Escape to the warm shores of Lanzarote
WHEN the clocks go back at the end of October and Britain sinks into that grey, wet and chilly misery that we call winter, the siren call of winter sun and warmth grows ever stronger.
Good news, then, for those of us for whom bracing walks through the wind and rain hold only limited fascination – Luton-based Monarch Airlines have just increased their winter flight schedule to Lanzarote from one to three flights a week.
With fares from 114.99 return and Luton Airport a convenient 30-40 minutes down the M1 – even allowing for the joys of the motorway widening project – it makes the high-70s-to-low-80s temperatures of the warm and welcoming island of Lanzarote a tempting proposition indeed.
And an all-too-brief three-day trip to sample the Lanzarote experience confirmed to me that even this short period of time is enough to recharge the batteries and leave you better equipped to face the rest of the Brit winter.
Lanzarote is actually quite a long way away – the Canaries of which it forms a part are 1,000km from the coast of Africa and 1,000km from Spain – which explains why it's so warm at this time of year... and makes that Monarch return fare seem a pretty good deal.
It's a four hour-plus flight to the island's capital of Arrecife, but an extra-legroom seat, a surprisingly good in-flight meal and a movie help to pass the time quite painlessly – and when you step out of the plane you are almost literally in another world.
I'd never visited Lanzarote – or any of the other islands that make up the Canaries – before, and it really is an extraordinary experience. The island is volcanic – and quite recently volcanic at that – and the landscape is quite surreal.
Almost treeless, apart from a scattering of palm trees, the interior of the island is ringed with volcanic peaks and covered with black volcanic ash or petrified lava from the last major eruptions, back in the 18th and 19th centuries – and it's not surprising that, before the days of CGI, film-makers were regular visitors to the island when seeking lunar or prehistoric landscapes.
Indeed, the Timanfaya National Park in the south west of Lanzarote is the island's main natural attraction, and makes a spellbinding excursion. Your tour bus will wind its way up, down and around the most tortured, barren landscape you'll see this side of Mars, and you can even stop and see – and feel – how close the volcanic presence still is to this day.
Apparently the volcano probably will erupt again – but don't worry, the experts say that the next round of eruptions will give many months and probably years of advance warning, so there's plenty of time to get out of the way...
While the volcanoes and their after-effects are a dominating presence on the island, most UK visitors are probably in Lanzarote primarily for the sun, sea and sand... and there's plenty of all three to go round, even at this time of year.
If Brit bars and chips with everything is your bag then head for Puerto del Carmen, which has all these and more in abundance – you'll even find a Lineker's Bar, where Gary's brother will make you feel at home – but we headed for Playa Blanca, the island's southernmost resort, which is decidedly more appealing and in places significantly upmarket.
The Marina Rubicon, at one end of the resort, is the most upmarket bit of all – a carefully developed and visually beautiful marina full of tinkling yacht masts and backing on to designer shops and chic waterside restaurants.
Best of all, set back behind the marina is the fabulous five-star Gran Melia Volcan Hotel, where our group was fortunate enough to stay.
The Volcan, one of the top hotels on the island, has, as the name suggests, a volcanic theme – from the outside the enormous atrium of the hotel looks like a small volcano, Lanzarote-style. Inside, it drops down a spectacular three floors with waterfall and lush tropical foliage – a startling and impressive welcome to the hotel.
Rather than one big building, the Volcan is made up of an array of smaller ones, linked together on various levels by walkways and water features – from the marina it looks like a small village rather than one hotel.
No less than four pools, five restaurants, numerous bars, a spa and health club and beautifully-appointed spacious bedrooms mean you could spend most of a week's holiday without ever leaving the hotel – which would be a pity as you would miss out on the fascinating things to see around the island.
As if five-star luxury was not enough, the Volcan has recently launched its Royal service, which offers even more exclusivity and privacy in a special area of the hotel away from other guests.
If you can tear yourself away from the delights of the hotel I'd recommend a meal in one of the many seafood restaurants that you can find in all the coastal resorts and villages.
We stopped for lunch at one such restaurant in the quiet village of Arrieta in the north of the island, where we sampled an array of seafood tapas that was simple, fresh, filling and quite delicious – and the cost? About 12 Euros a head, which was quite stunningly good value.
Great weather, great food, stunning scenery... Lanzarote really can be a great escape from the British winter.
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Weather for Leighton Buzzard
Saturday 04 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -1 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: -0 C to 3 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: West
