Looking at this years holiday and would like to return to the canary islands. But we would also like to try somewhere else on one of the other islands as opposed to returning to CLS on Lanzarote, just to see what else is out there.
Ideally not Lanzarote and the hotel has to have a 25m or 50m pool, a fun family pool, somewhere to run and ideally a bike hire facility. Would be nice if it had options for Full, half and self catering. If it has Self catering a shop nearby.
So where have you all been on the islands and which ones do you recommend or ward away from?
(Nothing against CLS, just the wife would like to see somewhere else)…
I haven’t been there but Playitas in Feurteventura is supposed to be good.
I was in Las Palmas in Gran Canaria over Christmas and New Year. I wouldn’t say that it was a sporting paradise as there weren’t many pools and no organised group rides that I could find.
I think Maspalomas would be better suited for triathletes, even though we didn’t like the town much.
not the canaries at all, but my wife and i spent a week last april in mallorca and had a good time. lots of good training infrastructure, good weather, good food, good riding. . .
For cycling in Gran Canaria contact Rob at Colconquerors: https://www.colconquerors.com/schedule/
He puts on excellent cycling weeks, and has all angles covered.
I wasn’t much impressed with Playitas in comparison to La Santa, regardless of the fact that it has only a fraction of the facilities, the inclusive fun vibe wasn’t there, even if there are more options for cycling.
Mallorca is awesome for cycling, Stuart Hall (https://stuarthallcycling.co.uk) has camps nearly all year long, very reasonable with good group leaders. There are smaller outfits that will do more tri-focused camps but you’ll struggle to find anything quite like La Santa.
Mallorca is a great alternative to the canaries. I love the cycling there (go there at least once or twice per year) I feel save on all roads and it has some great climbing. For locations with 25M pool I know one, called Las Gaviotas in Playe de Muro. It has a large pool for the children and great food. Not cheap in peak season.
We’ve just booked a week in Mallorca in March at PortBlue Pollentia, my wife is pregnant so laid down some ground rules about what she wanted while I was out cycling, turns out the place has an indoor and outdoor pool with lanes (although shorter than 25m I think). Really looking forward to going.
With reference to OP - I really enjoyed cycling in Tenerife. Your budget and how far you want to be from the sea will dictate what type of accommodation you get. If you’re happy to be up in the hills you’re likely to get something much more traditional.
I couldn’t recommend the town El Medano enough, it’s on the coast so great options for swimming, and seems much more ‘local’ than other resort towns which is a bit more beer swilling Brits abroad type place. Obviously that’s perfect for those who want it, but not so much for local food etc. It’s also very close to the airport. My wife and I have been a few times, and my parents go twice a year, they really love it.
The cycling is pretty unreal, but the roads will seem busier than Lanzarote. The big climb from El Medano up to the volcano crater is just lovely.
As alternatives to CLS, think about Sands Beach Resort or the Barcelo Hotel (careful as there are 2) in Costa Teguise. Sands has a 25m pool, Barcelo has a 50 m pool - I’ve been to both and prefer Sands which is (in my view) in a slightly better area of Costa Teguise with better off road running nearby. The pool in Barcelo (which you can pay to use even if you are not staying there) is nice and new but the hotel itself is used by the package holiday companies and was slightly too busy for my liking. I actually prefer the riding from Costa Teguise to that from CLS - you are closer to the mountains.
Over the years, we have tried all of the other canary islands and keep coming back to Lanza. Fuerta Ventura is ok but there is not enough choice riding, the riding in Tenerife is great if you want to ride long and climb (its either up or down) but not for timetrial type training. Gran Canaria would probably be my second choice but, for me, its a way behind Lanzarote.
Mallorca is amazing for cycling - the road from Andratx to Pollenca is my favourite ride of all time - truly special. BUT if you are going to train for triathlon, just be mindful of the time of year. From mid-april you will probably be fine but before that, its not that warm and there is a far higher risk of poor weather than in the Canaries. Pools are also mostly 25m and outdoor. There is apparently a good swimming centre (Best Swim or something like that) in the South which i havent been to but have heard good things about.