Welcome to Lanzarote! An island so fascinating that its unique landscape offers endless opportunities for exploration, yet small enough to find everything within easy reach. You’re surrounded by more than 300 volcanoes and the Atlantic ocean. It laps gently at the golden sands of tourist-friendly beaches, whilst elsewhere it batters with more force, creating wild black sand beaches. It is an island touched by the majesty of nature and the magic of César Manrique through his Centres of Art, Culture and Tourism. There are restaurants, hotels, promenades and a vast range of leisure activities, plus more than a dozen wonderful places to see and experience.
Lanzarote Tourist Guide
Must-sees
Art, Culture and Tourism Centres
César Manrique’s unique artistic vision is stamped on his native island in a perfect example of art working in harmony with nature. With the support of Island Council’s (Cabildo) visionary commitment, the 1970s and 80s saw the creation of Manrique’s renowned network of tourist centres.
Other places of interest
Marinas
Lanzarote has three marinas as well as small docks for sports craft at Puerto Naos (Arrecife), Puerto del Carmen, Puerto Limones (Playa Blanca) and Caleta de Sebo (La Graciosa).
Leisure facilities
Water parks: Aquapark Costa Teguise and Aqualava Waterpark in Playa Blanca.
Karting tracks: San Bartolomé and Puerto del Carmen.
Golf courses: Costa Teguise Golf and Lanzarote Golf (Puerto del Carmen). Also in Puerto del Carmen: Gran Casino Lanzarote and Rancho Texas Lanzarote Park theme park.
There are scuba diving centres in all the tourist resorts.
Camel rides: Timanfaya and Lanzarote on horseback; Paragliding and hang gliding, canoeing, paddle surfing. Hiking routes and guided excursions, segway and buggies.
Also: yacht rental, with or without skipper, jet skis, kayaks, bicycles, quads, motorbikes. Surfing courses and rental of windsurfing and kite surfing boards and equipment and Wingfoil (Famara), diving centres, scuba diving (Puerto Calero), and Aquarium Lanzarote (Costa Teguise).
Museums
César Manrique Foundation FCM
Museum space dedicated to the work of César Manrique based in his Taro de Tahíche volcano house, which was built into the lava flow in an example of one of his artistic adaptions that seamlessly integrates architecture with nature. Casa del Palmeral, his house in his home town of Haría, is also open to the public.
El Grifo Wine Museum
A journey back in time to 1775. The museum invites visitors to see its original covered wine press, cooperage workshop and the winery itself with barrels, racking pumps, stills etc. The museum displays pieces from the 19th and 20th centuries.
Lanzarote’s Aeronautical Museume
Located in the original passenger terminal, the museum harks back to early tourism in Lanzarote at the beginning of the 1940s. It displays photographs, memorabilia related to air travel and tourism back in the day and art pieces.
Tanit Ethnographic Museum
Housed in a traditional 18th-century home and old winery, the Tanit Museum preserves and promotes Lanzarote’s cultural and ethnographic heritage. It’s been recognised as a Centre of Cultural and Tourist Interest for its fascinating exhibits about the history of the people of Lanzarote which can be seen through their customs, clothing, folklore, idols, work utensils, tools and daily life.
Timple Museum – Palacio Spínola
Built between 1730 and 1780, it stands as an example of the island’s stately architecture. It’s been refurbished several times, more recently in 2011 when the Timple Museum dedicated to this traditional stringed instrument was added.
Piracy Museum
Perched on top of Guanapay volcano, the 15th-century Santa Bárbara fortress is now home to the Piracy Museum, which displays details of the many pirate attacks on the island. It was built on the orders of Lanzarote’s lord, Agustín de Herrera y Rojas. In its time, it has served as a watchtower, refuge, dungeon, military dovecote and emigration museum which captured the horrors of another period of extreme hardship in Lanzarote’s history
José Saramago’s House Museum
Adopted son of the island since 1997, Portuguese Nobel Prize winner, José Saramago, died in 2010. Shortly afterwards, this museum was opened in his honour, dedicated to his life and relationship with Lanzarote, his home. He famously once said, ‘I am not of Lanzarote, but it is my land.’
History of Arrecife Museum
El Castillo San Gabriel castle, flanked by two enormous canons, is now home to a museum dedicated to relating the history of the capital over the years. It can be reached via two cobbled pathways, one of them with the iconic Puente de las Bolas drawbridge. A visit to this museum is like stepping back in time.
Timanfaya Visitors’ Centre
This Visitors Centre is set amid the volcanic lava flows and provides all
the information you could possibly need to get the most out of your visit to Timanfaya National Park. It details the ins and outs of recent volcanic activity and provides the opportunity to find out the terrible reality of what it sounds and feels like to be in the midst of a volcanic eruption, tremours and all.
Wine route
The main, but not the only region dedicated to wine production on the island is in La Geria. Most of the major wineries can be found along the road that runs through the region. Many have restaurants where you can sample the wines and a shop to buy them.
Shopping centres
Markets
Art galleries
Tourist offices
- Puerto del Carmen (Avda. de las Playas) 928510542
- Puerto del Carmen (El Fondeadero. Pueblo) 928513351
- Costa Teguise (Pueblo Marinero) 928592542
- Teguise (Plz. de la Constitución) 928845398
- Playa Blanca (C/ Jaime Quesada ‘El Maestro, nº3. Entrada al pueblo) 928518150
- Airport (Arrivals terminal)928820704
- Arrecife (Bus terminal) 928155999
