What to see in Fuerteventura: Milan Bez Mapy’s 8 picks

Fuerteventura divides opinion, so my advice is to go and see it for yourself. A week there was enough for me. It’s worth going mainly for beaches like Cofete and Laguna de Sotavento, the dunes near Corralejo with a trip to Isla de Lobos, and the small towns of El Cotillo and Betancuria.

Quick factsby Milan Bez Mapy

Getting around

Hire a car. The buses ran more than half an hour late, and a full bus won’t take you

Where I stayed

Two nights each at SBH Maxorata Resort in Morro Jable (south) and Riu Oliva Beach by the dunes (north)

To the airport

Canary Shuttle transfer, about €10 per person from Corralejo; a taxi costs around €60

Pico de la Zarza

An easy climb to the island’s highest point, under two hours each way; the route isn’t waymarked

Isla de Lobos

Buy boat tickets the day before because they sell out fast; you also need an online permit to visit

What is there to see in Fuerteventura? Of the ‘main’ Canary Islands, it was the last one I hadn’t been to, and I only got round to it recently. I’d heard more conflicting opinions about it than about any other island. Some people told me it was their least favourite because it’s so dry, others that it was their favourite.

So I had to make up my own mind, didn’t I? Here are my tips on what to see in Fuerteventura on a week’s holiday, plus a few observations of my own.

Practical tips: flights, accommodation and getting around Fuerteventura

I’ve also written about the other Canary Islands, with tips on where to go and what to see:

1. What to see in Tenerife
2. What to see in Gran Canaria
3. What to see in Lanzarote

But first, the practical essentials: where to buy cheap flights to Fuerteventura, how to find accommodation, how to get around the island and whether you need a hire car, with all the useful links, as always. Let’s get to it.

Where to buy flights to Fuerteventura

Ryanair flies from Vienna to Puerto del Rosario on Fuerteventura, just as it does to all the other Canary Islands. I got a return ticket for €80 with no checked bag, because packing everything into hand luggage is no problem for me. Here’s my guide to packing into a small cabin bag.

Where to stay in Fuerteventura and how to find accommodation

Finding accommodation in Fuerteventura is no problem. Out of season, in October, I found plenty of great-value offers right on the beach, all-inclusive ones too. You basically have three main areas to choose from: the south around Morro Jable, the middle of the island near the airport in Caleta de Fuste or the far north in Corralejo.

If you want to get away from it all, try El Cotillo. Personally, I liked Corralejo best, but it has one drawback. If you have a hire car and want to explore the island, you’ll spend half your holiday behind the wheel. Fuerteventura is the second largest of the Canary Islands (only Tenerife is bigger), and it’s long and narrow, so allow for the distances.

One solution is to split your stay between several parts of the island and move on every two nights or so. That’s exactly what I did. Down in Morro Jable I stayed at the SBH Maxorata Resort, right on the beach.

In Corralejo I chose the Riu Oliva Beach Resort, which isn’t in the town itself but by the beach and close to the dunes. From there, Corralejo is an hour’s walk or a few minutes by bus.

Getting around Fuerteventura: do you need a hire car?

HIRE A CAR. I’m putting it in capitals because Fuerteventura is the only island of them all where I had serious trouble getting around. The buses here run more than half an hour late and very infrequently. If a bus is full, it won’t take you, and the next one comes an hour later. It’s a big island with poor public transport, so factor that in and hire a car.

If you’d still rather not drive, download the Moovit app, which also works on the other islands and finds bus connections for you. In my experience, though, it isn’t reliable here on Fuerte. If you want to use the buses, go to the official website, find your route and check when it leaves the first stop. Then work out in your head roughly when it will reach the stop you need. It’s all a bit of a farce. Some towns also have scooters, which I hopped on now and then.

Fuerteventura airport transfers: my tip

Since you can’t rely on the buses here, I’d book a transfer to and from the airport. I’ve had a very good experience with Canary Shuttle. I paid about €10 per person from Corralejo to the airport, and the same the other way. A taxi, for comparison, costs around €60.

Fuerteventura beaches and nudists

My beach tips for Fuerteventura are below, and I can confirm what people say: this island has the most beautiful beaches in the Canaries. Golden sand, small waves and a gentle, shallow slope into the sea. Bear in mind that nudism is widely tolerated here, so you’ll find nudists everywhere, not just on the nudist beaches.

Tip from Milan If you’ve never seen a black sand beach, Tenerife has the most of them. But Fuerteventura has a well-known one too, called Ajuy. It’s worth the trip.

Here are some trips and tours in Fuerteventura:

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Things to do in Fuerteventura: 8 places worth your time

1. Hiking up Pico de la Zarza
2. Around Morro Jable
3. Cofete Beach
4. Laguna de Sotavento
5. Corralejo and the dunes
6. Popcorn Beach
7. A trip to Isla de Lobos
8. The towns of El Cotillo and Betancuria

The Pico de la Zarza hike, Morro Jable and Cofete Beach

Fuerteventura is best known for its beaches, but it has some rewarding mountain hikes too. The island’s highest point, Pico de la Zarza, is in Jandía Natural Park (the J sounds like the ch in the Scottish ‘loch’). The park covers more than 14,000 hectares, much of the south of the island. At more than 800 metres above sea level, the summit has seriously good views on clear days. You can’t miss the Cofete and Barlovento beaches directly below it. There’s a reason I put clear days in bold.

