Lanzarote can be found [...]]]> Searching for a different holiday experience this year?  The island of Lanzarote in the Canaries combines great weather and beaches with a host of things to do and see.  Making it the ideal choice for anyone keen to do more on their holidays than simply soak up the sun all day long.

Lanzarote can be found off the coast of Africa and is around a four hour flight from the UK.  It was conquered by Spain in the early 1400`s – rapidly becoming an integral part of their nascent empire.  Providing a refuelling post for galleons laden with slaves and Inca gold.  Today most visitors arrive on cheap flights from the UK, with the island welcoming something in the region of 1.4 million tourists every year.

Package holidays are still popular here but increasingly most people today build their own holidays online.  Booking flights to Lanzarote via the internet.  And then searching for their accommodation.  Villas in Lanzarote have become increasingly popular as a result and there are hundreds of good quality rental properties to choose from across the island.  Especially in and around the larger resorts.  Along with a comprehensive selection of Lanzarote hotels covering all of the bases from budget through to five star.

Perhaps the greatest surprise for first time visitors is that Lanzarote has such a rich cultural heritage.  Created in part by the famous artist Cesar Manrique, who was born in 1919 and who died in a car crash in 1992.  In-between he managed to develop most of the islands’ leading natural attractions such as the Cactus Garden.  Whilst at the same time lobbying for controlled tourism.  A campaign which has proved largely successful as Lanzarote is much less developed than neighbours such as Tenerife.

Despite the fact that he has been dead for some time his influence is still prevalent everywhere – right from the airport where his sculptures adorn the roundabouts through to his artworks which crop up in hotels and apartment complexes across the island.  His best known creation is probably his own house and studio which is located in Tahiche in the centre of the island and which was built into five chambers in the lava flow.  A hugely impressive feat of engineering.

Manrique´s legacy is such that the island was awarded UNESCO status in the early 1990´s and remains one of the most unusual and unique holiday destinations in Europe to this day.  Discover the gem of the Canaries in 2011 for yourself.

Lanzarote is located off the coast of West Africa and is one of the seven islands that form the Canarian archipelago.  The Spanish [...]]]> The holiday island of Lanzarote offers a wide array of accommodation options.  Covering all of the bases from small studios through to luxurious Lanzarote villas and hotels – and everything else in between.

Lanzarote is located off the coast of West Africa and is one of the seven islands that form the Canarian archipelago.  The Spanish owned island chain that is a hot favourite with tourists.  Welcoming close to ten million visitors every year. Lanzarote is the fourth largest of these islands and the third most popular after Tenerife and Gran Canaria, welcoming around 1.4 million foreign tourists every year – the majority arriving from the UK and Germany.

There are three main holiday resorts on the island, Costa Teguise, Playa Blanca and Puerto del Carmen.  Each boasting it´s own identity and attractions, as well as accommodation options.

Costa Teguise is home to one of the few five star hotels in Lanzarote – the Gran Melia Salinas.  Which was constructed during the 1970´s with the design input of the famous local artist César Manrique.  Whose paintings still hang in pubic spaces in the hotel today.  The resort revolves around the Pueblo Marinero  – another Manrique construction.  And is an ideal choice for anyone who enjoys sightseeing.  As all of the main attractions are located within a twenty minute drive.

Puerto del Carmen is the biggest resort on the island and the spot to head for if you are looking to book cheap apartments in Lanzarote.  As the resort boasts the largest density of holiday complexes.  Offering great value accommodation for holidaymakers on a budget.  Puerto del Carmen started life as La Tiñosa, a small fishing village and a name still used by locals.  But has expanded enormously over the last forty years into a large resort.  Which is divided into two areas – the New Town and the Old Town.

Playa Blanca is the new kid on the block – as this resort was only created during the 1990´s.  And as a result it boasts a brand new infrastructure and up date amenities.  Along with an abundance of good value four star hotels, some of the best beaches on the island and plenty of holiday villas.

Playa Blanca is the gateway to the neighbouring island of Fuerteventura – which lies just 8km away from Lanzarote across the Bocaina Straits.  Which means that tourists staying here can visit not just one but two Canary Island whilst enjoying their holiday in Lanzarote.

The reasons behind this resort’s growth are tied up [...]]]> The newest resort to be developed on the island of Lanzarote is Playa Blanca. With much of its holiday accommodation constructed during the last ten years, it has an excellent range of modern and stylish villas available to rent, with equally good hotels arrayed along its coastline.

The reasons behind this resort’s growth are tied up with its close proximity to the six beautiful beaches of Papagayo. Regarded as some of the best beaches in the whole Canarian archipelago, they consist of coves and larger stretches of golden sand. Surrounded by crystal clear waters that make ideal scuba-diving spots, the beaches remain very unspoilt.

They can still only be reached by a dirt track road, water taxi or on foot along the coastal pathway. And continue to have fairly limited facilities, so visitors are usually advised to come well equipped with food, drink and a sunshade.

In the town itself, there are three sandy beaches. The most central of which also gives its name to Playa Blanca. On the western side there is Playa Flamingo, which is surrounded by lovely mature tropical gardens. And on the eastern side there is Playa Dorada, stretching out in front of the Princesa Yaiza hotel.

Due to its southerly position, a holiday in Playa Blanca will usually feel a couple of degrees warmer than in the other resorts, as the local micro-climate intensifies the sun’s heat. Allowing visitors the chance to make the best use of the private pools and outdoor Jacuzzi’s that nearly all holiday villas in Playa Blanca enjoy.

The town also serves as a good base for exploring the island, especially the southern half, which is home to the Timanfaya National Park. Rather than being a green and verdant space planted with numerous trees, the park is located at the site of the volcanic eruptions that shook Lanzarote between 1730-36.

Tourists therefore get to see any number of craters and cones, twisted fields of lava and molten rock. And if they choose to dine at the El Diablo restaurant, they can also see their food being cooked on one of the most unusual barbecues in the world. Harnessing the geothermal heat that is still extremely intense just below the earth’s surface, the grill hovers over an open fissure in the ground.

Also within close reach of Playa Blanca is the village of Yaiza. Voted twice over Spain’s prettiest village, it is lucky to still be standing at all, having avoided burial under a tidal wave of lava.