Category Archives: The islands

The Canary Islands Gastronomy: What to eat and typical food of the islands

eating potatoes in canary islands

Today we are going to talk about the typical food of the Canary Islands (Islas Canarias). Its location in the Atlantic ocean, at the west of Africa near the Sahara and Morocco coast makes a difference in the typical food of the islands in comparison to the food that can be grown or fished in the rest of Spain, in the Iberian Peninsula.

 

Eating in the Canary Islands

restaurantes playa del inglesThe Canary Islands are a holiday paradise for many tourists who travel there to enjoy its beaches and its tropical climate. And of course, as in any other touristic places, the Canary Islands are used to receiving a huge number of tourists who who go to shops and restaurants to eat.

Surely you will find a lot of shops, bars and restaurants in any part of the islands (Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, La Palma, Lanzarote…). Usually, these restaurants are cheaper than the restaurants in the rest of the country, what means that a person can eat dinner for less than 10€. However, everything depends on what are you looking for: In the Canary Islands you can find some of the cheapest places of Spain, and also some luxury ones.

 

Typical food and drinks from the Canary Islands

When eating in a restaurant in the Canary Islands, you will be able to ask for a normal dish from Spain or Europe… but our recommendation is to try the typical food from the islands. It’s very tasty and our experience there was very satisfying!

Here you have a list with some of the traditional dishes of the Canary Islands:

papas arrugadas– Baked potatoes with mojo sauce (Patatas arrugadas): This variety of small potatoes (popularly known as Papas arrugás) are baked in an oven and served unpeeled with Mojo Sauce.

The Mojo sauce can be red or green depending on the ingredients which have been used to prepare it, and it gives a soft taste to the potatoes that everyone will love. Commonly, this typical sauce is prepared from: oil, salt, tomato, pepper and a little bit of garlic and parsley.

puntillitas– Fish (Pescado): The seaports of the Canary Islands provide all kind of fish to its shops and restaurants.

Also, you will probably see in the restaurant menus some other fish as squid or sepia (calamares, chocos, chopitos, puntillitas) which are not typical from the islands, but which are very popular in other regions as in Andalusia or in the Mediterranean coast.

– Gofio: Long time ago, it was the basic food for the original residents of the islands (The “guanches” tribes). The gofio is mainly composed by cereals (wheat and barley). Nowadays it’s eaten with the main dishes as fish or meat.

sandwich– Meatloaf (Carne mechada / Ropa Vieja): The meatloaf is highly popular among the citizens of the islands. You can try it alone, with salad and chips or in a sandwich.

– Cactus Jam (Mermelada de cactus) and Prickly pears (Higos chumbos): The weather of the islands makes very easy to grow upland plants as cactus or palms. With its fruits, people make a wide variety of dishes, as marmalade and other similar products.

– Fruits and juices (Fruta y zumos): Don’t leave the islands without trying its natural juices and smoothies. Also, the Canary bananas (Platanos de Canarias) are very popular, besides they are exported all over the world because of its good taste and its hight quality.

– Alcoholic Drinks: There are two very popular brands of alcohol in the islands: The Tropical Beer and The Areucas Rum, which factory is located in Aruca Town (Gran Canaria).

More about the Canary Islands

The Canary Islands: Read here all our post about the islands: Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, La Palma, Lanzarote, El Hierro and La Gomera.

Visiting the best beaches of Gran Canaria (Canary Islands)

playa del ingles

In this article we are going to talk about the best beaches to go in Gran Canaria, the third biggest island of the Canary Islands with 1500 square kilometers (the biggest one is Tenerife with 2000 square kilometers and then Fuerteventura with 1600km^2).

 

The Canary Islands: A Tropical Paradise

playa del ingles arenaThe Canary Islands (Islas Canarias) are a group of Spanish islands located in the west coast of Africa, at the south of the Iberian Peninsula. They are composed by these seven islands: Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, La Palma, Lanzarote, El Hierro and La Gomera.

