La Graciosa

La Graciosa lies across a strait from northern Lanzarote and was officially recognised as the eighth inhabited Canary island in 2018, having previously been counted as part of Lanzarote. Around seven hundred people live there, in Caleta de Sebo and the smaller Pedro Barba, and there are no surfaced roads at all: the streets are sand, private cars are not permitted, and movement is on foot, by bicycle or in the licensed four-wheel-drive taxis that run to the beaches. The island is flat and volcanic, about twenty-seven square kilometres, with beaches including Las Conchas on the exposed north and Playa Francesa in the shelter. It sits within the Chinijo Archipelago marine reserve, the largest in Europe.

What you actually see

• The sand streets - a village with no asphalt and no private cars.
• Las Conchas - an exposed northern beach below the Montana Bermeja.
• Playa Francesa - sheltered water on the side facing Lanzarote.
• The marine reserve - the Chinijo archipelago protected around the island.

When to go

Year-round; the Canaries are mild in all seasons and the island is dry. Ferries run frequently and are cancelled in swell. Summer brings day-trippers from Lanzarote in numbers the island struggles with.

Honest expectations

Bringing a car is not possible and taxis are limited and expensive. Accommodation is very restricted and books far ahead. Las Conchas has strong currents and drownings have occurred; it is not safe for swimming. There is one small supermarket.

Nearby

Orzola and the Mirador del Rio are on Lanzarote; the Chinijo islets lie west.