Prices to Lanzarote are perfect right now to enjoy some cheap winter sun!

Following all the fun and festivities of  the Christmas and New Year celebrations, the dreaded January hangover looms large! For most families Christmas consists of presents, lots of eating and drinking, and some much needed time off from work and studying. It is a time to forget the stresses of the year, and have fun with family and friends. The build up to Christmas time lasts for weeks or even months, but the big day comes and goes quickly. January arrives as a real anti-climax for many people, who realise that life for the most part will continue as normal, despite all those promises made on New Year's Eve. Now is the time when most people's thoughts will turn to holidays!

You might be thinking "how can I afford a holiday right now?" because while waistlines might be a little larger, bank balances will certainly be lighter from buying all those Christmas presents and extra food. Rather than hibernating at home and watching Netflix though, this is the perfect time to get away to Lanzarote and escape the cold and gloom of the Northern European January and February!

Right now there are some amazing deals for vacations in the sun that many families will find affordable, especially if you choose not to get sucked into the January sales. If you are from the UK it is even better due to the strength of the pound against the euro. In fact according to The Telegraph, Lanzarote is the second cheapest place abroad after Cyprus for a last-minute winter sun escape. This is according to research by Post Office Travel Money that found that a seven-night package holiday to Costa Teguise in Lanzarote including flights and evening meals costs just £268 per person!  

While temperatures have been unseasonably high across the UK this winter, you still wouldn't want to go sunbathing or swimming at the beach. In the Canary Islands you can do this almost all year round, including now in winter with average temperatures of 19-20 degrees Celsius. This accounts for why Lanzarote and the other Canary Islands are some of the most viewed holiday destinations online right now by those in the UK hoping to enjoy some winter sun, according to data published by TravelSupermarket in The Guardian. With prices so low there is no better time than now to book a holiday to Lanzarote to escape the winter gloom, get some much needed sun, and even indulge in some shopping in the sales here where prices are even cheaper. We hope to see you here! 

We would love to hear your comments below.

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Discover the Best of Lanzarote with this List of Useful Websites

Despite its relatively small size and low population, Lanzarote is an island rich in culture, events and tourist attractions. If you are here on holiday for a week you will almost certainly not be able to see everything that Lanzarote has to offer, and will need a second or third trip back. In fact many people love the island so much as a destination that they come back here year after year! Even if you live here there are different events at least once a week or more. These can be regular attractions like the biggest market in Lanzarote, every Sunday in Teguise, or events that only happen once a year. 

Teguise Market every Sunday

 Some of these are major annual events which attract people from all over the world such as the Lanzarote International Marathon, taking place this Saturday, or the Lanzarote IronMan which happens every summer. Lanzarote is becoming known more and more on the global stage as an excellent sporting destination due to its amazing year round climate. Other sporting events that attract international competitors include the ISA World Masters Surfing Championship (WMSC), and
PWA World Championship Wind Surfing Competition in Costa Teguise. 

I Love Graciosa Catamaran Excursion

 Of course Lanzarote is not just renowned for sport, there are activities and events for everyone, whatever age you are and catering for a range of different interests. This includes markets across the island on everyday of the week, many different fiestas throughout the year, music concerts with lots of musical variety from rock, to pop, to dance music and some excellent clasical music concerts held in the Jameos del Agua tourist attraction! One of the biggest music events on the island is called 'Arrecife en Vivo" in which over a series of four days (two in September and two in October), bands from all over the Canary Islands and beyond come and play live in Arrecife. This is a really popular and free annual event!

Just over a week ago there was a huge food tasting event called Saborea Lanzarote held over a weekend in Teguise which attracted 1000s of tourists and residents. The event gave the opportunity to taste lots of different tapas and drinks from restaurants, cafes and food producers from all over Lanzarote. Another great event that combines sport and food and drink is called 'The Wine Run' and this takes part every year in Lanzarote in June.

Discover Lanzarote by Bike!

 How can you find out about these events though? With so many different events and things to see and do, it can be easy to miss some of them. Here at Lanzarote Business and Residents Association we like to help out residents and tourists alike in discovering all that the island has to offer. We have compiled a list of different websites so you can keep on top of what is happening at different times of the year here.

Local institutions:  

Lanzarote Government (Cabildo):
 

http://www.cabildodelanzarote.com/

7 Town halls/Ayuntamientos:

http://www.teguise.es/

http://www.ayuntamientodetias.es/

http://yaiza.es/

http://www.sanbartolome.es/web/

http://www.arrecife.es/portal/

http://www.ayuntamientodeharia.com/haria/

http://www.tinajo.es/

For cultural information:

• The Cultural Programme of the Cabildo of Lanzarote (Programación cultural del Cabildo de Lanzarote):  

www.culturalanzarote.com

• Tourist Centres (Centros Turísticos):

http://www.centrosturisticos.com/centros/CENTROS/published_en/DEFAULT/index.html 

• Lanzarote Tourism (Turismo Lanzarote):

http://www.turismolanzarote.com/en/

 

Events  websites:

• Hola Lanzarote:

http://holalanzarote.com/en/

• Ocio Lanzarote:

http://ociolanzarote.com/en/

• Al Solajero:

http://www.alsolajero.com/

• Lanzarote Information:

http://www.lanzaroteinformation.com/

On Facebook: 

• The Lanzarote Business and Residents Facebook Page

•  Guia de Ocio y Cultura 

 There are always new websites being added and many of these sites have a presence on social media so it is worth following them there. We hope that this list gives a good idea of the extent of different events, and tourist attractions that you can find on the island. 

