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Gran Canaria is the second most
populated island of the Canary Islands
after Tenerife. Gran Canaria is located
southeast of Tenerife and west of
Fuerteventura. The island is of volcanic
origin, mostly made of fissure vents.
The islands capital is Las Palmas,
said by some as having "the best climate
in the world". The Beach Resorts that
attract most of the tourists, are
situated around the Island.
The currency in Spain since 2002 is
the Euro. Beer
Prices. Currency
Converter.
Flights take about 4 hours between UK
Airports and Gran Canaria Airport.
Ryanair
provide regular flights between Gran
Canaria Airport and Birmingham . Bournemouth . Bristol .
Dublin .
East
Midlands . Edinburgh
. Glasgow/Prestwick . Liverpool
. London/Luton . London/Stanstead .
See Gran Canaria
Airport for information on other
airlines that fly there. This airport is
situated about 15 miles south of Las
Palmas. Buses operate between the airport
and some major towns, including the
tourist resorts on a regular basis.
Bus
Information. Airport
Transfers. Google
Map.
CarHire at Gran Canaria Airport can be
booked through CarTrawler who will scan the
best available deals from CarHire
companies based at Gran Canaria
Airport.
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Gran Canaria is a popular island
in the sun with a climate suitable
for year round holidays.
The capital is Las Palmas
situated about 12 miles north of
the Airport with the Beach Resort
Towns situated around the island
such as:
Bahia Feliz about 16 miles south
of the Airport.
San Agustin about 17 miles south
of the Airport.
Playa del Ingles about 20 miles
south of the Airport.
Meloneras about 21 miles south
of the Airport.
Puerto Rico about 30 miles
southwest of the Airport.
Amadores about 31 miles
southwest of the Airport.
Playa del Cura about 33 miles
southwest of the Airport.
Playa Taurito about 34 miles
southwest of the Airport.
Puerto de Mogan about 36 miles
southwest of the Airport.
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Spain
Map . Canary
Islands Map . Google
Map.
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Las Palmas de
Gran Canaria is the largest
city in the Canary Islands and a
very popular tourist destination.
The city has three great beaches, a
variety of tourist attractions, and
great hotels and resorts.
Canteras Beach, as seen left, is
a three kilometer stretch of golden
sand, right in the city. Las Palmas
has a great Science and Technology
Museum.
There are also City Bus Tours
available. Tour of
Las Palmas.
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The Port of Ls
Palmas sees large cruise
ships visit about once a week.
Ferry sailings to other Canary
Islands run most days. Sailing is a
popular pastime and sport at Las
Palmas.
More
Information .
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Late
Rooms . Booking.com . Package
Holidays .
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Santa Ana
Cathedral, in the heart of
the Vegueta quarter in Las Palmas,
was the first church in the
Canaries, built on the orders of
Los Reyes Catolicos, Queen Isabella
I of Castile and King Ferdinand II
of Aragon, after Gran Canaria was
conquered in 1478.
Construction started around 1500
and was not completed until almost
four centuries later, making the
intervention of several architects
and artists inevitable, the result
of which can be seen in three basic
architectural styles: Gothic,
Renaissance and Neoclassical.
More
Information . Google
Map.
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Bahia
Feliz, 12 miles south of the
Airport, is the first of the
resorts you arrive at when heading
south. The only down-side of the
resort is the lack of soft, sandy
beaches. Otherwise, it has all the
major ingredients of a modern
holiday resort with more character
and style than many of the
others.
The design of the buildings
gives a feel of Morocco and
although one of the smaller
resorts, it's spread out nicely
with garden and park areas. There's
a prom that runs from the very
north to the south, around 7km in
total.
Most of the shops, nightlife,
restaurants and bars can all be
found in the Canarian Village in
the middle of the resort.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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Late
Rooms . Booking.com .
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Rooms . Booking.com .
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San
Agustin, about 17 miles
south of the Airport, is a slightly
posher neighbour of Bahia Feliz,
though more your typical resort
with large hotels, less character
and apartments complexes. San
Agustin's hotels and properties
tend to be larger, of higher
standard with more facilities.
The beaches here are nice, dark
sand and plenty of it, there's
three main beach areas, the
furthest south offering
watersports, pedalos etc. The
beach-front promenade starts at the
north of the resort and runs the
entire length and into Playa del
Ingles so a good 10km in total
length!
