Family holiday in Fuerteventura

The whole family embarked on this all-inclusive holiday. I thought we grandparents would be sitting in the shade reading our books, but how wrong I was.

Fuerteventura is one of the Canary Islands.  The name means strong winds and it was the first island to emerge. It was breezy but that kept the temperature manageable. The nearest small town was Caleta de Fuste which translates to Bay of Fishing Boats and is easily reached by a promenade along the shore or e-scooter which could be picked up outside the hotel. Here you can find bars, restaurants, shops and the harbour with its tower originally built to deter pirates but is now a private residence.

There are camels rather than donkeys on the beach

The hotel itself is situated quite near the airport. It has a lovely pool which we used often as well as the table tennis. We didn’t take advantage of the in-house entertainment as we were too busy exploring the area and drinking cocktails.

A side gate in the hotel gives access to the Atlanticó shopping centre with its bars, shops and amusements just across the path and to the promenade. Immediately you see an old fortthe history of which can be seen here: The fort at Caleta de Fuste

Next to this is an outcrop with rock pools hosting all manner of marine life. Following the promenade this way brings you to a small village with a Museum of Salt.

 

A few metres to the left of the fort is a lovely, long, sandy beach, unusual for the Canaries where the beaches have black sand from volcanic rock.

Our indoor plants grow outside here with giant cacti. Public areas are planted up and tended but there is a lot of barren land where the earth is lava.

One day we took Bus No.3 outside the hotel to the largest town in the area, Puerto del Rosario. The low cost fare was a bonus and allowed us to have a good look at the area. The town has a large harbour, some interesting sculptures and a huge, indoor shopping centre with well-known shops including C&A which no longer exists in UK!

This sculpture pays homage to the Majoreros (people from Fuerteventura) who emigrated to distant shores  during hard times 

This was the centre of trading and fishing. They didn’t wear any clothes when they brought goods from the merchant ships ashore.  Well, it is a hot climate!

We took a day trip to the Oasis Wildlife Park.  The journey allowed us to see more of the island. We all loved the whole experience of seeing and feeding the animals and I enjoyed the garden area.

 

In the quiet gardens we came across this peahen and its chick

All too soon it was time to leave and return home where we landed in the pouring rain. This is the third Canary Island I have visited and for me the best.