Our Gran Canaria Getaway

To be honest we didn’t really pick Gran Canaria as a destination, it picked us as it had the accommodation we wanted: self-catering but also a kids club and a kids pool with slides – perfect for a fussy four year old. We spent a week on the island, hiring a car one day and catching local buses from our base on the edge of Playa del Ingles on others. There was a lot of pool time enjoyed – which it was definitely warm enough for in late March. As we have a small child who is prone to car sickness, we avoided driving along the twisty mountain roads of the interior, although we were tempted to risk it as it looks spectacular. Instead, we drove up the coast to the capital, Las Palmas and had a mooch around the old town area, Vegueta and visited the Christopher Columbus museum in the Casa de Colon. The museum is in the lovely old governor’s house. Wandering around Las Palmas also reminded me of something that is great for kids all over Spain - most town squares seem to have a play area! We bussed the half hour to Puerto de Mogan, where in addition to the cute town and lovely local restaurants we found a perfect little beach. It’s just right for little ones, with great castle building sand and wonderfully calm water due to the harbour wall protecting it, plus the sea is shallow for a long way out. Esme loved it so much she requested a return visit the next day. She hadn’t been keen on the beaches closer to our accommodation as they were much wilder due to the wind and waves. The return visit was on the Friday, which we’d purposely avoided knowing it was market day and expected it to be busy. It must be crazy there in peak season on market days. The public bus was already full when it got to us, though another was following close behind. The markets were good for a wander but we felt lucky to get a table for lunch - we got to the restaurants soon after midday and they were jam packed compared to the previous day when we could choose any restaurant we liked. The local food is wonderful and definitely worth trying – the canarian potatoes are simple yet amazing.