 lighthouse | ||
| Maspalomas | ||
| region | Canary Islands | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | 123 (2011) | |
no value for residents on Wikidata:  | ||
| no tourist info on Wikidata: | ||
| location | ||
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Maspalomas is a resort on Gran Canaria and is a district of the municipality San Bartolomé de Tirajana.
background
The resort of Maspalomas emerged after 1960 when the south of the island was opened up for tourism. Under the name of Maspaloma Costa Canaria became the new tourist centers San Augustin, Playa del Inglés and Maspalomas planned and implemented. The place Maspalomas lies west of a peninsula, whose sandy beach with the adjoining dunes is ideal for this purpose. Over time, this place has continued to develop and has grown together with Playa del Inglés.
In this article Maspaloma is understood to mean the following districts
- El Oasis, the western tip of the peninsula with the lighthouse
- Maspalomas, something like a town center, extends west of the lagoon along approximately to GC-500
- Meloneras adjoins the coast to the west, is a more sophisticated newer quarter
- El Hornillo lies between the GC-500 and the GC-1, slightly more expensive residential area
- Sunny land, the German name says almost everything. Holiday complexes, also of a simpler type, 3 km from the beach.
- El Tablero, residential area on a hill for local employees and workers
- Campo Internacional between the GC-500 in the north, the Barranco de Fataga or the continuation of the lagoon to the west and Playa del Inglés more expensive holiday area in the east. In the south the district borders with the Campo de Golf directly to the dunes.
The district San Fernando de Maspaloma borders north of the GC-500 at Campo Internacional and extends far to the east, so it is in the article Playa del Inglés treated.
getting there
By plane
The flight from Germany to Gran Canaria takes about 4.5 hours. The Gran Canaria Airport is served several times a week from most German airports. After landing on the island, you can either take a taxi or the bus to Maspalomas.
In the street
The airport is around 35 km away and via the motorway GC-1 to reach. To Las Palmas it is around 55 km, according to Puerto de Mogan approx. 28 km.
By bus
Near the lighthouse is the bus station, bus stop Faro de Maspalomas. From here buses run about every half hour to all major towns on the island.
By boat
mobility
It is advisable to use the bus for longer journeys. For short trips (within MaspalomasPlaya del Inglés-San Agustin) a taxi is more suitable.
- bus
- The island's bus company is called GLOBAL. From Maspalomas there are bus connections to Las Palmas, to the airport of Gran Canaria and along the west coast to Puerto Rico and Puerto de Mogan. There are also buses to the interior of the island, e.g. to Palmitos Park. The largest bus stop is near the lighthouse, there are also timetables at the bus station there, and the drivers try to be punctual.
- taxi
- There are many taxis within the Maspalomas-Playa del Inglés-San Agustín holiday complex. They are particularly suitable for short trips within the city. To stop a taxi, you only have to make yourself noticeable at the roadside, e.g. by waving. There is no special sign. Most taxi drivers speak sufficient German for words like Beach or Market hall to understand. Journeys within the town cost around 2 to 5 euros.
- bicycle
- There are no dedicated bike paths within the city. You can rent bicycles, they cost from around 10 € / day, then they should also be technically perfect. Most Bike rental company also have mountain bikes and racing bikes.
Tourist Attractions
Buildings
- The lighthouse Faro on the southern tip of the island. It was built in the 19th century and is the only building in Maspalomas that is more than 50 years old.
- In the cityscape, there is a building that could be a church from the Baroque era. Far from it, it is the hotel Villa del Conde. Near the futuristic building is that Auditorium las Tirajanas.
Streets and squares
The road network of Maspalomas is determined by the roundabouts that occur frequently in Spain. In the Maspalomas area, most of the streets were named after European tour operators, which seems a bit strange, especially for companies that no longer exist, such as "Kaufhof-Reisen". The arrangement of the streets cannot be compared with German standards, as these often seem very arbitrary and confusing. In particular around the "Faro 2" shopping center, too many parking spaces and access roads were created beyond the need, so that the procedure there is almost inevitable for those not familiar with the area. In addition, the signage is often incomplete or misleading.
The quality of the road surface is very different. Main roads are mostly in good to very good condition, while the secondary roads are often bumpy patchwork carpets.
There are pedestrian paths everywhere, but they can simply be "forgotten", for example on traffic islands.
There are almost no bike paths.
nature
- Maspalomas dunes. They are world famous and have been under nature protection since 1987 after their area has been repeatedly reduced over the years. A part of the area has therefore been fenced in and is only accessible to a limited extent, which unfortunately is not taken seriously by some tourists. That is why you will come across rubbish, such as empty plastic bottles, again and again while walking.
