UltimateGuide Canary Islands
Our favourites
Teide behind the Roque Cinchado at Los Roques de García, Teide National Park

13 of the best · the Canary Islands, Spain

The Canary Islands’ Great Sights: Teide, La Laguna, Garajonay, Risco Caído and Manrique’s Lanzarote

Four UNESCO World Heritage sites, César Manrique’s centres on Lanzarote, the pyramids of Güímar and the observatory on the roof of La Palma.

Our 13 favourites, listed A–Z · Updated November 2026

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Insiders' picks

Three Canary moments we keep going back to: Teide early in the morning, lunch at a starred table on the coast of Adeje, and a day among César Manrique’s centres on Lanzarote.

  1. UNESCO World Heritage since 2007

    Teide National Park

    Tenerife·National park

    The highest peak in Spain and its lava fields, World Heritage since 2007, above a sea of clouds.

    Explore View on map

  2. UNESCO World Heritage since 1999

    San Cristóbal de La Laguna

    Tenerife·Historic town

    The first “ideal city” laid out on a grid, with churches and houses of the 16th to the 18th century.

    Explore View on map

  3. César Manrique

    Jameos del Agua

    Haría, Lanzarote·Lava cave

    The first centre César Manrique created: a lava tube with a lake of blind crabs, a pool and a natural auditorium.

    Explore View on map

The full list: Sights, A–Z

Show 11 of 15 places on a map
Neighbourhood
More areas 5

The back story 2

Four World Heritage sites and the island César Manrique shaped.

  1. The back story

    Seven islands, four World Heritage sites: reading the Canaries’ great sights

    Canary Islands·In depth

    Teide and its sea of clouds, the laurel forest of Garajonay, the cave temples of Risco Caído, the grid of La Laguna and César Manrique’s Lanzarote: the sights of the Canary Islands.

    Explore View on map

  2. History & heritage

    The Canary Islands: from the cave temples to Manrique’s lava

    Canary Islands·In depth: history and heritage

    From the cave temples of Risco Caído to the grid of La Laguna, the sugar estates and wineries, the literary societies and theatres of the nineteenth century and César Manrique’s twentieth-century Lanzarote: the islands’ heritage, told plainly.

    Explore View on map

World Heritage 5

Four UNESCO sites.

  1. UNESCO World Heritage since 1986

    Garajonay National Park

    La Gomera·National park

    A laurel forest that covers some 70 per cent of the park at the heart of La Gomera.

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  2. UNESCO World Heritage since 2019

    Risco Caído and the Sacred Mountains of Gran Canaria

    Gran Canaria·Cultural landscape

    Cave dwellings, granaries and two sacred temples of the island’s pre-Hispanic people, in the mountains of Gran Canaria.

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  3. UNESCO World Heritage since 1999

    San Cristóbal de La Laguna

    Tenerife·Historic town

    The first “ideal city” laid out on a grid, with churches and houses of the 16th to the 18th century.

    Explore View on map

  4. Towards the summit

    Teide Cable Car

    Teide National Park, Tenerife·Cable car

    The cable car that climbs towards the summit of Teide, run by Teleférico del Pico del Teide.

    Explore View on map

  5. UNESCO World Heritage since 2007

    Teide National Park

    Tenerife·National park

    The highest peak in Spain and its lava fields, World Heritage since 2007, above a sea of clouds.

    Explore View on map

Manrique’s Lanzarote 6

The Centres of Art, Culture and Tourism.

  1. Manrique’s tribute to farming

    Casa Museo del Campesino

    Mozaga, Lanzarote·House museum

    César Manrique’s tribute to Lanzarote’s farmers: patios, cisterns, threshing floors and wine presses, with his sculpture Fecundidad.

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  2. A lava tunnel

    Cueva de los Verdes

    Haría, Lanzarote·Lava cave

    A guided walk through a lava tunnel in the north of Lanzarote.

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  3. César Manrique

    Jameos del Agua

    Haría, Lanzarote·Lava cave

    The first centre César Manrique created: a lava tube with a lake of blind crabs, a pool and a natural auditorium.

    Explore View on map

  4. César Manrique

    Jardín de Cactus

    Guatiza, Lanzarote·Garden

    César Manrique’s garden of nearly 500 cactus species, sculpture and architecture at Guatiza.

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  5. Over the strait to La Graciosa

    Mirador del Río

    Haría, Lanzarote·Viewpoint

    César Manrique’s viewpoint on the northern cliffs of Lanzarote.

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  6. The fire mountains

    Montañas del Fuego, Timanfaya

    Timanfaya National Park, Lanzarote·National park

    The volcanic landscape of Timanfaya, seen from the Montañas del Fuego centre.

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More to see 2

Pyramids and stars.

  1. Thor Heyerdahl’s pyramids

    Pirámides de Güímar

    Güímar, Tenerife·Ethnographic park

    Stepped stone platforms, a garden and a museum of Thor Heyerdahl’s voyages, in the south-east of Tenerife.

    Calle Chacona s/n, 38500 Güímar, TenerifeExplore View on map

  2. One of the great observatories

    Roque de los Muchachos Observatory

    Garafía, La Palma·Observatory

    The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias’ observatory on the summit ridge of La Palma.

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Explore more of the Canary Islands

36 of the best Restaurants12 of the best Hotels12 of the best Arts & Culture1 of the best Nature4 of the best Cafés6 of the best Wine & Bars3 of the best Shopping5 of the best Health3 of the best Walks5 of the best Cars & yachts3 of the best Property6 of the best Getting Around

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