Gran Canaria's southernmost town, Maspalomas, is also the furthest south you can go without
leaving European territory and as with all the Canarian southern coasts, is
protected by the central mountain ranges from the true Atlantic climate.
This results in the unusual number 'blue sky' sunshine days -- look north to the mountains most times to see the puffy white clouds held back
by their giant two thousand meter high peaks.
Its intensely warm blue Ocean bathes kilometers
of beaches with their splendid golden dunes and palm groves.
Maspalomas is the most popular of the island's resorts and is really a string of villages that have agreed to come together under that name. It ambles along the coastline for some twelve
kilometers or so and is fronted by one of the world's famous beaches, six kilometers of golden
sand and backed by a 'Lawrence of Arabia' expanse of sand dunes which lead to the Oasis, a protected nature reserve. This is home to over thirty resident and migratory species of birds including vultures and ospreys and much of the flora and fauna is peculiar to this island. These incredible Maspalomas dunes can reach a height of thirty meters or more and are so imposing that the town has built an observation platform from which to view them. (This is just five minutes walk from the 'Aloe' apartments -- straight down to the end of the road and through the Riu Palace public walkway.) Seen to the southwest from here is the fifty-six meter high 'Faro' lighthouse which marks the end of Meloneras and the beginning of the beach and dune area.
So starting in the west, Meloneras is a chic new promenade along a rocky shoreline offering
coffee and ice-cream parlours, huge very new but very smart hotels, a new concert hall and art gallery and at its heart, the Veradero shopping mall. A charming stroll after a beachy afternoon -- especially if you stop for a creamy frozen yogurt topped with hot blueberry sauce in one of the Italian cafes!
East of the lighthouse is the Oasis - its quaint winding bar and cafe area, the start of that
famous beach and a public bath-house -- perfect for a refreshing shower between sun, sand and aperitifs! Delightful little bungalows nestle along the banks of the saltwater lake leading down to the sea and the whole scene is totally picturesque. Fish literally leap along beside you as you
walk here.
Behind the beach proper is Playa del lngIes, separated from the Oasis by an excellent golf course and large holiday chalet areas known as Campo de Golf and Campo International. The 'English beach' as it translates from the Spanish, is the home of' Aloe' apartments and the 'downtown' area of Maspalomas. Its main street, the Avenida de Tirajana, is just thirty years old, clean and wide and aims southwards in a relatively straight line from the foothills of the mountains to the north, past the hotels, restaurants and shopping malls to the sands in the south.
On offer is every kind of entertainment from mini-golf to funfares by day and by night, more bars, bazaars, eating houses and discotheques than one could ever need. Less then five minutes walk from' Aloe' are nightclubs -- either to the left, to the right or straight across the street in the Cita shopping mall. The beachfront caters for many
watersports, skiing, paragliding and skydiving is a specialty. The promenade is a seriously long stroll and features more shops and restaurants than you can count; articles from dresses to jewellery and food from Chinese to German.
Travelling still further east brings you to San Agustin with its Casino and theatre bars and its several small
cozy beaches. This especially attractive resort shelters from the wind, nestling in its hollow surrounded by hills that slope gently down to the sea.
In Maspalomas Costa Canaria, lovers of nature and tradition will find enchanting
corners and paths, art, cuisine and centuries' old expressions of popular
culture, as only such a location so full of contrasts can offer.
Inland from the beach are more of these
villages, or suburbs, as they have become. Sonnenland is an
exclusive new residential area and just behind it, in almost
direct contrast, lies EI Tablero, an original and probably the
only genuine Canarian village in Maspalomas. With its narrow
streets, schools, church, town square and original dwellings it
is well worth a visit, if not for its several five star eating
houses.
Directly to the north of Playa del Ingles the Avenue Tirajana leads you to the dormitory town of San Fernando, tucked in amongst the mountain foothills. Many people prefer the shopping here with its huge hypermarkets and enormous selection, whether for fresh vegetables, meat, shoes or cooking utensils. This is a real town centre where all the prices are shown in the shop windows -- a great place to come if you tire of haggling.
So Maspalomas offers the widest choice of both terrain and activities and although its villages have become suburbs, they remain spaced out amongst parks, gulleys and gorges and thanks to some pretty strict town planning they will never become too close. And taxis are cheap -- between two and five dollars will get you from anywhere to anywhere in this splendid
town.
