Things to do in Mallorca & the Canary Islands

On Mallorca, Palma Cathedral (La Seu) overlooks the bay beside the old town, the wooden Sóller Train, running since 1912, crosses the mountains from Palma to Sóller with a tram on to Port de Sóller, and a guided walk through the Caves of Drach ends with a live concert on underground Lake Martel. On Tenerife, the Teide Cable Car climbs to 3,555 m on Mount Teide in under 8 minutes, Siam Park in Costa Adeje has the freefall Tower of Power, the Mai Thai lazy river and the Wave Palace, and the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife takes over the city centre with parades, open-air dance nights and the grand Coso parade. On Lanzarote, a coach follows the Route of the Volcanoes through the lava fields of Timanfaya: Montañas del Fuego, where El Diablo restaurant grills food over a natural heat well, and César Manrique's Jameos del Agua sits inside a volcanic lava tube with an underground lake home to tiny blind crabs. On Gran Canaria, hike the short trail to the rock pinnacle of Roque Nublo, then walk the Maspalomas Dunes between the palm grove, the Charca pond and the lighthouse first lit in 1890.

Good to knowTeide Cable Car tickets are sold online only, time at the top is limited to an hour, wind can delay or close it, closed non-slip shoes are required, and hiking to the summit needs a separate national park permit. Timanfaya tickets are also online-only for a fixed time slot, so arrive 15 minutes early and bring warm layers from October to April, and Roque Nublo visits need a prior reservation on the Gran Canaria Senderos website. Palma Cathedral has no tourist visits on Sundays, online tickets guarantee your slot at the Caves of Drach, the Sóller Train's schedules change by season, and at Maspalomas stay on the marked paths to protect the dunes.