The commercial center offers
plenty of shops, restaurants and
bars etc under one roof though I'd
look for restaurants away from
there, along the beach front.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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Playa del
Ingles, 20 miles southwest
of the Airport, is the largest
holiday resort on Gran Canaria, the
second largest resort of its kind
in Europe (after Benidorm). It's a
place to get lost in, an ideal
resort for you if you're travelling
with a group of friends perhaps, or
a couple looking for plenty of
action by night after days lazing
on the beach or by the pool.
During the summer holiday period
of July and August, it's very much
the ideal place for "young fun" or
"18-30" style holidays. Known for
its beach and nightlife, it proves
ideal for the younger crowd during
the summer.
For the rest of the year it
proves popular with everyone, all
ages and all nationalities. The mix
of people is mainly made up of
German and English but the mix of
Scandinavian, Dutch and other
European nationalities is very much
present too.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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Late
Rooms . Booking.com .
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Rooms . Booking.com .
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Meloneras, about 20
miles southwest of the Airport, is
one of the smaller resorts at the
moment, but is expanding rapidly.
The lighthouse splits Meloneras
from Maspalomas but the two are
side-by-side. Definitely the posh
part of Maspalomas and neighbour to
Playa del Ingles, lots of hotels,
bungalows and villas already here
with lots more on the way and all
tend to be 4 or 5 star.
The Costa Meloneras is a good
example, 4 star, 1,500 rooms and
everything you'd expect to find in
a town back home, you'll find in
the grounds here, including it's
very own beach within the complex
itself.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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Puerto
Rico, about 31 miles
southwest of the Airport, is a
specially constructed holiday
resort with a sandy beach
encompassed by two small
harbours.
Inside this lively resort you
will find the majority of shops and
restaurants are situated in
commercial centres. The main centre
is at the heart of Puerto Rico, The
Europa Shopping Centre is in the
higher part, and the Pasarela
centre at the back of the
beach.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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Late
Rooms . Booking.com .
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Amadores
lies about 1 mile west of Puerto
Rico. Another glorious man-made
beach, Amadores can also be reached
by a 20-min walk along a cliff-top
path from the beach of Puerto
Rico.
This extensive bay, well
protected from the ocean, boasts an
800 m (0.5 miles) stretch of beach
with golden sands and crystal-clear
waters.
Visitors are prohibited from
playing ball games or listening to
radios, but you can escape the
serenity by taking your pick of a
good assortment of bars and
restaurants directly at the rear of
the sanded area.
This beach provides excellent
conditions for small children
… but also for the romantic
– otherwise it wouldn’t
be called the lovers’ beach
(Playa de los Amadores)!.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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Playa de
Cura is situated about 2
miles west of Amadores. This small,
quiet holiday resort, is built on
the cliff sides lining the
coast.
Playa de Cura remains popular as
a peaceful place to stay while
granting easy access to the bright
lights and amenities of its more
flamboyant neighbour, Puerto
Rico.
More
Information . Google
Map.
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Late
Rooms . Booking.com . Package
Holidays.
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Holidays.
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Playa
Taurito is situated about 5
miles west of Puerto Rico, 34 miles
southwest of the airport.
This is another relaxing holiday
resort built into two large hills.
The complexes/hotels here tend to
be new, nice and generally a higher
standard than a lot of places. Each
have great pool areas,
entertainment etc.... the shops
tend to be in the hotels rather
than a shopping center.
The beach is black sand, plenty
big enough for the size of the
resort, lots of sunbeds (no water
sports) and right next door is the
public pool. It's not really a
pool, they call it the "lake" and
it's huge. It's about a kilometer
to swim around it (it's circular)
and there's all kinds of water
features along the way to make
being there a very nice day.
More
Information . Google
Map.
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Puerto de
Mogan is the most westerly
holiday resort on the south coast,
about 6 miles west of Puerto
Rico.
This is a picturesque port, a
blend of fishing village, marina
and chic holiday resort, with a
small, but excellent and
well-protected beach, that makes it
a favourite with children.
This is a purpose-built, more
upmarket holiday resort with
low-rise houses, aiming to offer
quality over quantity, for the
discerning holidaymakers, who
prefer relaxing surroundings to
hustle and bustle.
Other attractions are a yellow
submarine offering visitors trips
to the underwater world off shore,
small replicas of old sailing ships
taking passengers to the beaches of
Puerto Rico and Maspalomas and
deep-sea fishing boats offering you
the opportunity of making the catch
of your life with
world-record-sized tunas or
marlins.
More
Information/Package Holidays .
Google
Map.
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 Late
Rooms . Booking.com .
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