The island of Lanzarote lies in the Atlantic Ocean just 125 kilometres off Africa’s Saharan coast and is the most easterly of the Canary Islands. It is volcanic on origin and famed for its dark sand.

For Natalie’s weekend coffee share this week I am inviting you to join us in Lanzarote for some late winter sun. I hope you will enjoy having coffee at the top of a volcano.

I must admit when my son Richard first suggested that Bill and I spend the week before Christmas with him in Costa Teguise in Lanzarote L I was not particularly enthusiastic. Lanzarote is popular with Brits who provide over 40% of their tourists. But I have heard people say that it is rather like holidaying on a cat litter tray: and as I have three kittens at the moment, I am very familiar with cat litter trays. Much of the island is covered in black volcanic ash. It has been called a lunar or Martian landscape and earnt the name Lanzagrote.

Richard visited the island earlier this year with a friend and was sure we would enjoy it. My son promised us winter sun and blue skies. He told me it was a UNESCO biosphere reserve and geopark. The Canary Islands are important as dark sky reserves and are popular with astronomers. They belong to Spain and the inhabitants speak Spanish. This was useful as Richard’s flat mate is Spanish and he can speak it well.

Our trip

I have never visited north Africa but my first impressions as we landed at Arrecife airport was that it looked very like pictures I have seen of towns in Morocco. This is largely due to a local artist Cesar Manique who worked tirelessly to protect the island’s traditional architecture. Almost all houses are painted white with green, brown or blue shutters and doors. Most are only one or two floors high.

Our hotel consisted of low white buildings round a central swimming pool. We had buffet style meals with a mixture of Spanish, British and North African dishes. I particularly liked the fish which was freshly grilled.

Lanzarote is very dry with no natural source of water. The 150,000 inhabitants get their water from two giant desalination plants. It is safe to drink but does not taste very good. The island receives an average of just 18 days rain a year. The main vegetation seemed to be cacti and palm trees. We also visited a vineyard. The farmers grow grapes in hollowed out craters in the lava.

Las Montanas del Fuego

The highlight of our holiday was a coach trip to see Las Montanas del Fuego (fire mountains). In the 18th century the volcanos erupted for six years destroying 26 villages and a third of the island’s farmland. They last erupted in 1824. Now the Timafaya national park is Lanzarote’s biggest tourist attraction. It is classed as dormant but there is still hot magma just below the surface. we watched as a guide demonstrated this by putting some straw into a hole. It immediately caught fire.

At the top of a volcanic cone there is El Diablo restaurant where visitors can watch as the chefs cook fish and meat using the heat from the volcano. The building was designed by Manrique and from down below it looks like a space base with its cylindrical shape and huge panoramic windows.

Visitors can explore part of the park by camel. Richard tried a camel ride and reported that it was great fun. It was good to know that the local authority closely monitors the working hours and living conditions for the camels.

I liked this sand sculpture in Costa Teguise. My daughter who taught English in Seville for a few months told me that in Spain the three kings bring the presents instead of Santa Claus and that the children write their letters to them. Twelfth night (January 6th) is an important day on the island with a parade.

Final thoughts

I enjoyed the holiday and was pleased to spend time with Richard. Bill is finding it difficult to walk and I was glad of his help at Bristol airport. We were able to hire a mobility scooter which enabled us to see more of Costa Teguise where we were staying. The area has one of the longest traffic free promenades in the world which makes it ideal for people with disabilities. He even tried a little bit of off roading through the cactus park. The beach had a board walk for disabled access.

It was a memorable holiday, but I did not feel I would like to live there.