The Canary Islands sit in the Atlantic off the coast of Africa, and each of the seven main islands is a separate trip. The eastern three (Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria) are where the long beaches, the dunes and the steady wind are. The western four (Tenerife, La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro) rise steeply out of the sea, with pine and laurel forest, volcanic ridges and far more hiking than sand.
Tenerife and Gran Canaria are the two big ones: most flights, real cities, mountains in the middle and resorts in the south. Lanzarote is the volcano island, shaped by Timanfaya and by César Manrique's art centres. Fuerteventura is about beaches, dunes, kitesurfing and the boat to Lobos. La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro are small, quiet and green, and suit walkers and divers more than beach weeks.
This page helps you choose. Each island has its own page with the experiences worth booking there.
Los Cristianos, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Playa Blanca
25 minutes to 2 and a half hours per crossingBook ahead
Three short ferry crossings make it easy to split one trip between two Canary Islands.
What it is
Fred. Olsen Express sails from Los Cristianos in south Tenerife to San Sebastián de La Gomera in about 50 minutes, from Playa Blanca on Lanzarote to Corralejo on Fuerteventura in 25 to 35 minutes, and from Santa Cruz de Tenerife to Agaete on Gran Canaria in about 80 minutes, with up to eight sailings a day. Baleària, which has taken over the Armas Trasmediterránea routes (you may see either name), also sails Los Cristianos to La Gomera and links Santa Cruz and Las Palmas port to port.
How to do it
On the Agaete route a free Ferry Bus links Agaete with Las Palmas; seats are limited, so reserve it with the ticket. You can take a car on board if you give its make, model and plate when booking.
Good to know
Check that your hire contract allows the car on the ferry.
Time needed
25 minutes to 2 and a half hours per crossing
Best time
An early sailing if you go and come back the same day
Eat papas arrugadas with mojo, gofio and an island cheese
Every island
No booking needed
Three things on any Canarian menu tell you where you are: wrinkled salt-crusted potatoes with mojo, gofio and the island's own cheese.
What it is
Papas arrugadas are small potatoes boiled in their skins in heavily salted water until a salt crust dries on the wrinkled skin. Red mojo is made with dried peppers, green mojo with coriander or parsley. The old local potato varieties have their own protected name, Papas Antiguas de Canarias. Gofio is flour from toasted wheat or maize, protected as Gofio Canario since 2014. The islands hold three protected cheese names: Majorero from Fuerteventura, Palmero from La Palma and Flor de Guía from northeast Gran Canaria.
How to do it
Eat the potatoes skin and all, dipped in mojo. You will meet gofio stirred into stew broth as escaldado, kneaded into a pella that replaces bread, or simply in milk.
The Teide cable car climbs from 2,356 m to 3,555 m in under eight minutes, with trails over both sides of the island.
What it is
Two short trails start at the top: route 11 to the La Fortaleza viewpoint over the north of the island, and route 12 toward Pico Viejo over the south. The final climb to the crater is route 10, Telesforo Bravo. Below, the Roques de García loop is the easy walk.
How to do it
A return ticket for non-residents costs €42. From 25 October to 31 December cars run from 9:00, with the last ascent at 16:00. The crater climb needs a separate permit booked well ahead on the Tenerife ON platform, and since 19 January 2026 it costs non-residents €15, non-refundable.
Good to know
There is no café at the top and the air is thin and cold, so bring a layer and water.
For a first trip with a bit of everything, pick Tenerife or Gran Canaria: both have the most flights, a capital worth a day, mountains you can drive into and beaches in the south. For volcanic landscape and art, Lanzarote. For long beaches, wind sports and dunes, Fuerteventura. For hiking, forest and night skies without crowds, La Palma, La Gomera or El Hierro.
Combining two islands
The easy pairs are the ones joined by short fast ferries. Tenerife and La Gomera: about 50 minutes from Los Cristianos to San Sebastián de La Gomera. Lanzarote and Fuerteventura: 25 to 35 minutes from Playa Blanca to Corralejo. Tenerife and Gran Canaria: about 80 minutes from Santa Cruz de Tenerife to Agaete. La Palma and El Hierro are two and a half hours or more by sea from Tenerife, so most people fly to them with Binter, which serves all eight airports in the islands.
How many days
A week on one island is the comfortable pace, and enough to see its main sights by car with a few beach days in between. With ten days to two weeks, add a second island from the pairs above. Trying to see four islands in a week means spending most of it in ports and airports.
When to go
The islands are mild all year, which is why winter is high season for visitors from northern Europe. The north side of each high island catches the trade wind clouds and is greener and cooler; the south is drier and sunnier. Teide and the peaks of La Palma and Gran Canaria get cold and can see snow in winter, so pack a warm layer for any trip to the summits. Carnival in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas fills February (Las Palmas starts in late January), so book early if your dates overlap.
Questions travellers ask
Which Canary Island is best for a first visit?
Tenerife or Gran Canaria. Both have the widest choice of flights and hotels, a real city, mountains in the centre and beaches in the south, so you can mix hiking, sightseeing and swimming without changing island.
Can you visit two Canary Islands in one trip?
Yes, and the fast ferries make it easy. Tenerife with La Gomera, Lanzarote with Fuerteventura and Tenerife with Gran Canaria are all under an hour and a half by sea. La Palma and El Hierro are quicker to reach by Binter flight.
Are the Canary Islands warm in winter?
Mild rather than hot. The south coasts are the sunniest, while the north sides are cloudier and greener. The high ground around Teide is cold in winter and can be snowy, so take a jacket if you go up.
Do you need a car in the Canary Islands?
On most islands a car is the simplest way to reach the interior, the viewpoints and the trailheads. Every island has a public bus network (the guagua), which works well between towns but thins out in the mountains.
