The Canary Island of Lanzarote Walks Guides and Pictures.

Lanzarote Hiking Instructions for walks you can do whilst on holiday on Lanzarote.

Lanzarote does have some excellent walking possibilities over all sorts of terrain from coastal and beach walks to inland in and around the cones and lava fields and going inside (extinct) craters. Apart from our walks descriptions there are also several photos which might help in planning a driving and sightseeing trip around Lanzarote.

Playa Blanca - Lighthouse - Punta Gorda This walk could be considered a little difficult due to the length (23.5km) especially if the weather is particularly hot but it is basically a flat walk and is circular - the enjoyment apart from that of walking is exploring the rocky inlets, watching these sea and just being out on the tracks.
We started from Playa Dorada beach and walked along the coastline using the promenade as far as the harbour - it should be possible to continue along the coastline but we did find in several places that the path/promenade

was blocked off due to building work which meant diverting off and having to use the roads. Once you get clear of the buildings the track continues along the coast to the lighthouse [N28°51'21 W013°52'21].
From here it's simply a question of continuing along the coast sometimes at first passing newly built villas and houses on your right - but the path is there and open for public use. The coastline is quite rugged and the way the sea crashes onto the rocks is really spectacular in places - there are quite a few small rocky coves/inlets to explore and to take photos. We made our target the mostly derelict but huge concrete mess called the Atlantic del Sol which soon becomes visible - however before you reach this you come across a fairly high stone wall (Punta Gines) and just before this wall - hidden within the rocks - someone has made a stone wind-break circle [N28°53'08 W013°52'50] which is just right for a stop off to have a picnic and/or of course even a nude sun-bathe if you wish. Having walked in and around the gorgeous Atlantic del Sol note the wide track heading directly inland - however continue a little way further along the coast to end up at Punta Gorda - if the sea is rough you can get great views of it crashing into the rocks - and if visibility is good can also see the distant salt pans and even just about El Golfo.

Return back to the hotel and pick up the main dirt road leading directly inland and follow this across the rough ground - there are still loads of previously marked out "roads" and building locations visible all around to show what a huge endeavour this had been intended - however ignore any diversions and simply keep straight ahead as the track goes steadily up a rise to a crest. Several hundred metres before the top of the crest note another track on your right going in the same direction, walk over and join this and continue up the crest on this fresh track. As you top the crest you will see some very large dumper trucks in front of you in the distance - this is a gravel excavation site and is where the track ends - when you get here bear right and continue round to find a main track which the lorries are using - carefully follow this down avoiding getting run over if possible though the lorries do drive very slowly. Part way down the track look to your left and note some red and white marker poles - make your way over to them where you will find a tarmac road.
Turn left along the road (you can fortunately walk off the tarmac surface on a sort of track) - follow this road as it goes up and then round to the right following the base of Montana Roja - note as you go down the road towards Playa Blanca (before the houses start) there is a track on your right which is a way to walk up to the crater. Depending on where you want to end up in Playa Blanca either go straight down the road to the old Main Road or just after the houses start you can turn right at the cross roads and this will lead you down to the harbour.

Playa Blanca - Papagayo coastline This 17.5km walk starts off in Playa Blanca and heads out along the coast now contained within Monumento Natural de Los Ajaches which means the area should be protected from building. The walk visits probably the best beaches on Lanzarote but also manages to take in quite a horrible one - Playa de las Coloradas which is suitably dominated by a huge lump of hotel.From Playa Blanca harbour walk along the sea-front promenade passing Playa Dorada and come to the new marina - this has been well designed with lots of shrubs etc. and pathways which criss-cross small wooden bridges to make it a very pleasant walking area. Continue on the path through houses and then walk up the sloping pavement to the castle - Castilo de las Coloradas. From here the path continues down to the Playas de las Coloradas black stony beach and the lovely view of the monster hotel in front of you. Walk along the beach to the other end and here you have to scramble up the small cliff-side to get back onto the path (we found it easiest to go up on the side immediately against the hotel fence and use that fence as a support.).
From here pick up the cliff path and then literally go to each beach in turn starting with Playa Mujeres - a really lovely beach and well used by nudists. Note most of the beaches along here do not have any facilities - the only exception is one of the furthest beaches along called Papagayo which does have a restaurant. From Papagayo walk on out to the headland and then following the coast you come to Playa de Puerto Muelas which is apparently the official nudist beach though it seems most beaches along this part of the coast can be used by nudists or not depending on personal preference.

What we did note at this beach was that a large area seems to have been set out as if for a camp site but there was no information around about this -- might be worth checking out should you want to go to Lanzarote on a camping holiday.

Continue along the coast as far as you want to and your feet think they want to. There is a nice little barranco at El Pasito which has a small stony beach at the end and lots of shrubs and flowers growing on it's sides; we ended up at another much larger barranco at Baja Complida which was also quite interesting to explore. From here it was time to start back - you can re-trace along the coast but it is quite a long way - instead cut across westwards inland to pick up and then cross a vehicle track - heading back more directly towards Playa Blanca.

