Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

Whether you’re staying in Puerto Rico, Amadores or Playa del Inglés, it’s easy to get to Las Palmas and there is a lot to see, including museums, galleries and other attractions (oh, and lots of shops and bars!!) Many of the houses on the outskirts are painted in bright colours.

Advertisements

LP houses
Photo By Sergio Pixel

How to Get There

You’ll need to get the bus. Here is an up to date bus timetable for the island but the buses tend to come “within 20 minutes” or so of when they are meant to (this is Spain, after all!) There are 2 main bus terminals in Las Palmas, Santa Catalina and San Telmo. They’re both pretty central and once you’re there, you can walk or get a taxi to wherever you want to go. It’s fun to just stroll around too. The bus from the south takes between 30 minutes and an hour depending whether the driver thinks he’s Michael Schumacher or not.

If you are at the Plaza San Telmo station, there is a very good cafe right outside where you can have a coffee. There are often exhibitions at the weekend. From there, you can walk through the main shopping street (look in the side streets too for some old architecture) until you come to the library. There’s a nice tapas bar there. Keep walking in the same direction across the main road and you will be at the cathedral. If you happen to be in Gran Canaria at Christmas there are many festive displays to enjoy too.

Museums

The Canary Island Museum is interesting if you want to learn about the indiginous Canarians and how they lived. It’s open on weekdays from 10am until 5pm and weekends from 10am until 2pm. Ask for “Museo Canario” if you’re in a taxi.

The Nestor Museum is quite comprehensive too and you can see plenty of paintings and Canarian handcrafts. This one is “Museo Néstor” if you’re in a cab and it’s open Tuesday to Friday from 10am until 1pm and 4pm until 8pm, or from 11am until 2pm on Sundays.

The Columbus Museum (Casa Museo de Colón) is where Christopher Columbus once spent the night and is the current residence of the Mayor. You can see objects relating to Columbus’s passage through the Canaries. It’s open from 9am until 6pm Monday to Friday and 9am until 3pm at weekends.

Columbus Museum
Columbus Museum Photo By Frenz_69

Art Galleries and the Cathedral

The Atlantic Centre for Modern Art (Caam-Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno) is popular. It is open from Tuesday until Saturday from 10am until 9pm and between 10am and 2pm on Sundays.

Caam Gallery
Atlantic Centre for Modern Art Photo By Frenz_69

The Santa Ana Cathedral is worth a visit, whether you are interested in the architecture or the art inside. You can visit between 10am and 5pm from Monday to Friday or 9am until 2pm on Saturday.

Cathedral
Cathedral Photo By Ahisgett

Shopping

If you fancy some shopping, there are several big shopping centres, including El Muelle, Las Arenas, La Ballena and Siete Palmas. El Muelle and Las Arenas are probably the best for clothes and Siete Palmas is good for electrical gadgets.

Eating and Drinking

You can’t walk very far without coming across a bar (most of which serve tapas), cafe or Canarian cooking restaurant in Las Palmas, so don’t worry – you won’t go hungry! You’ll find the food and drink much cheaper than in the touristy South too.

Advertisements

You might want to spend the day in Las Palmas and do some shopping or see a couple of museums but, to be honest, you could spend several days up there because there is plenty to enjoy!

Advertisements

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *