4. Juni 2025, 16:57 Uhr | Lesezeit: 6 Minuten
The Canary Islands are known for their beautiful beaches, guaranteed sunshine and unique nature. But they are also a popular destination for many hikers. Whether short walks or long stage hikes - the islands can be explored in a variety of ways. Sunnytrips author Frank Lehmann was on several of them in hiking boots and reveals his best tips. In part 3 we go to La Palma!
La Palma, known as “La Isla Bonita”, offers a unique diversity for hiking enthusiasts with its dense laurel forest, volcanic landscapes and breathtaking coastal paths. The well-developed network of hiking trails makes the island ideal for both leisurely walks and challenging tours. These are my personal highlights for hiking on La Palma.
Overview
- Start of the trip in Santa Cruz de la Palma
- Let's start in the La Nieves Natural Park
- Hike to the fishing village of Poris de la Candelaria
- Ruta de los Volcanes on La Palma
Start of the trip in Santa Cruz de la Palma
After a week on La Gomera it's time to say goodbye - you can already see La Palma about 90 kilometers away. The fast ferry covers the route from San Sebastian in two hours - and the catamaran takes us off to the third island. Here again the same luxury problem: hundreds of great hikes pop up in the Komoot app.
We sort out our plans in the cozy cafés of Santa Cruz de la Palma. It's worth staying here for two nights. Centuries-old architecture, cobblestone streets, small museums and a fine black beach. Every now and then a cruise ship unloads its visitors into the old town for a few hours, but the crowds quickly disappear again. Then the Canary Islands city shows itself as a lively and authentic place that does not belong to tourists but to the Spaniards. Three tips
- Visit the Maritime Museum, housed in a replica of the Santa Maria, Columbus' sailing ship.
- Drink the fresh sugar cane juice in the Mercado Municipal.
- At the Plaza de España, don't just admire the town hall from outside, but go inside and explore the historic halls.
Let's start in the La Nieves Natural Park
Enough rested, we drive to the northeast to the La Nieves Natural Park. The Los Tilos Biosphere Reserve attracts with huge forests. The Loorber forests are protected and steam full of moisture. A third of the island consists of forest and around the municipality of Los Sauces you are not only surrounded by banana plantations, but above all by extensive virgin forests.
If Los Tilos is closed due to bad weather, the hike from La Galga is just as beautiful. Through the deep green forest we go up to the Mirador de Somada Alta. It takes us four hours to cover a 12 kilometer route and a 400 meter difference in altitude. There is also a tiny visitor center in La Galga where you can get exciting information. “What are your two favorite hikes on the island?” I ask the employee there. Sure, first she recommends the hikes in the Caldera de Taburiente National Park. But her insider tip is to walk away from the hordes and explore parts of the GR 130 Camino Real de las Costa long-distance hiking trail in the north. There it is lonely and spectacular, always along the cliffs on the rough Atlantic. My personal two tips for hiking in the north of La Palma: free swimming in the sea swimming pools Piscinas de La Fajana and El Charco Azul. It's also worth visiting the Parque Arqueológico El Tendal museum - there are exciting guided tours on the history of the indigenous people.
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Hike to the fishing village of Poris de la Candelaria
Unfortunately we don't have the time for long-distance hikes and so today we only have the 5-hour hike to the village of Cueva de Poris de la Candelaria. We start in Tijarafe and from there we go 650 meters down to the Atlantic and later up again, because there are no buses here. Poris de la Candelaria is a tiny fishing village in a huge, storm-tossed cave. Smugglers and pirates used to live here.
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Then we go to the Caldera de Taburiente National Park. A huge, semicircular erosion crater with a circumference of 28 kilometers awaits us there. A must is the hike deep down in the crater in the Barranco de las Angustias to the Cascada de Colores waterfall. That's what we were told, but we couldn't get in: again the path was closed due to heavy rain. But the alternatives are countless. We drive up to the Roque de los Muchachos summit at an altitude of 2,426 meters in a rental car. Here you can wonderfully walk along the edge of the crater to Pico de la Cruz and have breathtaking views into the depths.
Ruta de los Volcanes on La Palma
But my absolute favorite is the Ruta de los Volcanes - an 18.7 kilometer long high-altitude hiking trail that leads over the Cumbre Vieja mountain ridge. We start at the Refugio del Pilar, then we hike high above the clouds. The route continues along numerous volcanic craters to the village of Fuencaliente. You can spend an overnight stay here and then go to Volcán de Teneguía. If you want, you can also have a lazy day at the beach and go to Puerto Naos to the black sand beach. We decided against it and instead put on our boots and walked through the volcanic landscape down to the salt flats of Fuencaliente. The famous Flor de Sal is promoted there. The two lighthouses on site are a wonderful photo opportunity. Buses also run regularly from there, making the journey back easy.
ZUM PRODUKT
There are good flight connections back to Germany from Santa Cruz. The three weeks are over and home is calling. So what was the most beautiful and best hiking island – Tenerife, La Gomera or La Palma? My answer: all three! Lonely gorges, bizarre volcanic landscapes, steep cliffs, mystical cloud forests and enchanting villages. You can find that on every single one. If you appreciate a little more hustle and bustle and very high mountains, you should go to Tenerife. La Gomera is more charming and relaxed. And La Palma deserves its nickname: “La Isla Bonita”, the beautiful island that enchants everyone.
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