Once you can see the horrible hotel at Playas de las Coloradas head for this - just outside the hotel area go round it on the right using a marked path since scrambling down the cliff back onto the black beach is pretty difficult. It is then simple to get back onto the coastal promenade and walk back into town.

Playa Blanca Crater (Montana Roja) Quite a few people staying on holiday at Playa Blanca take a stroll along the coastal path and then divert inland to have a walk up into their "local" crater - you don't need any special clothing usually, just reasonable footwear. Also there are not any particular vertigo implications once up there since the crater is not that high, the path is quite wide and the sides slope easily rather than steeply. Our walk did not go the normal way since on the way back from another walk we noted a track heading up towards the crater and decided to do it this way instead.
This is only about 3.7kms there and back so we decided to walk it one morning as a "leg warmer" before going off to do a much longer walk elsewhere. Take the old road out of Playa Blanca (towards the Salt Pans) but after a short distance take the first (proper) road off to the left going into houses, follow this road on up passing through and by all the houses and then just after the brow of the hill there is a track going off to the left - there is quite a bit of parking available just here - [N28°52'43 W013°51'06].
The walk is quite simply a question of wandering up this nice zig-zag path til you reach the Montana Roja - from here you can then meander round the top lip of the crater and also walk into the centre if you wish. There are good views of Playa Blanca and also the lighthouse and the coasts from the top - also you can see the hills around Femes which might just tempt you to have a harder walk up the (sometimes) visible aerials high above Femes. Return back the same way if your car is parked as above, otherwise if you wish you can walk back down into Playa Blanca by taking the fork to the right - it cannot be missed because their are so many people coming up and down this way.

Yaiza, Femes, Salinas de Janubio and Uga to Puerto del Carmen - Lanzarote Holiday Walks.

Yaiza - Femes - Yaiza Dreaded aerials/transmitter sites. Once spotted - and of course they are always really high up on a hill or mountainside - there really is no choice but to go and walk up to them. The aerials (608 metres) above Femes are visible for miles around in the south of Lanzarote and this very enjoyable - reasonably strenuous - but not too complicated walk which starts and returns at Yaiza is around 13.5kms. It should be noted that it can be extremely windy once you climb up to the ridge and if the weather is quite windy down in Yaiza it may well be quite hazardous to try this walk since although track you do cross a narrowish ridge which seems to act like a wind tunnel in the area where it's height dips. We were up there one day and could hardly stand up against the wind - and when the frequent gusts hit us it was very very difficult (in fact we decided to give up). The other point to note is to check if there is low cloud around, the aerials and upper parts of the area can be blanked out and therefore again pick another day for the walk.
The walk involves a 7km constant upward climb to the masts - always on a wide track (so no vertigo implications), a walk back down on a zig-zag to Femes, a walk on a really nice path followed by a quite steep but short climb back up to the ridge and finally a wander back down part of the original track into Yaiza. Start the walk from the church and take the La Degollada road out of Yaiza, just on the outskirts of the village you come to fields and also a road going off sharp left, take this road as it goes between houses on it's left and fields on the right - after about 500 metres the road crosses a junction and then becomes a track.
Continue on up this track to reach a ruined windmill on your left and a 3-way track junction - take the right hand track as it continues to climb up to the ridge. Later just after a stone ridge the track forks - stay on the right hand side and simply follow this main track to the now visible aerials.

Once up at the site the views are fantastic with the saltpans, Timanfaya and lots of craters and cones all clearly visible. On the far side of the aerial buildings there is a path dropping down to a cave house - but going down to this is a waste of time since all that is there are two locked wooden doors. Returning down the track from the aerials take the right hand track which zig-zag's you down towards Femes - at a track junction go left and at the next track junction turn right and loop on down to eventually a tarmac road ending up on the main Femes road.

Once at the main road turn left and walk out of Femes - just after leaving the village and the last houses there is a double road junction on the left - continue with a stone wall on your left and as you get to the end of the wall a track goes off to the left - this track skirts the back of the fields and eventually becomes a really nice small rocky path. Follow this path as it heads towards two trees halfway up the hill - the path is marked with cairns once it leaves the field edges.
Just stay on this path as it eventually climbs back up to a ridge. Now for a nice surprise - join a main track and turn left to walk up an awfully steep track of only about 100 metres but wow... as the track sort of flattens it bears right to arrive back up at the stone ridge (mentioned above on the outward trip). Turn right and simply retrace your steps down into Yaiza.

Salinas de Janubio to Punta Gorda This straightforward walk is pretty well flat and gives the opportunity to explore lots of coves and small inlets, and also to watch the sea crashing in on the coast - maybe it's difficulty lies in the distance (around 17km there and back) but also because underfoot you are quite often walking on small rocks which does tend to start hurting the soles of your feet after a while - our feet were certainly a bit sore by the end of the walk even though we had small walking boots.

