La Gomera
Spain · Canary Islands · 15 m
Description
La Gomera is a small, almost circular island of deep ravines that radiate from a forested central plateau down to the sea. That plateau holds Garajonay National Park, where permanently damp trade winds keep alive a laurel forest of the kind that covered the Mediterranean before the ice ages. The ravines below are terraced in stone and planted with palms, and the villages within them still use Silbo Gomero, a whistled form of Spanish that carries across the valleys. Columbus took on water here before sailing west. There is almost no flat ground and almost no mass tourism.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 3 to 7 days (optimal 5 days)
Travel season
Best time to visit: March – May
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Garajonay National Park (UNESCO)
- Silbo Gomero whistled language
- Valle Gran Rey
- Laurel forest trails of Garajonay
- Roque de Agando
- Los Órganos basalt cliffs by boat
- San Sebastián de La Gomera & the Columbus sites
- Whale and dolphin watching off the south coast
- Alto de Garajonay summit walk
- Hermigua valley and its palm groves
- Agulo village above the cliffs
- Mirador de Abrante glass balcony
- Playa de Santiago
- Playa de la Calera
- Playa del Inglés black sand
- Benchijigua and Roque de Ojila
- Palm honey and Gomeran cooking
- Terraced hillsides of the ravines
Getting there
- Airports:
- GMZ
- Seaport:
- Reachable by ship or ferry