Transport
Very well organised. Pick up right on time. Went right into the mountains and plenty of stops to stretch the legs. Lunch was waiting for us and was excellent with sangria, water , beer all included. Our guide was Annika and so interesting and we had an excellent driver on high twisty roads.
Villages, viewpoints and volcanic rocks dot Gran Canaria's jagged spine. This tour weaves its way through some of the island's most dramatic landscapes, stopping along the way to visit gems such as Teror, Tejeda and Fataga. David, one of our local guides, says, ‘The legend of the apparition of the Virgin Mary in Teror still intrigues me. It was in 1481, amid the Castilian conquest of Gran Canaria, and it helped change the island's destiny.'
And Teror is where your adventure begins. Strolling past the balconied townhouses of Calle Real de la Plaza towards the mountain-framed basilica of Our Lady of the Pine is one of the defining Gran Canaria experiences. A scenic mountain drive away is Tejeda, which is a bit of a looker itself – red-roofed, whitewashed houses sprinkled on the slope of a valley. David adds, ‘Every time there's a list of Spain's prettiest villages, Tejeda is near the top. Its setting is unbeatable.'
There's also a pit stop at Las Tirajanas viewpoint to admire a vast volcanic caldera, as we make our way to Fataga to eat. A lunch made from locally sourced ingredients will be served in a family-owned restaurant. After a little amble through the town, we'll visit a nearby aloe vera plantation to get the lowdown on its medicinal properties. Generations of islanders have used extracts from the plant for skin burns.
