Canary Islands Cruise Holidays
The Canary Islands, or the Isla Canarias in their mother tongue of Spanish, are a small archipelago off of the coast of Morocco in north-west Africa.
Sitting in the Atlantic Ocean, around 100km from the African mainland, the Canaries enjoy the warm sunny climate you would expect but with the slightly cooling breeze of been an island and it is that mixture that gives the islands there great year round climate.
The Canaries is one of the most popular holiday destinations for sun seekers, especially in the winter months, but there is a lot more to each of the islands than their sun. blue skies and beaches and if you take a cruise holiday there, you can not only enjoy relaxing around the pool but you can also enjoy getting ashore and exploring the great cities and attractions on offer.
Cruises to the Canaries
Cruise Holidays in the Canary Islands
Another great aspect of enjoying a cruise between the islands that make up the Canaries is that you have the choice of starting off your cruise at one of the port sin the Islands or setting off from the UK and enjoying a day or 2 at sea before and after.
Starting off your cruise somewhere like Tenerife allows you to maximise your port days and allows you to add on a short break in one of the many hotels and resorts on the islands either before or after your holiday whilst starting your cruise in one of the UK ports that offers cruises to the Canary Islands allows you to enjoy a rest before and after your island hopping to really take in all that your ship has to offer.
Many cruises also stop off on the European mainland on the way back with cities such as Lisbon, Porto and Bilboa popular options.
A cruises holiday to the Canary Islands is a great way to see this autonomous community of Spain that is part of the Macaronesia island chain. The islands offer a unique holiday experience from the moment you see them as the approach from anywhere in the world is welcome by the site of the stunning Mount Teide which stretches seemingly from the ocean to the clouds.
Canaries Cruise Guide
Popular Ports in the Canaries
All of the islands of the Canaries are connected to one another via regular ferry services, so each have well established port and whilst the smaller islands will require all but the smallest cruise ships to tender aboard, the larger islands all have dedicated cruise ports and terminals.
Tenerife is the leading cruise port in the region and it is from the islands capital of Santa Cruz that the majority of cruise ships and cruise lines operating in the area use to start and end there cruise holidays around the Canaries.
Canary Islands Cruise Destinations
Tenerife is the capital of the Canaries and it is the most populous island with nearly 1,000,000 inhabitants.
The island is famed for Mount Teide which is one of the largest volcanoes in the world and is one of the most popular excursions for cruises arriving into the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
If you prefer to do your own thing on a cruise holiday, the capital city has lots to offer including a large shopping district in the city centre and it is also well connected by public transport to all parts of the island.
A cable car ride to the top of Teide allows you to have incredible views over the whole of the islands chain on even of Africa and you can also experience walking around the snow top mountain on your sunny getaway.
Fuerteventura is one of the largest islands in the archipelago but much of the land in uninhabited, which gives a feel of vastness despite been a relatively small island.
Its capital is Puerto del Rosario and it is also where your cruise ship will land you.
As with all of the Canary Islands, cruise ships stopping at Lanzarote call into the capital city with Arrecife offering a good range of beaches and attractions or you can use the good transportation connections to explore the whole of Lanzarote.
If Teide is the highlight of a cruise holiday to Tenerife, the beautiful Maspalomas in Gran Canaria is also a must do whilst ashore. The huge sand dunes in the south of the island give the feeling of been in the Sahara Desert (which is not too far away) and is a great place to escape and enjoy some peace and quiet.
Only a handful of smaller vessels will stop at El Hierro, which offers a more traditional experience far away from the tourist hotspots of other islands.
If you are after a traditional Canarian experience then the small island of La Gomera is the choice for you. Only a small number of cruise ships call into the island and that just adds to the charm of this unique place.
With most of the Canaries been dry and sandy, La Gomera stands out as it a lush green oasis with its own rain forest, the Garajonay’s National Park thanks to been next to the island of Tenerife and often being under the rain clouds that get stuck to the west of Teide.
Popular Cruise Lines Offering Cruises To The Canary Islands
Here are our top cruise lines offering holidays in the Canary Islands.
All of the top cruise lines offer cruises to the Canary Islands including many directly from the UK including P&O Cruises, Fred Olsen, Cunard, MSC Cruises, Marella Cruises, Oceania Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line.
Canary Islands
Location: Macaronesia
Capital City: Santa Cruz
Currency: Euro
Language: Spanish
Demonym(s): Canaries
Top Ports: Santa Cruz, Las Palmas, Arrecife
The volcanic nature of the Canaries allows for some stunning views no matter which island you are on as well as a number of black sand beaches.
The other worldly nature of the islands has led to a number of science fixture and space movies been filmed there including blockbusters such as Star Wars.
Whilst each island in the archipelago has a lot of Spanish influence, they are also a melting pot of many cultures, including there own local culture that in part dates back the indigenous peoples who were replaced by the Spanish.
Known on the Island of Tenerife as the Guanches peoples, the indigenous people of the island share a common ancestry with Berbers of North Africa and there is still a large North African influence on the islands.
The larger islands of Tenerife, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria and La Palma have all seen huge migrations of people from the Spanish mainland and from else ware across Europe as well as millions of holidaymakers each year, so the local culture has been dilated to near non-existence but on smaller more harder to reach islands such as El Hierro and La Gomera, the local culture is alive and thriving and is just one of the many charms of a visit to there.
The Canary Islands are a popular holiday destination for those looking for some winter sun but in truth it is a great place to visit all year around as the temperature stays relatively constant all year round and you can always be assured of lots of sun no matter when you visit.
As a part of Spain and with a heavy influence from the mainland, there is a familiarity for so many of us when visiting the Canary Islands but there is also a feeling of the unknown due to the volcanic and isolated nature of the Canaries.
With the nearest mainland been the Moroccan coastline around 100km away and with all of the islands been so small, you are never far from the sea and never far from the next island.
That in part is what makes the Canaries Islands the ideal place for those wanting a cruise holiday, especially for those who do not want to fly away to chase the sun during the colder months in Britain.
The trip down to the Canaries takes a couple of days but the majority of cruises offered will stop off on the European mainland but with lots of sunbathing to be enjoyed and with some of the biggest and newest ships heading down to the Canary Islands, it is a trip well worth doing and one that will be enjoyable from the moment you step onboard your chosen vessel to the sad day when you disembark for the final time.
Best Time To Visit
Although the Canary Islands can be visited all year around from the UK and ports in Europe, we would recommend visiting during the cooler winter months.
Not only do you avoid the often extreme heat of the summer and the huge crowds that flock to the Canaries throughout the May-September holiday season, but the Canaries make for the ideal summer sun getaway.
Here at CruiseHols.co.uk we bring you all of the information you will ever need to choose the right cruise destination for you and your family.
Our destination guides include everything from ports to attractions and excursion to the positives and negatives of the destination.
