The Canaries

Tenerife

The largest of the Canary Islands, Tenerife has such a variety of beaches you could be hopping across a black beach one day, sunning yourself at lunch after strolling around Santa Cruz de Tenerife the next and enjoying golden sands in blissful seclusion another. The south of Tenerife Island is home to the modern party resorts but El Puerto in the north is the oldest of them all. Bathing at the Lago Martianez spa pools is a huge draw, along with the botanical gardens and historical buildings. To delve further into the island's history head to the UNESCO heritage site of San Cristóbal de la Laguna on the outskirts of the capital. Mount Teide and the national park take up the centre of the island and offer amazing views and weird landscapes.

Fuerteventura

Fuerteventura is the oldest of the all the Canary Islands and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, as well as having the largest number of beaches and sand dunes within the Canaries. Corralejo's sand dunes stretch for seven km and are both a nature reserve and a great place for some extreme sports with dune buggies and quad bikes both very popular. The winds that have created these dunes make windsurfing and surfing very important to the area too, with the calm beaches of the north referred to as 'lakes' by locals, and used for scuba diving by enthusiasts. The rocky centre of the island just begs to be explored by 4x4s or for sensory exploration try the local Majorero goat cheese.

Gran Canaria

An island of two halves, Gran Canaria's volcanic centre splits the island in two, creating different climates and atmospheres. The south coast is all about the resorts whilst the north is much wilder and popular with windsurfers and hikers. Maspalomas offers the best nightlife in the Canaries whilst the capital of Las Palmas is the largest city in the archipelago and is alive with a cafe lifestyle, restaurants, museums and colonial architecture. There are no fewer than six nature reserves across the island where you can see the astonishing biodiversity of the region. To see a more traditional way of life the village of Puerto de Mogán or the lovingly restored town of Aguïmes are perfect.

Lanzarote

As the island with the best weather, Lanzarote has long been a favourite with holidaymakers. There are plenty of beaches and resorts that can easily take up your time, as well as a wide variety of water sports on offer from surfing to scuba, but there's more to the island which is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Venturing into the interior, Timanfaya National Park is the heartland of this biodiversity, a strange land best seen by coach tour. Lanzarote is famous for its rock formations from volcanic eruptions and a former resident, Cesar Manrique has used these features across the island to create unique attractions such as a stunning house and a concert hall inside the lava bubbles.

La Palma

Nicknamed the Beautiful Island, La Palma has a great mix of friendly and lively towns, breathtaking scenery and hiking trails for getting away from it all. The centre of the island is dominated by the Caldera de Taburiente volcano and the surrounding mountains, with the Cumbre Ridge running through to the south, so there are plenty of dormant volcanoes to take it. The capital of Santa Cruz de la Palma is a beautiful and lively town with great architecture that lets you in on the history of the island. And in San Pedro there is even a music venue that attracts international acts so you can combine history, music and nature in La Palma.

La Gomera and El Hierro

The two smallest of the Canary Islands, La Gomera and El Hierro's charm lies away from their rocky shores. La Gomera is well-known for Garajonay National Park which takes up much of the heart of this island. The walking paths that cross the island continue to the top of the hills in this park where semi-tropical forests have taken over. Both islands have a wide range of hiking paths based on the mule tracks that used to be used to ferry items across the wilderness. On El Hierro a special pilgrimage route called Camino de La Virgen is one of the most popular walks. The grand plan for the Canaries is to create a walking circuit that takes in all seven islands.