If you have any suggestions for other useful websites or social media accounts please leave a comment below, as we love to hear about sites to let others know about. Thanks!

You've Probably Never Seen Lanzarote Like This Before!

Lanzarote is an amazing island of contrasts. You have the bright blue ocean and sky, the golden yellow sandy beaches, and the black lava fields that cover much of the island. It is an amazing and unique place, that millions of tourists love to visit each year. Many of them come here to enjoy these aspects of the island just mentioned as it is the perfect place to come and escape from the stresses of 'normal life'. 

 

The Canary Islands are often classed as having "the best climate in the world" and a lot of this is down to the year round sun and few rainy days. Much of the interior of Lanzarote is quite a barren landscape, due to the lack of rainfall throughout most of the year. The majority of Lanzarote's tourists come from the UK and Germany, where they experience enough rain to last a lifetime in one year. It is a welcome relief to stay in a place where you can literally sunbathe all holiday.

Contrary to what some people might believe though, it does actually rain sometimes, and when it does it can be torrential. This can be disruptive, but many of the locals love the rain as it is great for the crops that are grown here. It also transforms the island, especially in the north. The hills and fields are transformed from a dull brown with little to no plant life, to a verdant green. It is quite amazing what a couple of days of rain can achieve here. 

 

Around a month ago there were several days of torrential rain which was unusual for that time of year. Since then though much of the island remains green and full of life! If you explore the countryside especially near to Haria and other towns and villages of the north you could think you are in a completely different place. You've probably never seen Lanzarote like this before!

 

There are grassy fields and hills that look like they could be in the UK or mainland Europe. It is the palm trees and bright blue sky that will remind you that you're somewhere more tropical.  Lanzarote is an amazing place any time of the year, but the rain has really brought it to life, and perhaps made it even more beautiful (if that is possible)! 

We would love to hear your comments, and if you like this post then make sure to share on social media below! 

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(Photo Credit: Simon Turkas)

Amazing Local Initiative Helping to Keep Lanzarote's Beaches Clean!

Lanzarote has some of the best beaches in Europe, and most of them are extremely well maintained and clean. Combined with what many call "the best climate in the world", and the incredible, unique volcanic landscape of the island which provides a stunning backdrop at many, they are the perfect place to spend the day. You can enjoy swimming, snorkeling, surfing, scuba diving, beach tennis, beach volleyball and a host of other activities. Alternatively they are an amazing place just to relax reading a book, sunbathing or enjoying some lunch. 

 

There are many tourist hot spot beaches such as in the main resorts of Puerto Del Carmen, Playa Blanca and Costa Teguise, and the beach of Arrecife. Due to the large number of tourists and locals who make use of these beaches on a daily basis these beaches are cleaned everyday by the local authorities. Due to this they more or less always look immaculate. Unfortunately the case cannot be said for some of the more remote and less touristic beaches. 

Playa Famara in the north of the island is a popular beach due to its stunning cliff backdrop, and also the waves and wind. The conditions there are often ideal for surfing and kite-surfing. There are many surf schools located in Famara, and if you are on the beach there you will often see groups learning to surf. Due to the windy conditions it is not always the most popular place to sunbathe, although many people have constructed rock barriers to get around this problem. 

Due to its location in the north away from the main tourist resorts, there are not so many tourists visiting the beach. Because of this you might think that the beach would be cleaner as there would be less people around to drop litter. In fact it is the opposite as it means the beach is not cleaned by the authorities as regularly due to fewer tourists. Playa Famara is an incredible beach but unfortunately if you look closely you will notice quite a substantial amount of litter. This includes bottle caps, crisp packets, cigarette butts, and many other bits of rubbish left by people who come to the beach. 

Visitors to the beach are not the only ones to blame though. Due to the strong currents that arrive on the northern shores of Lanzarote, huge amounts of micro-plastic arrives on the beaches. This micro-plastic will have come from many other parts of the world. It is bits of plastic waste like bottles, containers, and packaging that have been eroded over time into tiny bits that are floating across the world in the oceans. These are terrible for wildlife in the sea, and also make the beaches look ugly!

Micro Plastic (Photo Credit: Carlos Reyes)

Luckily there is a growing public movement to try and counteract this. Most people agree that we should all cut down on the use of plastic, especially for unnecessary things like plastic bags, and instead switch to reusable canvas bags for example. There is also a team that meets at least once a month, or sometimes more regularly called "Famara Limpia" which means Clean Famara. 

This is an organisation dedicated to keeping the beach at Famara clean from rubbish and micro plastic. They generally meet on the first Saturday of every month. This month though they met on the 14th of November. The Lanzarote Business and Residents Association think organisations and initiatives like this are very important, and like to support them in any way we can. As part of the LBRA team I was very happy to go along to this meeting with some friends. 

There were about twenty people at the meet up, each eager to go out and help with the clean up operation. We set out with large bags and it didn't take long to fill them with rubbish. In fact I managed to almost fill two large bags with rubbish and micro-plastic.

Me doing my bit! (Photo Credit: Carlos Reyes)

  I was amazed and dismayed at how much rubbish there was on this beautiful beach. After a couple of hours there was a large pile of bin bags full of the rubbish that the team had collected.

While the amount of rubbish there is terrible, it was great to see the effort of volunteers and suggest that change is happening and it's often lead by the public. This was also a good way to meet new people, and surprisingly fun!

If you would like to get involved and help out with future Famara clean-up operations then take a look at Limpia Famara's Facebook Page for all the details and dates.