| The seven Canary Islands —
Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, El
Hierro and Fuerteventura — form an archipelago in the
Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Morocco and the disputed
Western Sahara. According to most logic, the Canaries are
part of Africa, but they belong to Spain and their culture
is entirely Spanish. In fact, so close are they to the Sahara,
that many of their beaches are formed by sand blown over from
the desert.
All seven Canary Islands are inhabited, and all are year-round
tourist destinations, receiving something like ten million
visitors a year. Each of the islands has a slightly different
climate, according to their distance from continental Africa
and their position with regard to the trade winds. This climate
varies from mild and wet to very warm and dry (the closer
to Africa the island, the hotter its climate), but in general,
the weather in the Canary Islands is reliably pleasant throughout
the year.
Politically, the Canaries are an autonomous region of Spain,
subdivided into two provinces. The eastern province, Las Palmas,
contains Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, while
Santa Cruz de Tenerife has, predictably, Tenerife, La Gomera,
La Palma and El Hierro.
History. The islands of Macaronesia (see
below) are thought to be the source of the Greek myth of the
Hesperides or Fortunate Isles, where Hera grew her immortality-bestowing
golden apples. The Canary Islands were first referred to as
Canaria by the Romans, after Pliny described large numbers
of dogs on the islands (canis is Latin for dog, you
will remember) — the canary bird receives its name from
the islands, not the other way round. The earliest known inhabitants
of the Canaries were the Guanches, a Berber people of great
anthropological interest who were subjected or assimilated
by the conquering Castilians in the 15th century and of whom
little trace remains (the inscriptions found on Hierro and
Gran Canaria are attributed to Numidians, not Guanches, who
were illiterate). Silbo, the peculiar whistling language used
on La Gomera, was a Guanche invention.
The Castilian conquest of the Canaries was heavily resisted
by the Guanches, and took nearly a century to complete. By
1495, though, the archipelago was entirely Spanish, and Santa
Cruz on La Palma, now capital of the island and province and
joint capital of the autonomous region, became an important
port of call for Spanish ships on their way to the Caribbean
or South America. This brought considerable wealth to the
islands, where agriculture was developed to supply these ships
and convoys and the colonies they were heading for.
Culture. American (in the true sense of
the word) culture pervades that of the islands. Carnival,
for example, is Canary Islanders' favourite festival, unlike
more devout Spain, where Easter is more important. The islands'
cuisine shares many features with that of the Spanish Caribbean,
and it is normal for a Cuban restaurant in, say, Madrid to
be run by Canary Islanders.
The Canaries for Visitors. Tourism is the
mainstay of the economy, and the islands' infrastructure is
solid and well developed, and hotels, restaurants and other
facilities are usually high quality and good value for money.
Outdoor Canarias deserves a special word: nowadays, naturalists
and ecologists group the Canary Islands and others in that
part of the world, like the Azores and Cape Verde, together
as Macaronesia (not to be confused with Macronesia). They
are all subtropical or tropical volcanic islands and share
characteristics in terms of flora and fauna. In short, the
Canary Islands are particularly interesting from the naturalist's
point of view, and have no fewer than four of the thirteen
Spanish national parks.
Getting Around. Transport can be problematic
on and between the islands, and in some circumstances you
will want to rent a vehicle. Much of Lanzarote, for example,
is not well served by public transport and you may the situation
claustrophic if your accommodation is a little out of the
way. It is probably better to see one island at a time, though
it is possible to move around them if you are determined:
see under ferries,
or consider Binter
Canarias for inter-island flights.
Getting There. Package holidays are still
a possibility worth considering for the Canary Islands, but
you can do them as an independent traveller easily enough.
The low-fare airlines seem not to have picked up on the Canaries
yet, but this may be because they are already so well served
both by mainstream airlines and charter flights. Take a look
at the SPV Airline
Links page and you are sure to find something.
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