to a standard spa as they use sea water, which supposedly has numerous health benefits. Quite honestly though I was happy with a free pass to any kind of spa! So we donned the hotel robes and headed over for our two hours free access.
I had never been to a spa before so had nothing to compare it to, but this one seemed pretty awesome! There were pressurised jets of water to massage the muscles, beds to lie on with streams of bubbles, a contra-flow channel and hot and cold plunge pools to name just a few. The pool also had a cool inside-outside connection with a channel of water leading from the covered section to an outdoor area.
The spa was tastefully designed and felt very relaxing, with lots of natural light and a view out over San AgustÃn as far as the sea. As well as the numerous pools there was also a lounge area with sunbeds both indoors and outdoors, also positioned for the sea view.
There was even a free juice bar! I had a fabulous two hours here and can definitely see the appeal – would do it again for sure.
For the rest of the day we mostly just hung out by the pool, although later went for an evening walk/exploration up above the hotel. We ended up in a bit of a random residential area, but it did have a nice view of the full moon above the sea.
Day 7: Puerto de Mogán and the Cueva de Cuatro Puertas
Undoubtedly this was the best day of the holiday for me, it really showcased the best of Gran Canaria and restored my faith that there were some charming spots to be found here!
Puerto de Mogán was the end of the line for buses travelling to the south coast, so I was already a little interested in it, but after a bit of research I really wanted to go. It seemed to have the most character of any resort town here, with pretty painted buildings, colourful flowers and a small area of canals known as Little Venice.
The journey was a little hair-raising as the bus wound its way along coastal roads with steep drops down to the sea below, but this made it all the more exciting! It took us quite a while to get there, but we were really rewarded when we did.
The colours here were just gorgeous, from the unique painting style to the blooms of flowers climbing up the walls. And not only did Puerto de Mogán look pretty, it also had the vibrant and decidedly Mediterranean atmosphere which had been so lacking elsewhere. It was hard to believe that we were still on the same island, such was the difference between here and everywhere else.
This was a delightful place to wander round, even though some teasing local decided to prank us by sticking a fake tarantula to a string and dropping it out of a window next to us… we jumped a mile when we saw it! Of course in such a tourism hotspot there were also some scammers, but their 3-cup show is easily identifiable and warning signs helped us know what to steer clear of.
At the harbour here there were even the waterfront kind of restaurants I love, and we stopped off in one for some smoothies and a snack. Sitting outside, looking out onto the harbour and hearing the chatter of other people in multiple languages, I felt we had finally found a decent destination in Gran Canaria. If I ever come back to the island I would stay here without a doubt!
Puerto de Mogán also has a lovely little beach, with very calm, clear and shallow water. Unfortunately we hadn’t brought swimwear with us, but we were able to paddle as deep as our shorts would allow.
Being relatively compact it only took us a few hours to look round here, so we had enough time to venture somewhere else in the afternoon. There weren’t many good accessible options close to us, so I floated the idea of the Cueva de Cuatro Puertas – an ancient cave complex on the east of the island near the airport. It would take quite a while to get there by bus, but I thought it would be worth it!
Thankfully the others were in agreement too, and after a lengthy bus ride and a 20 minute walk, we made it to the site. There was almost nobody around and we basically had the entire place to ourselves to explore.
In English, the name Cueva de Cuatro Puertas translates to “Cave of Four Doors”, which describes the largest and most famous cave here. It’s a large hollowed out space perched loftily on a hill, with four door-shaped openings spaced evenly along its length. Archaeologists can’t agree on what exactly it was used for, but we do know that it was hewn by hand by the pre-Hispanic indigenous people who originally lived on these islands.
The scale of this cave is really quite impressive, especially considering how much effort must have gone into its construction. It’s a very unique place, and we sat here for a while enjoying the views out over the north and east of Gran Canaria, before continuing on to explore more of the site.
At the far end of the main cave, we followed a narrow path leading up and over the top of the hill to another historical site. Its purpose is again not exactly known, but historians believe that it was a place of religious significance and probably where sacrificial offerings were made to the gods.
It is believed that milk was poured into this long, almost circular groove as part of such rituals. There are also strange markings on the surrounding rocks, though their meaning and significance is unclear,.
The path then led us down through the cacti and around the back of the hill, where several additional smaller caves were to be found. One of the more notable of these is the Cueva de los Papeles (Cave of Papers). It is circular in shape and features engraved triangles on the walls, a symbol associated with fertility, which gives a clue to its probable original purpose as a place of fertility rituals. In more recent years it was converted to a shepherd’s dwelling and was occupied up in this way as late as the end of the last century.
Continuing on from this cave, we came to Cueva de los Pilares or “Cave of Pillars”, although it would be more accurate to describe this place as a collection of multiple interconnected smaller caves. Being south-facing, these caves receive plenty of sunlight but also provide shelter from strong winds and inclement weather, and were used as living quarters by the original inhabitants.
The Cueva de los Pilares was really interesting, with lots of smaller caves and openings to explore. It had been clearly well thought-out, with larger caves used as living and cooking areas and the smaller ones used as sleeping quarters. We also had wonderful views from here over the countryside and down to the south of the island.
Overall the Cueva de Cuatro Puertas complex was a really fascinating historical site, and it was great to learn more about the indigenous people that used to live here. It was definitely worth the trek up from Puerto de Mogán!
Day 8: Playa de Amadores and returning home
Although it was our final day on Gran Canaria, we were determined to make the most of it and squeeze in a bit more beach time before our flights left in the evening. The plan was to take the bus down the same route as the day before, but get off at Playa de Amadores, a sweeping curve of beach a few miles short of Puerto de Mogán. We had spotted this beach from the bus and it looked lovely with the turquoise water and swathe of golden sand.
This time we had brought swimwear and were soon swimming out to the inflatable obstacle course anchored in the water at the far end of the bay. Unfortunately you had to pay to use it and we decided it wasn’t worth the money, but soon found a more exciting activity in jumping into the sea from the jetty used to access the obstacle course. It’s not often that the sea is deep enough to do this kind of thing, but here it was safe, and was a lot of fun!
We spent as long as we could here, but Sam and I had to leave early afternoon to be sure of catching our flight back to the UK, with the others following soon after. It had been a nice end to the week, but it was time to go home.
So, is Gran Canaria more than just a tourist resort?
I would say yes and no. There’s certainly some great sights to see here, from the Maspalomas dunes in the south to the Caldera de Bandama and Cueva de Cuatro Puertas further inland. And Puerto de Mogán was a really charming little place that I particularly enjoyed spending time in.
But at the same time, most of the island is really just hotel high-rises, pools and the beach. In the vast majority of the resort towns there was very little atmosphere and not many opportunities to experience the local culture – it didn’t really feel like there was a cultural scene at all! I think the island just felt a bit soulless and lacking an identity compared with other places I’ve been to in the past.
I did enjoy my week here, and this holiday was more about spending time relaxing and connecting with friends than about active experiences, but I probably wouldn’t come back. I feel like I’ve seen the best of what Gran Canaria can offer already – or maybe I was just spoiled by the incredible experiences I had in Malta and Greece earlier in the summer!
