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Escape to the Hills

Posted on 09. Jan, 2010 by Andrea in Travel

Hands up everyone who’s sick to the back teeth of sub-zero temperatures. Okay, now keep your hands up if you resolved to get fitter in 2010.
Right, I’ve got the perfect escape plan for you…

Just 4 flying hours from a UK that seems to have slipped into a second Ice Age, the Canaries are currently enjoying average temperatures in the mid 20s (70s Fahrenheit), six and a half hours of sun a day, and daylight to near 7pm.
So it won’t come as much of a surprise to discover that a sizeable percentage of the UK is already booked to make their escape to these idyllic islands and hotel beds are as scarce as gritting salt.
But what few people realise, is that there’s a whole lot more to the Western Canary Islands than just sun, sea and sand and if you choose to stay even a short distance away from the coast, you can still find vacancies.

When it comes to idyllic winter sun walking destinations, La Gomera, La Palma and, surprisingly, Tenerife take some beating.

La Gomera
Second smallest of the Canary Islands, La Gomera lies just 28 kilometres off the coast of Tenerife but in that distance you travel back at least fifty years.
Shaped like a tablecloth that someone has pinched in the centre and raised above the table so it hangs in folds, the island is carved into deep ravines that run from its centre to the coast making driving a time consuming affair and walking an ever changing vista of rugged highs and lows.
Well signposted and informative trails matrix the entire island from its coast to its UNESCO protected rainforest of Garajonay 1,487 metres above sea level. Ancient rainforests, enchanting lakes, woodland waterfalls and rocky coastlines set into a lush, tropical landscape make La Gomera a walker’s paradise.

Stay: Rural Hotel Tamahuche sits at the foot of Roque Cano in Vallehermoso, the heart of walking country. Polished wooden floors and beamed ceilings in a beautifully restored traditional house. Double rooms from €71 per night (€51 for singles).

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La Palma
Known as the Isla Bonita (beautiful island), La Palma is one of the least known islands to the UK market and yet is, in my opinion, the most beautiful. If La Gomera is the rugged macho element of the archipelago, La Palma is its softer, more feminine side. The island’s capital of Santa Cruz de La Palma is a perfectly preserved Colonial town with narrow cobbled streets and carved wooden balconies above a surprisingly sophisticated collection of shops, bars and restaurants.
The entire island is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve where over 744 species of wild flowers bloom amongst the bananas, vines, tobacco, almonds and tropical fruits and through which more than 1000 kilometres of hiking routes weave their scented way.

Stay: In the La Fuente Apartments in the heart of Santa Cruz de La Palma. Ask for a room in the old house. Apartments from €37 per night.

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Getting there: Naviera Armas and Fred Olsen run ferries daily from Los Cristianos on Tenerife to La Gomera and La Palma.

Tenerife
Away from the popular image of overcrowded beaches and Pina Colada, the northeast of Tenerife is home to the Anaga Mountains where ancient laurisilva forests, survivors from the Ice Age, play host to dramatic ravines and swirling clouds. Tiny hamlets cling to the valleys like shipwrecked mariners to a lifebuoy and small communities still inhabit caves. In the north and west of the island scented pine forests swathe the hills, carved by narrow trails with track-stopping vistas and carpets of sub-tropical flora and at the centre of the island a 10 kilometre wide crater plays host to the planet’s third largest volcano, Mount Teide. Up here with the Gods, you’re not just walking on air; you’re walking above the clouds

Stay: Perfectly placed for exploring the interior and the north of the island, La Orotava is Tenerife’s most beautiful town and the Rural Hotel Victoria is a gem in its crown. Double room with breakfast from €98 per night.

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Getting there: Monarch flies daily to Tenerife South from all major UK airports from £44 one way – once they’ve de-frosted the runways.

Happy Trails!

Tags: flights to Tenerife, hiking holidays, Online dating, walking on La Gomera, walking on La Palma, Walking on Tenerife, winter sun, winter sun getaways

Andrea Montgomery

Freelance feature/travel writer and author of 2 travel guides, Andrea is a compulsive blogger and Tweeter with an annoying tendancy to behave like Head Girl (presumably because she never got to be one).

Andrea - has written 19 posts on Sparkle in my life. Contact the author

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