The Canary Islands are often a destination which people will visit for an extended period of time but there are cruise lines that offer cruises around the Canary Islands.
The Canary Islands are made up of 8 main islands including:
Tenerife
Fueteventura
Gran Canaria
Lanzarote
La Palma
La Gomera
El Hierro
La Graciosa
If your starting your Canary Islands cruise from Southampton there is a strong likelihood that your first port of call will be La Coruna which is located in the north of Spain. This is a port which is easily accessed by foot from the cruise port as you are able to walk to the main square Plaza de Maria Pita.
I recently did a Spain, Portugal and Canary Islands cruise during the month of March. I was unlucky with the weather as it was the worse weather that they’ve had in the Canary Islands for several years.
As the largest Canary Island, Tenerife has a lot to offer visitors with its valleys, beaches and forests. Tenerife is home to the volcanic landscape of Mount Teide National Park where you are able to ride a cable car to the craters rim. Cruise passengers will find themselves docking in Santa Cruz where you are able to explore the area on your own or you can do the hop on hop off sightseeing bus which is something that I chose to do at a cost of €20. The route will take you to sights such as
Plaza de Espana
Casa del Recova
Auditorio
Calle del Castillo
Mercado la Recova
Those who visit Gran Canaria as a port of call will find themselves docking in Las Palmas. There is other areas of the island to explore such as Maspalomas or old town Arucas. During this port of call I went to Puerto de Mogan which is located approximately 45 minute drive away from the port. This was done as part of an organised shore excursion which was Puerto de Mogan on your own. Puerto de Mogan is a beautiful fishing village with a marina located on the south-west of Gran Canaria. If your visit falls on a Friday like mine did there is a massive market which is very popular. As you walk around the village you will notice that there not many buildings that are taller than two storeys due to government restrictions. We had 6 hours of free time which we spent walking around the village as well as the marina which is lined with restaurants and bars.
Known as one of the windy islands when docking in Lanzarote there is a long walk to the centre. There possibly won’t be a shuttle provided by the cruise line as P&O only ran one for those with mobility issues but then the drop off point did mean there was still a long walk to the centre. Cruise ships visiting Lanzarote will dock at the islands capital Arrecife. As you walk from the ship to the centre of Arrecife you will come across Charco de San Ginés which was the island’s first fishing settlement built around the seawater lagoon. As you walk around Charco de San Ginés you will small boats anchored as well as some bars and restaurants. Once you’ve had a stroll around the centre take a walk along the waterfront back to the ship where you will find Puente de Las Bolas which is a stone bridge giving access to to Castillo de San Gabriel which is the home to the history museum of Arrecife.
Personally choosing to do a Canary Islands cruise would not be top of my list of cruises to do again, I would personally look at what other cruise options there are available. This is only a personal opinion as I found the destinations to be a bit too similar with not a lot to do in each port. The cruise that I did for the Canary Islands was part of my Dad’s birthday celebrations and one appeal for the cruise was a overnight stay in Lisbon.
Have you done a Canary Islands cruise before?
WorldofLauraJane 
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