The Canary Islands lie at 28° north, the latitude of Florida, of the northern Sahara, of the northernmost edge of the tropics, and the winter sun (the 21°C in January, the 7 hours of the sunshine a day, and the temperature of the sea that never drops below 19°C) is the reason the islands have been the essential European winter-sun destination since the first charter flight landed at the Tenerife Sur in 1971. The Canary Islands, the Tenerife, the Gran Canaria, the Lanzarote, the Fuerteventura, the La Palma, the La Gomera, and the El Hierro, are the sunniest, the warmest, and the most reliable winter destination in Europe, and the geography (the trade winds, the cold Canary Current, and the mountains that rise to 3,718 metres at the Teide on Tenerife, the highest point in Spain) creates the microclimates that make the Canaries the year-round destination. Here is your guide to the Canary Islands.

Canary Islands, Warm Weather All Year

• The islands, the essential differences: Tenerife, the largest and the most varied: the Teide, the 3,718-metre volcano, the cable car (the 3,555-metre station, the view of the Atlantic, the Gran Canaria, the La Palma, and the Sahara, 200 km to the east, the dust haze of the calima, the hot wind from the Sahara that descends on the islands), and the best hiking in the Canaries (the Teide National Park, the lunar landscape, the crater, and the most beautiful walk in Spain). The beaches: the Playa de las Teresitas (the golden sand imported from the Sahara, the palm trees, and the best beach on Tenerife, the north coast, the quieter, and the essential Tenerife beach experience). Gran Canaria, the miniature continent: the island of the microclimates, the desert of the Maspalomas (the 400-hectare dune system, the sand, the sea, and the most beautiful beach in the Canaries. The walk across the dunes at sunset, the sand, the light, and the sense of the Sahara transported to the ocean, is the essential Gran Canaria experience), the green of the north (the Arucas, the Teror, and the mountains that catch the trade-wind clouds), and the city of Las Palmas (the Las Canteras beach, the city beach, the 3 km of the golden sand, the promenade, and the best city beach in the Canary Islands). Lanzarote, the island of the artist: the César Manrique, the artist and the architect who shaped the island, the Jameos del Agua (the volcanic tube, the concert hall, the pool, and the most beautiful bar in the Canaries), the Mirador del Río (the viewpoint, the view of the island of La Graciosa, and the best view of any Manrique creation). Fuerteventura, the beach island: the 150 km of the white and the golden sand, the turquoise water of the Corralejo (the dunes, the sea, and the best beach holiday in the Canaries), and the wind (the best windsurfing and the kitesurfing in Europe). More Spain →
• The weather, the year-round climate: The winter (December–March): the daytime temperature 20–22°C, the night 15–16°C, the sea 19°C, and the weather that is the warmest and the sunniest in Europe. The rain is low (the 5–10 days of the rain per month in the north of the higher islands, less in the south), and the sun, the 6–7 hours a day, is the essential winter escape. The summer (June–September): the daytime temperature 26–28°C, the sea 22–23°C, and the calima, the hot wind from the Sahara, the dust, the haze, and the temperature that can reach 35°C, is the occasional summer discomfort (the 2–3 days per episode, the air thick, and the best strategy: the beach and the air-conditioned hotel room). The spring and the autumn (April–May and October–November): the best months, the daytime temperature 23–25°C, the sea 20–21°C, the crowds are thin, and the weather is the most comfortable. The essential Canaries visit: the May or the October.
• The essential experience, the Teide by night: The Teide is the best place in Europe to see the stars: the high altitude (the 2,390 metres at the car park, the 3,555 metres at the cable car), the low light pollution (the Canary Islands have the strictest light-pollution laws in Europe, the streetlights are angled downwards, the bulbs are the sodium yellow, and the sky is the darkest in the continent), and the observatories (the Teide Observatory, the largest solar observatory in the world, and the Roque de los Muchachos on La Palma, the best night sky in the northern hemisphere). The essential experience: the night tour of the Teide National Park (the bus, the guide, and the telescopes, the Saturn, the Jupiter, the Milky Way, and the best night of the trip. ~€50, and the essential booking, the tours sell out weeks in advance). The alternative: the drive to the crater at sunset (the car, the sunset from the Mirador de Chío, and the stars that appear as the light fades. Free, and the most beautiful hour in the Canary Islands)