Park in the large car park above the beach at Salinas de Janubio then head across the very black sandy beach to the small car park on the other side. Here you will find a path which almost immediately forks - take the lower path and continue along following the coast until you eventually arrive at a track. Continue in the same direction on the track and just keep going along the coast - quite soon arriving at the desalination building. Here the track has collapsed into the sea so you need to walk to the left and then round the de-salination plant to then pick up the track again.
The enjoyment of the walk is in leaving the track and just walking as close to the sea as you can - there are huge rocky inlets and rock pools etc. to have a look at - and in places (when the sea is rough) the way the waves crash in is really spectacular. The walk ends at Punta Gorda - which is where the rotting Atlantic del Sol exists but obviously you can opt to return sooner or continue on a while further if you wish - you can of course keep going to the lighthouse and ultimately Playa Blanca if you are doing a one way trip.
Having walked tightly around the coastline going, we opted to pick up the track and walk it back to Salinas de Janubio but again this is a matter of choice. Note the track and in fact the area is littered with small rocks around here and is quite awkward to walk on.

Uga to Puerto del Carmen This is 17.5 km of really great walking - one longish continual climb plus two quite steep climbs and then a walk down into Puerto Carmen - so it could be described as strenuous from both climbing and distance points of view - especially in hot weather. Starting off in UGA by the church take the main road which goes to La Geria/Teguise - at the crossroads turn left and taking this small road you will see it changes to a track ahead of you which climbs steeply up to rejoin the main La Geria/Teguise road (this is just to avoid the big loop on the main road). Turn left and after a few yards turn right onto a grey/black track heading into the valley with fields populated with grape vine rock enclosures either side. The track goes quite gently upwards heading towards the Guardilima - which of course has to be climbed. The track slowly bends to the right in front of this little hill and crosses over a ridge and then starts going down - to the left are really good views of Timanfaya Park and La Geria road and lava. As the track goes down from the ridge the fields end and there is a more open area on the left, also a path heading left towards Guardilima. Follow this path across a rough field to a wall and from here take a now visible track heading straight up the side of the Montana - the track soon becomes a scree-path and becomes very much steeper - eventually it becomes a zig-zag which carries on steeply up to the summit.

The views up here are tremendous - you can see everywhere. Vertigo is not really an issue since at the top by going slightly to the right the area is actually quite flat and does not create a problem.
Return the same way - in fact going down was found to be far more difficult than the climb since the scree is quite slippery - so perhaps walking boots and a trekking pole are a good idea. Back at the original track turn right to go back a little way to take a track off to the left heading up towards some buildings - this is quite a stiff climb and takes you up to the top of Montana Tinasoria - really this is not to be missed since again the views are brilliant - also even if windy there are large rocks which can be used as windbreaks to have a rest/drink/picnic. From here there are two options - return back down to the main track and turn right to go on down towards the coast or continue on round the top of the hill to pick up the main track further back. It is unclear if there is right to do the latter however we saw several people ahead of us taking this route and did this ourselves as follows: From the top of Montana Tinasoria continue on the track which soon dives steeply down into a flatter area then slowly swings right and climbs back up - the track suddenly ends as you come to fields. There is a well trodden path which drops down and along the fields on the black sand (this is the part where we are not sure if access is actually ok) to eventually arrive back on the main track. Turn right and head back again up and over the crest passing the Tinasoria and then the Guardilima turn offs - and continue down towards now visible houses in front of you and the flat coastline (and to your left Puerto de Carmen) in the distance.
A little way from the houses leave the track on a sandy path on the right to then join another track - turn right down this and continue on down now with villas both sides of you and maybe like us obtain a small dog for a pet as well.

Continue down crossing a tarmac road and then about two minutes later bear left round a villa (San Miguel) - soon after this as the road bears right there is a large abandoned house on the left and also a tarmac road joins also from the left - continue on down the road heading towards the sea. Around two minutes later arrive at a tarmac road - there is a huge concrete rain-water collection area (and presumably underground reservoir?) on your left. Turn left along the road but quickly take a gravel track on the right to join another tarmac road slightly below, turn left on this and follow it until the main road is reached. Continue left on the main road towards the petrol station - after around 10 minutes from leaving the concrete reservoir cross the main road to take a tarmac road opposite heading for the coast - follow this narrow road round through villas to eventually meet the Puerto del Carmen road. Turn right passing a restaurant and a gift shop and just as the main road bends carry straight on along another small road - go straight on at the first junction, at the next junction turn left and after a few yards right onto a track which goes down through a newly bulldozed gully to arrive at the Puerto Calero-Peurto del Carmen road. Cross this tarmac road to continue on a track opposite - this track winds round a little and goes through a barranco to ultimately arrive at a dead end by some closed iron gates which are on the left. But it is not a dead end - just to the right of the wall walk on a small path above the barranco to at last arrive near the sea. Now simply continue going left along the coastline and heading back into Puerto del Carmen.

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Map used: AA Island Series: no.9 - 1:50,000 and with GPS set on WGS 84
Found the AA map aligned nicely using Orzola at the Ferry mark [N29°13'24 W013°27'09] and the base of the Lighthouse at [N28°51'21 W013°52'21]

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