Is Anywhere in the canaries not naff?

[RachHen]

Fancy a break with my pal in May. All we need is a pool. A walk or two. Nice restaurants. Not bothered about super luxury hotels or anything

I’ve never thought of the canaries but imagine they’re all. Boozy or all inclusive ?

@midsomermurderess

It's where you arrive on the ferry. It's a small place but I liked the feel of it. It's a little working town. Valle Gran Rey on the other hand felt like a sort of retirement home to me. One one side there are a bunch of mediocre restraints, on the other, badly-run rather amateur cafes with terrible service. Some of the island is very beautiful with stunning views and good if walking is your thing. I just found it a bit dull and while it's tiny, it takes ages to get anywhere. I much prefer Madeira. Not the most exciting of places either I suppose but I found there was much more to do.

That's interesting. I have been to Madeira once and hated it! La Gomera does sound a bit dull.

La Gomera , the smallest Canary island is beautiful, unspoiled, pretty town and not touristy. Worth the effort to get there.

Two conflicting views then.

Why the Canaries then? The big draw is the nice winter weather but by May most of Southern Europe is pretty warm. Beaches all over and hotels with pools right by them.

In general the areas with large beaches will be very developed, some in a naff way some in a smarter way but still very built up.

If you want more low key and authentic then try inland or the coastal areas without so many beaches (eg N coast of Tenerife).

I would highly recommend Greece in May though! Crete would be wonderful then as would many other areas.

@trulyconfuseddotcom

Currently sitting on a sunlounger at Radisson Blu in Mogan, it's lovely! We're on half board. There's a quiet pool and a family pool, we're at the quiet one and it's peaceful. The hotel food is nice, and we're off to try the restaurants in the village later. It's warm, not too windy and very relaxing. Definitely not a boozy vibe.

I’m so jealous. Puerto Mogan is my absolute favourite Winter Sun destination. We usually go every Christmas and stay in the harbour area. Just lovely.

Lanzarote was great. We went to Playa Del Carmen a few years ago and it was great! Where we were wasn't a boozy kind of holiday at all although there was a lot of nice bars/restaurants around

Luxurious Ritz Carlton Abama or La Plantacion in Adeje. Both northern Tenerife

@itsgettingweird

Tenerife - peurto de La Cruz or los gigantes.

Or go to La Gomera to completely avoid the touristy vibe.

Agreed !!!! Went in September and it was bloody wonderful ☀️

Playa Blanca, Lanzarote.

I absolutely love the Canaries and get a bit miffed when people call it naff. We've been to Dubai, Maldives, Cancun, Greece, Portugal (some multiple times), cruised the Caribbean and wherever else we've been and we still can't see past the canaries. Love the familiarity especially with 2 babies now.

Tenerife is a bit rough in some parts but is generally nice in the family orientated parts. Fuerteventura is very quaint (stay at Barcelo). Gran Canaria is ok. Lanzarote is definitely our favourite!

@CurlyhairedAssassin Masca is definitely worth a visit in Tenerife. It's up a very windy narrow road so you have to be a brave driver, but it's a gorgeous little village right at the top.Not a huge amount to do but beautiful scenery and there is a lovely restaurant with a terrace attached to an art store that has nice food ( unfortunately shut on Tuesdays I think when we went last time).

We love Tenerife and have been many times. As others have said the Playa Del Duque area is not downmarket at all, with 5 star hotels and prices to match. Walk right for La Caleta - a traditional fishing village, or left for Playa de las Americas and beer in a boot glass ( which we quite enjoy as a laugh).

I'll probably be shot for this but I found Albufeira in Portugal and Sorrento a lot more tacky and run down than Tenerife.

• Gosh is this for real??? shock you call a place naff and dismiss it as "boozy and all inclusive" after saying that your main requirement is a pool?

My main memories of the place were how beautiful, unspoilt and unique nature was. Sounds like it might not be a good fit for what you're after.*

I get what the op is saying. A dip in a nice hotel pool after a day out sightseeing is my idea of heaven. All day every day by the pool along with all the other hotel inhabitants on an all-inclusive deal is definitely not.

Some good tips on here.

The only of the Canaries I have been to is Fuerteventura, we were right down at the southern tip of the island at Jandia. Fairly quiet area. The lunar landscapes are amazing.

We went to Gran Canaria before kids and hired a car to drive to the capital, Las Palmas. It was fascinating. There was a cathedral and a museum and a little square where you could do the whole pavement cafe thing and a harbour. The island wasn't the greatest but this day trip was a real highlight.

You are talking about whole countries! It's really not surprising British tourists aren't v popular is it?

I went to Fuerteventura many years ago to Jandia which is favoured by Germans. Mostly middle aged with a penchant for walking along the beach naked.

Fuerteventura. Inland, not coastal are the best options, Lajares or Villaverde are good options.

@RachHen

Fancy a break with my pal in May. All we need is a pool. A walk or two. Nice restaurants. Not bothered about super luxury hotels or anything

I’ve never thought of the canaries but imagine they’re all. Boozy or all inclusive ?

Seriously?

The boozy AI bits are limited to small parts of the larger islands and easy to avoid.

You'd also likely get good hot weather in southern Spain at that time of year (we went a few years ago and high summer started early, 40C+ every day) and you'd probably be surprised to learn that most of it is nothing like Benidorm or the larger resorts on the Costa del Sol.

Have a wander around the Andalucian cities for a completely different view of Spain that is anything but 'naff'.

We stayed in Puerto de Mogan, Gran Canaria. At the time we had our DD with us, but I'd certainly recommend it. Character back street bars, lots of restaurants on water and harbour front. Shops to potter around, massive market. I went off on my own for a walk and ended up sitting down on the rocks just enjoying the view. I'd say it's suitable to families, couples and a pair of friends (not large groups).

You are suggesting the whole archipelago is naff? I find it an amazing place with incredible landscapes, climate, flora and fauna, beautiful beaches, history and food. With a few tourist hotspots.

Costa Adeje or Puerto de Mogan are both lovely. Perhaps Italy may be more your scene, shorter flights too.

We are in fuerteventura right now. Near Lahares. Having a wonderful time. Always hire a car so we can explore. So far we've been up a volcano which was epic, the scenery is spectacular. Also been to Corralejo today which we loved. Lay on a sandy beach listening to live music while our boys fished.

Madeira is beautiful. Funchal old town has nice restaurants, bars and places to see. The island is absolutely lush and green, stunning. Some decent hotels, better to stay in the old town though rather than the outskirts where you have to bus in.

Madeira is obviously not in the canaries, but definitely worth considering.

Lanzarote is amazing. We stayed in the old capital of Teguise in the centre of the island. Not Costa Teguise on the coast, which is much more touristy.