The Pico de la Zarza hike shows you just how parched Fuerteventura is. With every metre you climb, the landscape shows more contrasts, textures and colours. Look out for goats on the way up: they roam free here. I went up when it was cloudy and saw nothing, but it’s the journey that counts, not the destination, isn’t it? I’d set off in the morning. It isn’t a hard climb, and it takes under two hours each way. The route isn’t waymarked at all, but you’ll find your way to the top. Here’s a link to the official car park, which is free. My photos are below. The view you’ll have to google.

I’d originally planned to go up for sunrise, but since I didn’t know the terrain yet, I dropped the idea and went after breakfast. As I said, though, the terrain is easy, and with a head torch I could have done it before sunrise too. In this part of the island I’d also visit Cofete Beach, which I’ve already mentioned, and the lighthouse in Morro Jable.

Laguna de Sotavento and the best beaches in the Canary Islands

Fuerteventura has more than 150 km of beaches. Some are small coves with white sand and turquoise water. Others are vast stretches of sand that always make the lists of the best beaches in Spain. And it’s in the south, on the Jandía peninsula, that you’ll find two of the best beaches on the island.

One is Cofete Beach, the other is Sotavento, a beach that changes its shape with the tides and forms a saltwater lagoon. The Sotavento beaches have golden sand, clear turquoise water, high dunes and even a lagoon that forms at high tide. The catch is the strong wind that whips across Fuerteventura. But that wind is exactly why kitesurfers from all over the world know Sotavento. It hosts World Cup events in windsurfing and wingfoiling.

From Morro Jable to Cofete Beach it’s about 20 km on a dirt road. Some car hire companies ban it in the contract, or their insurance doesn’t cover it. So read the terms before you book. When you compare cars on Discover Cars, you’ll find the terms with every offer. Rather not risk the car? There’s also a 4×4 bus from Morro Jable. And I explain why car hire companies want a credit card in my article on credit cards for car hire.

Getting to the Sotavento beaches is easy. Put Palmita Pepe y Antonia, a café with an ocean view, into Google and park there. Then order my favourite café bombón, espresso with condensed milk. I pottered about and had a swim, but I’m not really a beach person.

Corralejo, the dunes, Popcorn Beach and a trip to Isla de Lobos

Corralejo is in the north of Fuerteventura, just across the water from the islet of Lobos, whose outline on the horizon is part of the town’s scenery. Boats to the islet leave right from Corralejo harbour, which also has ferries to Lanzarote. You can make a full day of it. The old town has a seafaring feel that’s perfect for a slow stroll, a glass of wine and fresh fish at one of the local restaurants.

Tip from Milan At the very southern end of Calle Iglesia there are several good restaurants with fresh seafood. I had octopus at one of them, but I’m afraid I can’t remember its name.

Stop at Popcorn Beach in Fuerteventura, just an hour’s walk from Corralejo or a few minutes by car. As bits of coralline algae called rhodoliths roll back and forth on the seabed, they become rounded and start to look like popcorn. The waves then wash their chalky skeletons straight onto the beach. Some are the size of a pétanque ball, and beaches like this are a rarity worldwide. And don’t miss the desert dunes outside the town, or the nudist beaches.

Isla de Lobos: tickets and the entry permit

Sadly, I never made it to Isla de Lobos, even though I’d bought a ticket. Some personal matters came up, so I let it go and had a quiet, relaxing day on the beach instead. I do have one tip on tickets, though: buy them the day before, because they sell out fast. You also need a permit to visit the island, which the system issues automatically. You just fill in the form on this website.

El Cotillo and Betancuria

Fuerteventura may look like nothing but beaches and sand, but it also has two pretty towns worth a visit: El Cotillo and Betancuria. One of the great things about El Cotillo is the peace and quiet and the lazy days on the beach. The favourite pastime here is finding a nice spot on one of the beaches and relaxing. If you’re on one of the lagoon beaches, get a mask and snorkel and give snorkelling a go. There are plenty of fish and other sea creatures, and the reefs that shelter the lagoons keep the water calm and pleasant. You’ll like La Concha Beach, with its fine sand and calm water.

Take a walk through the village to the Tostón tower in El Cotillo (Torre del Tostón), which overlooks the harbour and the surfers’ beach. It’s a well-known landmark and one of the few of its kind in Fuerteventura. It went up in the early 18th century to defend the harbour against pirates. From the top of the tower you get panoramic views of the area. Walk on to the Faro de Tostón lighthouse too. The Frenchman Jean de Béthencourt founded Betancuria in the early 15th century, and it remained the capital of Fuerteventura until 1834. The church of Santa María de Betancuria, once the island’s cathedral, is the most important building in the town.

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Is Fuerteventura worth it? My verdict

If you have more tips on what to see in Fuerteventura, leave them in the comments. Save this article and use it as your guide to the island. The Canary Islands are one of the most interesting parts of Europe, and I’m always happy to go back.

Milan Bez Mapy