Corralejo, a former fishing port turned the main resort of the north, is the most practical base for a first visit. Just south, the dunes natural park stretches for several kilometres along the FV-1 road, with beaches where you swim at the foot of pale sand. From the harbour, boats reach the islet of Lobos in about fifteen minutes, and others cross to Playa Blanca, in southern Lanzarote, in 30 to 35 minutes. Allow two or three days to enjoy the area without a car.
El Cotillo, a village with a more unspoilt feel, is split between sheltered lagoons to the north, ideal for children at low tide, and large exposed beaches to the south, best left to experienced surfers. Sunsets from the El Tostón tower are among the finest on the island. Ten minutes inland, Lajares gathers surf schools, craft workshops and cafés. From there, the Calderón Hondo volcano trail, about an hour there and back, leads to the rim of a crater with views as far as Lobos on clear days.
In the heart of a mountain massif, Betancuria was the first capital of the archipelago, founded in the early 15th century by the Norman conqueror Jean de Béthencourt. Its Church of Saint Mary and white houses can be seen in an hour. The winding road there passes the Morro Velosa viewpoint, designed by César Manrique, overlooking the island's arid interior. On the west coast, about twenty minutes away, Ajuy offers a black sand beach and a fifteen-minute path to sea caves carved into some of the oldest rocks in the Canaries.
The capital, Puerto del Rosario, is mainly an administrative town, but its streets are dotted with around a hundred open-air sculptures that justify a two-hour stroll. About ten minutes south of the airport, Caleta de Fuste lines up family hotels around a very calm bay and an 18th-century defence tower, handy for a short stay. Further south, Las Playitas and Gran Tarajal keep a fishing village atmosphere, with the La Entallada lighthouse perched on its cliff. It is the least windy side of the island, popular in summer.
The south of the island, about 1 h 30 by road from Corralejo, has the biggest beaches. At Costa Calma, the Sotavento lagoon forms at low tide over kilometres of sand and hosts international windsurfing and kitesurfing competitions in summer. Morro Jable, at the end of the paved road, keeps a lively old harbour. From there, a track of about 20 km crosses the mountain to Cofete, a wild Atlantic beach with no facilities: check your rental contract, often restrictive on dirt roads, and do not swim, as currents there are dangerous.