- El Charco. The Brackish water lake between the dunes and the Faro. It is a bird sanctuary. However, it gives off a peculiar putrid smell, which does not seem to bother the numerous waterfowl that breed here and the numerous bird watchers who observe the breeding.
- Parque Botánico. Maspalomas has a botanical garden with over 500 species of plants, it is located on the Avenida del Touroperador Neckermann 1 in the vicinity of the Mirador del Golf. The well-kept facility is open on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.Price: Admission: free.
activities
The usual sports such as surfing, diving, etc. are offered on Maspalomas beach. There is also the "Holiday World", a kind of year-round fair north of the "Faro 2" shopping center.
Maspalomas Beach
The well-known sandy beach with the dunes begins right next to the lighthouse and extends in an easterly direction to the Punta de Maspalomas. He then pans under the name Playa del Inglés to the northeast. In Maspalomas there is next to the row of shops Faro I Changing rooms and showers. Just a few 100 m further on there is a sign on the beach that indicates the nudist area. Actually unnecessarily, you can usually see it a long time in advance. You can also see that same-sex couples can enjoy sunbathing undisturbed here.
Camel riding
At the Charco Camel rides through the dunes are offered a few 100 m north of the lighthouse. Two people sit to the left and right of the hump on more or less comfortable seats.
To go biking
In Maspalomas, renting a bike is actually a good idea at first glance, due to the mostly longer distances to the beach and the slight inclines. Unfortunately, as on the entire island, there are almost no bike paths. In addition, the curbs are often extremely high, so that you usually have to get off when switching to pedestrian paths. Furthermore, the pollution from unfiltered diesel exhaust gases (fine dust) is very high, especially on the larger roads, since most of the car traffic in Maspalomas consists of diesel-powered taxis and buses.
In the shopping center "Faro 2" there is a bicycle rental (Lino's Bike), but the bikes there are poorly maintained and of poor quality.
These negative circumstances are likely to be the reason why most holidaymakers prefer not to rent a bike and instead take buses to the beach or walk for miles.
Amusement parks
- 1 Aqualand Maspalomas, Ctra. Palmitos Park, Km 3, 35100 Maspalomas. Tel.: 34 928 14 05 25. The park is north of El Tablero.Open: daily, Sept - June daily 10 am-5pm, July and Aug 10 am-6pm.Price: Admission adults € 25, youth. 18 €.
- 2 Palmitos Park, Barranco de Los Palmitos s / n. 35109 Maspalomas. Tel.: 34 928 797 070. The park is located in a barranco north of Maspalomas. Animal park, plants, entertainment. Both parks can be reached from Maspalomas on line 70, from San Agustín and Playa del Inglés on line 45.Open: daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.Price: Admission adults € 30, children (4-12) € 22, online discounts.
- Holiday World Maspalomas, Avda. Touroperador Tui, 35100 Maspalomas (Maspalomas, right next to the GC-500). Tel.: 34 928 73 04 98. The Holiday World includes a bowling center with 16 lanes, an amusement park (ferris wheel, sky drop, roller coaster, etc.), restaurants, pubs, discos. Amusement park: free entry, use of the attraction with a points card (from € 5).
Sports
golf
- Maspalomas Golf (18 hole course, par 73), Avenida Touroperador Neckermann, 35100 Maspalomas (located between the dunes and Campo Internacional). Tel.: 34 928 762 581.
- Salobre Golf & Resort (North course, 18-hole course, par 72, south course, 18-hole course, par 71), Urb. Salobre Golf & Resort, GC01 Motorway, km 53, 35100 Maspalomas. Tel.: 34 928 010 104.
- Lopesan Meloneras Golf (18 hole course, par 71), C / Gánigo 6, Plaza Ansite, 35100 Meloneras. Tel.: 34 928 145 309.
shop
There are several large shopping centers in Maspalomas:
- Faro I. It is located between the lighthouse (Faro) and the Maspalomas dunes. It is actually more of a shopping street, as it consists of many small but uniformly built shops and restaurants. Here you can "have a quick meal" when you are on the beach. The shops are mostly small markets where you can buy refreshing fruit or the German-language press.
- Boulevard Faro, on the beach at Playa del Faro.
- Varadero. It's a fairly new mall. It is located west of the lighthouse next to the hotel Meloneras. Here shopping is possible at high prices. There are boutiques and jewelers, but also cafes and normal supermarkets.
- Oasis Beach, opposite the bus station.
- Playa Meloneras. With restaurants and souvenir shops on the promenade. On the upper floors there are only the shops of the well-known Spanish chains "se vende" and "se alquila".
