There are many reasons to visit Gran Canaria – and one of them is that you can go to beach at any time of the year!
In this post we will talk about beaches. We give you many other reasons to visit the island in this our post about Gran Canaria!
Even though the beaches in Gran Canaria are not as exotic and impressive as those in Fuerteventura or Lanzarote, there are a few wonderful beaches in the island that resist decades of mass tourism aimed at foreigners who just want sunny weather and maybe nice beaches while still feeling at home.
In this post we will list the beaches in Gran Canaria that you should not miss before leaving the island.
#1 Maspalomas Beach
Maspalomas Beach (Playa de Maspalomas) is located at a bay in the middle of Gran Canaria’s South coast. It is over 2.700 metres long, and up to 1.000 metres wide in some areas!
This beach borders the Maspalomas Dunes Natural Reserve, one of the most unique spots in Gran Canaria.
Maspalomas is certainly the best easy-to-access beach in the island… so you should really spend some time on this beach, and discovering its dunes!
When arriving at the beach from the parking or the bus stop, you will first see a beautiful lagoon, called Charca de Maspalomas. Upon arrival at the lagoon, you will see one of the wonders of this island: the Dunes.
After swimming in the Ocean, you can climb up some dunes, stay there to enjoy sunset or roll down one of them. It’s up to you!
Arriving in Maspalomas Beach
It is very easy to access this wonderful beach. By car, you can arrive with the GC-1 motorway (the main in the island). Take exit 46. The road GC-500 crosses the main touristic areas of the island and arrives in Maspalomas.
As it is very difficult to find a parking place close to the beach, especially in summer, unless you arrive very early, you can park your car in “Faro de Maspalomas” parking, 10 minutes walking from the beach. The price is 1.50 € / hour (you pay per minute).
By bus, Global inter-city buses 05, 30 and 50 arrive in Maspalomas from Las Palmas. de Gran Canaria. All three lines have their terminal stop next to the parking.
#2 Playa del Inglés
Playa del Inglés (Englishman’s Beach) is just North of the Maspalomas Dunes. Actually, Maspalomas, the dunes and Playa del Inglés make up altogether a single L-shaped beach stretching for nearly 6 km along the coast. Thus considered, it is the longest beach in Gran Canaria.
Lord Nelson encamped in this beach when he tried to take over Gran Canaria in 1797. It is likely that the beach takes its name from this episode.
The eponymous urban area around Playa del Inglés is one of the largest foreign tourist developments in Gran Canaria. Therefore, there are many pubs and restaurants around the beach and in the whole area, many of them made for British, German or Dutch tourists.
This mercantilisation of the beach focused solely on a foreign tourist seeking some Sun, while trying to avoid the feeling of being in another country is whay we like less of Playa del Inglés in comparison to Maspalomas. Otherwise, both the sand and the sea are very similar.
Arriving in Playa del Inglés
To arrive in Playa del Inglés, you should take exit 45 of the GC-1. If you are not lucky enough to find a parking place in the area, there is an open air parking located just next to the beach. It costs nearly 1.50 € / hour (you pay per minute).
#3 Playa de Las Canteras
Playa de las Canteras is located in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the largest city and historical capital of the Canary Islands.
The beach stretches for 3.000 metres along the Western side of the isthmus that joins old Las Palmas with the Isleta (“Small Island”), a rocky peninsula that reaches onto the sea and hosts the city’s traditional fishing neighbourhood.
It is certainly one of the best urban beaches in Spain. It is best to enjoy it during low tide, where La Barra (“The Bar”), a volcanic reef, emerges from the Ocean and protects the beach. In its vicinity you can usually see many fish.
On its Southern tip stands Alfredo Kraus Auditorium, adding charm to this beautiful urban beach. This area has a lot of waves, so it is suitable for surfing!
We have some bad news now: Las Palmas is not very sunny, especially during summer. The mountains in the centre of the island stop the clouds from going into southern Gran Canaria, stopping them in Las Palmas and around. Locals call this phenomenon panza de burro (“donkey’s belly”)
“Donkey’s belly” has its upside, though: the temperature in Las Palmas remains constant around 23 ºC all year long! If it gets very hot in the South, it is a good moment to drive North to go to Playa de las Canteras… and visit the picturesque colonial quarter of Vegueta, the old town of Las Palmas.
Arriving in Playa de las Canteras
Playa de Las Canteras is quite far from Las Palmas old town, but you can arrive easily by car or public transport.
If you go by car, Avenida Marítima (GC-1) takes you close to the beach. To go to the Northern part of Playa de las Canteras, the underground parking La Puntilla is very convenient.
You can also arrive by bus. You can check bus lines and timetables in this link.
If you want to go to the Southern part of the beach, you can park in Las Arenas Shopping Centre if you don’t find any place around. This parking is free. There are also several bus connections in this area.
Bonus: Natural Pools
If you like natural swimming pools, you can’t miss those in Northern Gran Canaria, on an impressive volcanic coast.
The best are those of the charming fishing village of Agaete and Charcones de El Puertillo. Both are easily accessible from Las Palmas with the GC-2, a motorway running through the North coast of the island.
Other beaches
If you are looking for a day in a virgin remote beach, you can book a boat trip to Güigüí beach, on the West. This is a black sand beach unreachable by road.
There are many such trips from Puerto Rico. Make sure they include enough time on the beach and they don’t just show you the coast around. If you are lucky enough, you may even see some dolphins on the way.
Of course, there are many more beaches in Gran Canaria. However, in our humble opinion, the rest of the beaches that are easy to reach by car are not worth the trip.
Meloneras Beach
Meloneras is just West of Maspalomas. The best beach in the island being so close, we see no reason to go here unless you are staying next to it.
San Agustín Beach
The same thing can be said of San Agustín, a beach with darker sand. It’s not bad, but if you have to drive to reach it, why not continue a couple of kilometres West and enjoy Playa del Inglés or Maspalomas.
Finally, the beaches in the fishing villages of Puerto de Mogán and Agaete are fine, but nothing really special. Anyway, it is worth going to these places to wander around its picturesque streets.
