Top 10 Viewpoints in the Canary Islands
The Canary Islands are a volcanic archipelago off the African coast, each island a distinct landscape of craters, lava fields, laurel forests and cliffs plunging into the Atlantic. The Spanish word mirador marks viewpoints across the islands, many designed by the artist Cesar Manrique on Lanzarote. From the highest peak in Spain to a clifftop balcony 400 metres above the sea, these ten capture the volcanic drama of the Canaries.
Mount Teide, Tenerife
The summit of Teide, the highest point in Spain at 3,715 metres, is reached by cable car and a permit-only final trail. The view spans Tenerife and the neighbouring islands of La Gomera, La Palma, El Hierro and Gran Canaria, often above a sea of cloud. The surrounding Las Cañadas caldera, a high-altitude volcanic desert, is a landscape in itself.
Caldera de Taburiente, La Palma
La Palma's Caldera de Taburiente is a vast erosion crater up to 1,500 metres deep, ringed by peaks rising to the 2,426-metre Roque de los Muchachos. The viewpoint at the rim, near the island's famous observatories, looks down into the forested caldera and across to the other islands. La Palma is a designated Starlight Reserve for its dark skies.
Mirador del Rio, Lanzarote
Designed by Cesar Manrique, the Mirador del Rio is a clifftop viewpoint carved into the rock 475 metres above the sea at the north of Lanzarote. Its picture windows frame the island of La Graciosa and the smaller islets of the Chinijo archipelago across the strait. It is one of the most elegant designed viewpoints in the islands.
Roque Nublo, Gran Canaria
The Roque Nublo, an 80-metre volcanic monolith, stands at around 1,800 metres near the centre of Gran Canaria. A short trail leads to its base, with a panorama across the island's rugged interior and, on clear days, the cone of Teide on Tenerife rising above the clouds to the west. It is the symbol of the island's volcanic highlands.
Timanfaya, Lanzarote
The Timanfaya National Park preserves the lava fields and craters of Lanzarote's 1730s eruptions, a Mars-like landscape of black and rust-coloured rock. Viewpoints from the park road and the Islote de Hilario, where geothermal heat is demonstrated, frame the cones and lava flows. It is one of the most otherworldly volcanic landscapes in Europe.
Garajonay, La Gomera
The summit of Garajonay at 1,487 metres is the highest point of La Gomera, rising above an ancient laurel forest preserved as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The viewpoint from the summit looks across the misty forest and, on clear days, to Teide on Tenerife. The contrast of subtropical forest and ocean horizon is unique.
Mirador de Abrante, La Gomera
The Mirador de Abrante features a glass walkway projecting out over a 600-metre drop above the town of Agulo and the north coast of La Gomera. The view frames the town's rooftops, the terraced slopes and the silhouette of Teide across the water. The glass skywalk adds a thrill to one of the island's finest panoramas.
Pico de las Nieves, Gran Canaria
The highest point of Gran Canaria, Pico de las Nieves reaches 1,949 metres and gives a sweeping view over the island's central mountains, the Roque Nublo and, to the west, Teide rising above the clouds. The drive to the summit area passes through pine forest, and the panorama captures the dramatic relief of the island's interior.
Famara cliffs, Lanzarote
The Risco de Famara cliffs on the north-west of Lanzarote rise around 600 metres straight from the sea, with views over the island of La Graciosa and the long beach below. Viewpoints along the cliff road frame the dramatic drop and the Chinijo islands. The cliffs are a stark contrast to the low, flat lava plains of the rest of the island.
Mirador de la Pena, El Hierro
Another Cesar Manrique design, the Mirador de la Pena on the smallest main Canary island, El Hierro, looks down on the El Golfo valley, a vast amphitheatre formed by a landslide, and the Atlantic beyond. The terrace and restaurant frame the green valley and the sea, one of the most striking viewpoints on the remote western island.
Explore on the map
From the summit of Teide to the caldera of La Palma and the designed miradors of Lanzarote, every viewpoint above is plotted on the interactive map. Use it to see which require a summit hike or permit, which are clifftop balconies or crater rims, and plan an island-hopping route across the volcanic Canaries.