Gran Canaria Attractions

Gran Canaria's sights run from the coast to the summit within a day's drive. On the south coast the Maspalomas dunes are a protected nature reserve of just over 400 hectares, with a lagoon inside it and the lighthouse, first lit in 1890, at the western end of the beach. In Las Palmas, Vegueta is the quarter where the city began, with the cathedral of Santa Ana on its main square and museums in the old houses around it.

The centre of the island is mountain country. Roque Nublo, the rock pinnacle above Tejeda, is a protected natural monument reached by a trail that has to be booked in advance, with no parking at the rock itself. The north adds Teror, home of the basilica of the island's patron, the Virgen del Pino, and the harbour of Puerto de las Nieves at Agaete. Allow for the roads: the mountains are slow for their distance.