Have you heard of the Canary Islands? They’re a group of Spanish islands near the coast of Morocco with temperate weather, lots of national parks, volcanoes and beaches! If you’ve ever wanted to island hop, doing so via a cruise is a great way! There are seven main Canary Islands and we got to explore five of them, plus a city in Morocco during our week long Pullmantur cruise (Horizon ship) and a stopover in Madrid. We traveled February 16 – 26, 2018, which was the perfect time to escape the cold Washington, D.C. winter.
Top Benefits of Cruisin’
- Stress-free. You don’t have to pack and unpack every night.
- Time-saver. You get to cover a lot of ground without exerting any effort.
- Eat without thinking. You know where all of your meals are coming from.
- Fun galore! There are lots of activities and shows for entertainment and pools to relax by.
- Socialize without the clean-up. You can meet people who share your love for travel from all over the world.
Tenerife, Canary Island
- We were here for the end of Carnival (a huge celebration where everyone dressed up in costumes like it was Halloween). Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the main city where Carnival was being celebrated and is also where the port is for the round-trip cruise.
- Wandered through Strasse Park, which had very unique agriculture.
- City of La Orotava is an old historic city with beautiful views.
- Easy to rent a car from the airport and drive on the island.
- Arrived one full day ahead of our cruise departing to explore the island (and found a safe place to carsleep).
La Palma, Canary Island
- Curved around and up the mountain to see the Santuario de la Virgen de las Nieves, a famous church with a beautiful view of the city.
- Hiked in Caldera de Taburiente National Park where we saw a few Canarian ravens and a stunning rainbow!
- Viewed the famous Spanish balconies and black sand beach while eating delicious ice cream!
Agadir, Morocco
- The port is not extremely close to the town (probably 45 minute walk) and we came across a few stray dogs and cats. Be careful as we found the dogs will follow you.
- Traveled to the Kasbah, which is the highest point. There are camels you can ride on or take a picture with. The inscription reads “God, Homeland, King” on the side of the mountain.
- Shopped three Souks (markets) and learned about Moroccan oil. Negotiated a great deal for a painting with tree goats in the argan tree in a small souk by the beach.
Lanzarote, Canary Island
- Los Hervideros is an incredible water hole. The water is so strong that you are not allowed to swim as people have died trying.
- Drove through Timanfaya National Park to see the crater. We stopped at El Diablo Restaurant in the park to see a demonstration of the volcanic heat. This restaurant makes its food from the volcanic heat.
- Some drank wine, while I ate ice cream at La Geria.
Fuerteventura, Canary Island
- Walked along La Oliva, a beautiful sand beach.
- Visited a cute, small town called Betancuria and the ruins.
- Explored the port city of Arrecife and Puerto del Rosario.
Gran Canaria, Canary Island
- Strolled through the quaint town of Vega de San Mateo and Tejega (one of the most beautiful cities in Spain).
- Ate a fabulous lunch in the City of Teror, saw their famous balconies and stepped inside their historic church.
- Saw the Roque Nublo or cloudy rock, which was beautiful.
- Promenaded along the Playas de las Canteras which was the happening beach near the cruise port and took in a beautiful sunset here.
- We had a fantastic tour guide and a small group of travelers from around the world. The funny thing is, we spent the first thirty minutes of our time on the island panicking that our excursion wasn’t going to happen because the excursion company (Shore Excursioneer) confirmed a different time with us then they did with the person picking us up for the tour.
Madrid, Spain
- Booked a flight with a stopover in Madrid (less than 24 hours; arrived 3 p.m. and departed 1 p.m. the next day) because it’s only 30 minutes via public transportation to get to the city center.
- Bird-watching in the huge park, El Retiro Park.
- Peaked into the train station, Atocha and also found the perfect, last minute hostel with a private room called Far Home Atocha for only 40 euros that I would highly recommend. Use my Booking.com link and we each get $20!
- Awed at the Almudena Cathedral, and would definitely tour it the next time we visit this city.
- Traipsed through town and saw places like Plaza Mayor, the San Miguel Market and the bear and strawberry tree in La Puerta del Sol.
Full Disclosure
- I was about 8 weeks pregnant on this trip, so I couldn’t fully indulge on the Pullmantur cruise line which offers free alcoholic beverages (like house wines) in the price of the cruise.
- I had all day sickness – morning sickness, motion sickness, you name it and still had an amazing trip and would recommend checking out www.vacationstogo.com (free with your email address) to find this cruise and other deals!
Treat Yourself to Travel 