The tropical weather of the Canary Islands, its beaches and nature make them a holiday paradise where tourists from all over the world (but mainly from Europe) go there to rest in all seasons of the year.

 

Gran Canaria island

Gran Canaria is not a conventional island: Its geography and its proximity to Africa creates a strange climate where, while in the north of the island (where is located Las Palmas city) the climate varies between 30 ºC in summer and 15 ºC in winter, in the south (where is located Maspalomas, Puerto Rico and Mogán) the climate is always warm, which means that visitors can sunbathe or go swimming during the four seasons of the year.

 

Maspalomas zone

faro el inglesAt the the south of Gran Canaria is located Maspalomas town, the most touristic zone of the island. It is completely focused on the visitors, with a lot of hotels, apartments, restaurants and amenities.

Among the activities that you can do there, there are the following:  sunbathe, swimming, surfing, rent a boat or canoe… Other activities that you can do in the island is to go underwater on submarine, to dive, to visit the attraction parks or to visit the mountains in the central part of the island.

 

 

Playa del Inglés (The English’ beach)

barcas playa gran canariaIn Maspalomas, you have to visit Playa del Inglés: This beach is the biggest beach of the island and has a perfect climate (between 20 and 30ºC) all the year. This beach is located at the south of the island and has a huge extension of sand which is always full of people.

Also the beach has a nudist area and a gay zone, but it’s only in a small part of the beach.

Other beaches in the south-east of the island are the next ones: San Agustín Beach, Pozo Izquierdo beach, Arinaga beach (at Vecindario town) and Vargas beach (at Ingenio town).

 

 

Las Dunas de Maspalomas (The dunes)

dunasBetween El Inglés beach and the lighthouse of Maspalomas, you will see this wide zone of dunes. By climbing them, you will be able to see all the coast of Playa del Inglés.

On the other side of the dunes, there are placed Maspalomas beach and Meloneras beach.

 

dunas playa del ingles

 

Puerto Rico (the Spanish seaside village)

puerto rico gran canariaPuerto Rico town (don’t mistake with the south American Puerto Rico country) is another touristic zone in the south of Gran Canaria in where you can enjoy its beach and its landscape.

It is located not far away from Maspalomas, in a sheer zone which has forced its citizens to build their houses in the mountain slopes, creating an impressive perspective.

 

puerto rico gc

 

Puerto de Mogán (Mogan Port)

puerto de moganMogan is another town in the south of the island. In its port you will see the Seaport and more beaches as Mogán, Taurito and Veneguera. Besides, in Puerto de Mogán there is a restaurant zone is its promenade, ideal if you want to eat something while seeing the sea.

 

 

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (The capital city of the islands)

playa de las canteras las palmasLas Palmas de Gran Canaria is the capital city of the Canary Islands. With almost 400,000 inhabitants this is the biggest city of the islands.

As Las Palmas is in the north of the island, the climate is colder in winter, however this city has a lot of activity, especially for young people who will find a lot of discotheques, Erasmus people and many more.

The main beach of the city is called Playa de las Canteras (The quarry beach)

 

The Port of Agaete

puerto agaeteFinally, Agaete is a seaside village located in the north-west of the island, famous for having a rock formation called El dedo de Dios (El Roque Partido). In Agaete you will find the beach Playa de las Nieves.

 

More places to visit in the island

agaeteThere are many more towns in the north and in the center of Gran Canaria (Arucas, Firgas, Moya, Galdar, Punta de Sardina, Teror, Valleseco…), but they are less touristic than the south ones. Also, in the centre of the island there are some interesting areas to do excursions through it mountains, as the famous Roque Nublo or some towns as Santa Lucía, Tejeda or San Baetolomé de Tinaja.

Nature and inland towns to visit in Gran Canaria: Check here more touristic places to visit in Gran Canaria!

Gastronomy and typical food: Our post with the typical food of the Canary Islands.