Canary Islands advice?

[SkippettyDoDah]

Any personal recommendations on non-resorty places to stay in the canary Islands? Our wishlist would be: warm, quiet, beautiful landscape for walking, pretty villages to explore and somewhere safe to swim for children. I've never been to there and feel totally clueless to be honest. Previous successful winter holidays have been Morocco and Jordan (avoiding cities).

Try here

You’ll need to avoid large swathes of the coasts for the kind of holiday you want. Look at the interior of the islands.

Thanks minipie, that was kind of my impression but I was hoping to be proved wrong as DP really wants to go!

We go to Caleta in Fuerteventura as we are not party enough for Gran Canaria. If you want somwhere a bit more traditional then Corralejo but that's 40 mins from the airport. Caleta is a manmade resort but its only 10 mins from the airport and is quite laidback.

I think you will struggle in the canaries as they are only irrigated on the coast. The middle bits look like the surface of the moon. That said the puerto de la Cruz side of Tenerife was lovely and v different to play las americas.

I love Santa Cruz.

Bit crass with the crisis they’re having over there atm no?

An easy way to do this would just be to go to the islands that aren’t that touristy! TUI go to both La Gomera and La Palma. They are gorgeous places where you definitely won’t feel too touristy!

Medano is lovely. Small, some tourists but locals often have fiestas in the square. Beach with lifeguards. Very close to airport , you would need car to explore

@ArnoldBee

We go to Caleta in Fuerteventura as we are not party enough for Gran Canaria. If you want somwhere a bit more traditional then Corralejo but that's 40 mins from the airport. Caleta is a manmade resort but its only 10 mins from the airport and is quite laidback.

I'm note sure there are too many "pretty villages to explore" around Caleta or Corralejo. Outside the tourist resorts, it's pretty bleak really. Lots of black rock mountains, scrubland and very little else. I think the OP needs to be looking at specific areas of Tenerife or Gran Canaria if they want "green" scenery and pretty villages. But yes, the main resorts of Fuerteventura are nice - mostly low rise buildings, nice shopping areas, nice beaches, etc. It depends what the OP wants.

North Tenerife - Puerto de la Cruz area is very green and quiet, Haria or Teguise on Lanzarote are both really nice, pretty villages, but landscape on Lanzarote is very volcanic, La Gomera is very green and popular with walkers and people who want a quiet time.

La Gomera is not very touristy in my experience. Very quiet.

@ButterflyAway

Bit crass with the crisis they’re having over there atm no?

Actually, they're hoping the volcano on La Palma won't put tourists off. The economy of the Canaries is heavily dependent on tourism and it's literally one area of one island that is affected by the eruption.

North of GC is quite green and leafy, but tends to be rainier (hence why it's green). Puerto de Mogan in the south-west is a very pretty village - it's touristy but not partyish. Think more bars and restaurants, not clubs. It has a nice beach too. They have a market twice a week.

We usually stay in the south and then hire a car - the island isn't very big so you can easily get to the northern bits and into the mountainous areas. Means you have the best of both worlds - the weather of the south if you want a pool day plus all the restaurants and stuff, but the ability to go off exploring for the day.

We found you couldn't walk easily between villages as the landscape is rocky and volcanic without worn paths.

Normally, I would have said La Gomera, especially as it has popular walking routes, but have a look at La Laguna (San Cristobal de La Laguna) Tenerife.
It's a beautiful old town, the historic centre is a World Heritage site. A villa or small hotel with pool might fit your requirements.

It's a while since we have been there, but found that Maspalomas in Gran Canaria was good in winter. It is a resort village, but quieter (not really much nightlife etc - some restaurants but not bars/clubs). Good beach at Auginegin, with nice restaurants there too, which were walking distance. But beach was very long (there is a nudist section on it - well along it though) and no rows of sunbeds laid out or anything organised on it. So nicely away from the hustle and bustle, while still having food available etc.

These are super helpful, thanks!