I was recently commissioned to write another article for the Canary Islands tourist board, this time for the island of Fuerteventura. My topic was a day trip to the Isla de Lobos.
Although it takes a couple of boat rides from Lanzarote, it was relatively easy to organise, so I thought I’d share the details with you, just in case you fancy organising your own day out in the future.
The Isla de Lobos is small island situated between Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, there’s not much in the way of visitor attractions it has a restaurant, a beach, a lighthouse and an information centre. It’s popular for walking, birding and surfing.
I used the Naviera Nortour company for the Ferry Lobos Express service, tickets can be purchased online, or from ticket booth A from Grupo Lobos at Corralejo harbour. A return trip costs €15 for visitors and €12 for residents (proof required). They have boats departing Corralejo from 10:00 to 13:00 on the hour, every hour plus a couple in the afternoon.
I caught the Naviera Armas 9am ferry from Playa Blanca. I had looked at all of the ferry schedules including Líneas Marítimas Romero and Fred Olsen however the Armas boat docked, allowing time to purchase my ticket in the harbour and catch the first Lobos ferry of the day at 10am, with a few minutes to spare.
The busy catamaran took just 15 minutes to arrive at the pier on the Isla de Lobos, whilst most of the passengers took off to the left on direct routes to the beach and lighthouse, I walked right to visit El Puertito, the cute little natural harbour used by smaller vessels. This is where the only restaurant is situated, if you don’t book the Chiringuito in advance you’ll be disappointed or have a long wait, so make sure you reserve a table before continuing. Lunch is paella or fresh fish, with Canarian potatoes, bread and mojo.
I walked the circumference of the island, passing by the flatlands of Las Lagunitas, where the waterlogged landscape is a vibrant green before climbing up to the Faro de Martiño. As the path twists and turns, I kept getting glimpses of Lanzarote, the built up areas of Puerto del Carmen and Playa Blanca holiday resorts were easy to identify, even from this distance.
At the lighthouse, take advantage of the shade on the far side of the building, there’s a low wall where you can sit, cool off and enjoy the view. From here I walked to the Montaña La Caldera, there are signposts at regular intervals informing walkers of the time required to reach each destination, which is quite comforting when you have a ferry to catch. La Caldera is the zone for birders, the stone footpath loaded with guano (bird poo) gives a hint as to the amount of birds that can be found in this area. The island is a natural park area, there is a sign for silence in this area from the 15th February to 31st July so that the nesting season is not disturbed.
Playa La Concha or La Caleta as it’s also known is popular with day trippers, the white sand and sheltered shallow lagoon makes for a perfect beach. Make sure you bring a picnic, plenty of drinks and umbrella as there is very little shade here on a hot summers day.
There’s toilets and a visitor’s centre at El Muelle, with information about the seals (lobos) that once populated the island.
The return ferry to Corralejo in the afternoon departs at 4pm or 5pm. I took the first boat back, and had plenty of time to buy a single ticket for the Fred Olsen heading back to Playa Blanca at 5pm.
Read about Lanzarote Excursions.
