To think the canary isles are tacky?

[YaWeeFurryBastard]

Lighthearted and I’m definitely open to having my mind changed!

I’ve been to what my family call Lanza-grotty as a teenager and there were some nice volcanic bits. I did notice there was a lot of places serving full English/curry etc. and a very brits abroad vibe. I get the distinct impression that Tenerife/grand canaria are even worse and when people I know go there, they seem to be aiming to max out on the beer/all inclusive and return to the same place every year. There doesn’t seem to be much culture or things to do that aren’t very geared towards British tourists (banana boats etc.)

In my mind I group the canaries in with Benidorm/Tunisia/Cape Verde I.e. places I would not want to go. However I can see how they’d be good for an off-season bit of sun and now we have a baby on the way it’s going to be more challenging to go long haul in winter.

Am I being a judgy bitch and actually missing out on a perfectly nice destination?

I loved tenerife. We hiked up Mt Teide, through Teide National Park. It was beautiful. El Barranco del Infierno. Went to the volcanic caves. Boat to Los gigantes. Hiked through the mountains. Saw the pyramids. Wandered round La Laguna. Yes it was an adventure holiday not a beach holiday but was nothing like what you described.

I enjoy the canaries for holidays that we simply want to relax and read books, chill by the pool and do little else. If we were looking for culture or historical trips, we’d probably go elsewhere. They’re great for knowing what you get, good weather year round and no pressure! One of our best holidays was to Tenerife in November, our hotel was really social with games and we made lots of friends. If you’d told me this before we booked, I’d have run a mile! But ended up having a great time.

I’ve never been to the Canaries but like @DILLEYDALLEY I’ve been to plenty of places such as Dubai which are dismissed as being tacky and had a wonderful time. You just need to get out of the tourist hot spots and explore independently.

100% agree and would add Dubai to this grouping of very much mainstream Brits abroad vibe, albeit at a slightly (if at all when truly comparing like for like i.e. 5 star vs 5 star) higher price point …

I've had a great holiday in Tenerife hiking in the mountainous bits, if you've not been to mount teide even just in the cable car, it's definitely worth it.

There are big resorts, but there's plenty of less touristy bits.

Lanzarote is very popular with runners and cyclists because of the weather and landscape.

Not been to fuerteventura but I hear it's good for water sports because of the wind. The "Brits abroad" stuff is just lowest common denominator. You don't have to engage with it.

Yeah, you're being a judgy bitch. If you look further than what you perceive as Brits abroad, you'll see there's some really beautiful parts. We've had amazing holidays in the Canaries.

I’ve only been to Lanzarote, but I didn’t see any cooked breakfasts!! Maybe it was the area you stayed in? I saw beautiful white beaches and clear waters, volcanoes, underground cave with live orchestra playing Elgar (maybe that’s too British for you!), museums dedicated to the architect Manrique, wonderful seafood restaurants, wonderful architecture in general. You can drive from one end of the island easily in a day, so I’m surprised you didn’t manage to explore the island properly. Maybe next time put down your pint and black pudding and go for an adventure?!!

I went to Lanzarote many moons ago.
There's strict rules about how high buildings can be so it's not full of high rise hotels.
As for culture - it's almost 30 years that I went but I remember going on the island tour which includes Timanfire (spelling?) or "Fire Mountain" which is the volcano and we learned about the history of it including how NASA used it for moon landing training. We went to the famous artist house (I forget his name) and a small town that has a lot of North Africa (or Moor?) style buildings. I went on a camel ride. There was a surfing area apparently on the north of the island but we didn't go there.
So..... that's culture 🤔

YABU. If you can’t look past that image it’s fine though, I guess it’s more of the unspoiled bits for the people who can :)

Tackier to be so uneducated that you think it's "grand canaria" tbh....

It’s a bit judgy, yes. While I understand what you mean, plenty of us can manage a beach/pool/all inclusive holiday without bringing shame on the nation. It’s not everyone’s type of holiday but adventure/hiking isn’t mine.

