Why are winter sun holidays in Canary islands so popular?
whats the big attraction? Well, the Canary islands are actually an African archipelago however they fall under Spanish rule and are actually an autonomous region of Spain. This means African weather with European political stability!
The islands are extremely popular with Europeans for holidays, particularly northern Europeans such as Germans, Scandinavians and Brits and consist of 7 main islands:-
* Lanzarote
* Tenerife
* La Palma
* Gran Canaria
* Gomera
* Hierro
* Fuerteventura
Canary islands holiday map
The combined population of the Canary islands is less than a million residents, although the tourists will double the population during high season for travel. These islands were actually named after the large dogs (canes) originally found living on the islands. All the islands are actually remnants of very steep volcanoes! This results in some spectacular landscapes.
Spanish is the official language although English and German are both widely spoken, especially in the major cities of Las Palmas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The currency is the Euro.
The main attraction is still probably the weather, even though there has been huge investment into the islands in terms of attractions and transportation, the fact is without the all year round sunshine – temperature rarely drops below 18 degrees in daytime, even in winter – the travel industry in the Canary isles would probably not exist.
Weird fact – many scientists believe that due to the unique geological formation of the Canaries, in particular la Palma, that there could be the threat of a major tidal wave/tsunami in the future caused by an underwater landslide, they believe that landslides in the past have triggered deadly mega-tsunamis and have found evidence for this as far away as the Bahamas and believe this already happened many years ago on El Hierro!
Cheap holidays in Canary islands
for brits especially, a big positive for the Canary islands (Spain in general in fact) is the prices. The cost of living in the Canaries is much cheaper than the UK, why this is the case when Spain is part of the European union is unclear! However the important facts are
* Everyday expenditure such as food and drinks are much cheaper than back home
* Gifts and presents such as perfumes, spirits, jewellery and electronics items are about half price due to no VAT or other taxes
* The actual cost of the holiday seems to get cheaper each year – as long as you shop around!
For those of us who simply love going to the canary islands this is all good news, I personally have had great holidays in Tenerife with the family for less than £1000 including spending money, however I feel that you could have a great time for much less than this with a little more planning and perhaps taking advantage of some of the resorts offering all inclusive package holidays in Canary islands.
Holidays in Canaries – what to expect
Well, if you have been to Southern Spain before then the climate is similar – but even hotter! For those who have never been, then the weather is basically
sunny all year round, winter in the Canary islands is like a really good summer in the UK! Thats why winter sun Canary islands breaks are so popular with us Brits and of course other Northern Europeans who suffer harsh winters like Germans and Scaninavians. In summer the temperatures are too hot for most people, only big time sun worshippers should travel to the Canaries in June, July or August – remember these islands are basically Africa, picture the deserts of morocco or Algeria in those foreign legion movies and you will get an idea of the climate! In my opinion October, November, December, January and February are the best months to visit ( somehow I get a perverse kind of pleasure coming home with a great tan when everyone else looks like milk bottles!) March is not bad either but things are starting to heat up by then. Each of the islands varies considerably in scenery and customs so please feel free to delve deeper into the blog to find out more about each of the canary islands to narrow down your choice, whichever you choose you can expect good prices, good weather, plenty to do and see and lots of fun for everyone!