- Faro II. It is located in Campo International on the right side of the canal. It is built in a circle around a tower. The tower is visible from afar (therefore Faro - of lighthouse derived). In addition to a large number of "se vende" shops, a few smaller shops are still open, a German bakery as well as rental cars and bicycles are housed in this center. Despite the many surrounding bungalow complexes, there is unfortunately only one supermarket that is surprisingly small and very cramped with shelves. Faro 2 also has pubs mixed with souvenir shops and arcades. Life usually only really starts here when it is dark.
- Dunaflor. Small center located between the golf course and the botanical garden.
kitchen
nightlife
accommodation
There are around 120 hotels in Maspalomas. They are spread over different "districts":
- Campo International: 70 hotels, mostly bungalows, ideal for families, medium price level, located behind the dunes 1.5 km from the sea
- Meloneras: 25 hotels, mostly apartment or suite hotels, high price level, west of the Faro, distance from the beach: 200 meters to 2.5 kilometers
- Sunny land: 20 hotels, mostly smaller all-inclusive hotels with double rooms, affordable prices, but also relatively remote (3 km from the beach)
- El Oasis: 6 hotels, oldest part of Maspalomas, high price level, directly on the beach
- 1 Hotel Club Maspalomas Suites, Avda. Touroperador Ols Wings, 1 Maspalomas 35100 Gran Canaria. Tel.: 34 928 141 678, Email: [email protected].
Cheap
medium
Upscale
- Hotel Costa Meloneras. Wellness and casino.
- Palm Beach Hotel
- Hotel El Conde
- 2 Riu Palace Meloneras
Learn
Work
security
These figures often stand in front of shopping centers or on the beach promenade:
- Carnation women: These ladies want to sell you a carnation. Usually for a price of 7 or 8 cents. You cannot give them out, so they willingly "help" you to find suitable change in your wallet. You only notice what else is disappearing from your wallet when you have to pay your next bill.
- Shell player: You should avoid, as they work with lazy tricks and you will certainly only make losses there.
- Flying traders: If you stroll along the promenades in the evening, you will come across numerous traders from Africa. They try to persuade you to talk about something, be it the Rolex or the Coco-Chanel sunglasses. This is of course plagiarism. You can buy these, but you shouldn't be surprised if the watch stops two days later and the sunglasses are scratched by the sandstorm. In addition, mafia-like gangs are often behind the smuggling of goods from Senegal to Gran Canaria. Often these goods are illegally produced in Africa using child labor. You should always be aware of this and not support these cartels with your money. At the airports they only get into trouble with plagiarism if it is obvious that they want to resell them, e.g. when they arrive as a man with a ten pack of Manolo Blahnics heels in size 36. If they just take the Rolex and Coco-Chanel sunglasses home with them, the airport officials won't mind, as it is also a significant bureaucratic effort for them to report such an incident.
health
- tap water: Is desalinated sea water, which does not pose a health risk but does not taste good. You should buy a water canister in the supermarket for making coffee and brushing your teeth. There is non-carbonated water in 5-liter plastic containers for around € 1.50.
- In Maspalomas, in contrast to some other Mediterranean countries, you can eat all the fruit and all fruit juices that you get from passing fruit sellers on the beach without hesitation. It mostly comes from the island and is fresh and well ripened. You should be more careful with raw fish and ice cream. The ice cream in Maspalomas doesn't taste that good anyway, so you should switch to fruit / fruit cocktails (without alcohol). If you buy raw fish or ice cream, you should take a close look at the refrigerated counter; if it looks unhygienic, you shouldn't buy anything here.
- Beach flagging: You should take beach flagging very seriously, as the beach is unprotected from currents. You always have to be aware that you are not swimming in a bay here, but in the open Atlantic.
- Red flag: absolute bathing ban
- Yellow flag: Caution is advised; Do not leave your children alone in the sea and watch out for breaking waves, otherwise you can quickly land under a wave.
- Green flag: bathing without hesitation; Here you can let your children into the water on their own if they can swim.
- Red Cross Flag: if it is hoisted, the lifeguard is on site and can intervene in an emergency. If the flag is not hoisted, there is no lifeguard on site.
- alcohol: Has no place on the beach. Lifeguards are authorized to take alcoholic beverages, such as a bottle of beer, from you. Having drunk alcohol increases the risk of heat stroke. In addition, you should not bathe again then.
- Medical care: Clinica Las Palmeras, Avenida T.O. Neckermann, 24 hour emergency standby, dentist, Tel. 34 928 763 366.
Practical advice
The national language in Maspalomas is SpanishHowever, most of the waiters, taxi drivers and most of the hotel staff speak a little German, so that communication mostly works.