The Canaries offer pretty much all year sunshine and all inclusive holidays offer more than 10 days of beer drinking. With kids there is usually food they’ll eat, at the times they want to eat and when you factor in drinks and ice cream it can be value for money.

What you're talking about is small areas of the Canaries and the rest of Spain.

It infuriates me that people write off a vibrant country with such rich cultural heritage in this way.

We've been to the Canaries, Balearics and mainland Spain dozens of times and have never stayed all inclusive or had the sort of holiday you're describing.

This year we've been to Gran Canaria where we went hiking in the mountains, ate Spanish and Canarian food from restaurants that didn't sell chips or have English menus and also swam in the sea. We've also been to inland areas near Malaga, been to museums and botanical gardens in the city and the Alhambra in Granada.

Seville or Cadiz would be good winter sun destinations. YABVU and, to use your words, a judgy bitch who's letting your prejudice cause you to miss out experiencing a wonderful country.

I admit I used to think the same OP but was desperate for sunshine in autumn a few years ago. Booked a gorgeous hotel in the north of Tenerife and had a wonderful week enjoying sunshine, exploring the mountains, botanical gardens, little local harbour town and eating nice food and relaxing. The sunshine was gorgeous and so welcome at that time of year. Avoided all the Playa- type resorts as they are not aimed at me anyway and saw no boozed up Brits at any point. Have since been to Gran Canaria and explored pyramids, harbours, old churches, museums, enjoyed what the city centre had to offer and again lovely food and glorious but not baking sunshine to go with it all and none of the tacky resort behaviour you might associate with the canaries.

I can imagine they would be an ideal destination for young families.

They're tacky if you go to the tacky bits and hang around in "English" pubs.

You just need to pick which resort / area you go to carefully.

I was similarly judgemental pre-kids, but for a bit of winter sun you can have a nice trip.

TBH I quite fancy going without the kids to hike, some interesting looking places to do so (and seeing more of the authentic parts of the islands).

The Canaries are what you make of them, like most holidays. I've been to Gran Canaria and Lanzarote in the last 3 winters and thoroughly enjoyed the warmth and blue skies, really helps with the winter blues and incessant miserable Welsh weather 😀 It keeps me going through winter and I'm going again at the end of January!

Just go to the bits that Brits don’t usually go to - north Tenerife: gorgeous landscape, peace and quiet, interesting food and architecture. Just avoid the horrible bits , I mean it’s not called ‘playa de los ingleses’ for nothing

Bored, are we ?

Excellent response !

Tenerife is beautiful with wonderful countryside, mountains and forests as well as loads of history. We've been several times, just avoid the Brits at Home areas, and enjoy the rest.

I think it depends on the type of holiday you like.

We actively dislike any all inclusive accommodation and we stay far away from the touristic routes. We have been to Lanzarote and Tenerife quite a few times, renting an apartment in a village, our own car to go to the best beaches, we enjoyed lovely sunsets, tiny restaurants hidden from the crowd, we explored lots of villages, local features, viewpoints, took ferries to visit other smaller islands.
But, yes, there are also big parts of these islands devoted to 'mass tourism'. It is really down to you to pick how you like to spend your holiday time.

Thank you for your valuable contribution

Like every tourist destination, there's going to be spots that aim to get people in - same food type, merchandise ect...but if you do your research you'll find out where the locals eat, shop off the beaten track. I've been to lanzarote loads of times with dh just to get away and nothing beats the early mornings, walking on the prom by the sea with the morning sun beaming down. I always find myself thinking, this would be a great way to start the day if I could live here all the time. We've also done the tours ect and they were great and very respectful to the natural landscape and laws. Edited to add, we've also eaten off beaten track, hiked, swam ect.

You make what you want of a holiday. I also think it's a bit harsh considering that families often have limited time or have very young children and the resorts are more family friendly food and activity wise than hiking in rural parts with a young child.

Yanbu

I went to Blackpool once and have never holidayed in UK since

There are literally no non-‘tourist hotspots’ in Dubai, though, unless you’re thinking of expanses of scrubby desert, residential areas or places to buy knock-off handbags in Karama.