The archipelago of the Canary Islands is located off the coast of Morocco. These seven volcanic islands are known for their beaches, cultural attractions and natural parks.

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Explore the beaches.

The island of Lanzarote has several sandy beaches and several volcanic beaches. The Playa del Papagayo is one of the island’s most famous beaches, known for its blue waters.

Another main beach is the Playa Blanca beach, located near the small town of Playa Blanca. This area is known for its beaches, where visitors will find the Playa Dorada beach to the east and the Playa Flamingo beach to the west.

In the Puerto del Carmen Old Town there are several sandy beaches. Visitors will be able to enjoy many water sports, including diving, jetskiing, paragliding and practicing snorkel.

Visit the Timanfaya National Park.

The Timanfaya National Park is one of the city’s most famous attractions. This natural park is known for its reddish sands, remnants of the explosion of several volcanoes. The lower part of the park can be explored on camelback. Higher up visitors will be able to enjoy several demonstrations of the site’s geothermal activity, including one where, after pouring some water into a small hole, a geyser erupts from the ground.

There is a restaurant that was designed by the local architect César Manrique. This restaurant, located atop a hill, is known for its grilled meats. The fish and meats are grilled above a large hole that leads deep down, and are cooked using the geothermal activity that emanates from the hole.

Tour the caves.

There are several caves located on the islands. These sets of caves were formed during several volcanic eruptions. The Cueva de los Verdes is one of the main sets of caves. Visitors will be able to tour these caves, which are one of the most extensive cave tunnels that have been explored. There are around sixteen jameos, caves, and the caves lead to the underwater section of the Tunnel of Atlantis.

Another main cave is the Jameos del Agua. César Manrique was a local architect who built some of the island’s main landmarks, including the Jameos de Agua complex, a large space used for events that has a pool bar, a restaurant and a swimming pool. The complex was built around this cave, which has an underground lake with albino crabs.

Spend an afternoon exploring the villages.

There are many traditional towns and villages on the island. The village of Yaiza is known for its whitewashed houses and ancient church, the Nuestra Señora de los Remedios. The city center is known for its colonial architecture. Near the city center there are many traditional tapas bars and restaurant where visitors will be able to taste authentic Canarian dishes, including patatas arrugadas, potatoes boiled with their skins that are served with a herbal sauce and a spicy sauce, the mojo picón. Las Breñas is another small village located nearby, and this village is known for its views towards the Playa Blanca area and Fuerteventura Island. A short ride away from the village visitors will find the Janubio salt flats, a large area with natural salt flats.travel-snapshots.comDSC_6721