Maspalomas National Park

The famous Dunes of Maspalomas is a nature reserve and a luxurious sandy beach at the same time. We will go with a real mini desert, die of thirst while traversing the barchans, and at the end we will walk out to the cool ocean and enjoy the golden sandy beach.

One of the main natural attractions of Gran Canaria is the Maspalomas National Reserve. The sand dunes of Maspalomas are a tourist Eden in the south of the island, a picturesque desert covered with pure sea sand.

The entire tourist complex of Maspalomas occupies 1,060 hectares. It includes coastal beaches, hotels, bungalows, restaurants and stores. Part of the resort of Maspalomas is a city of the same name. The dunes of Maspalomas occupy 403 hectares, their length is more than three kilometers.

The ecosystem of the national park is divided into two natural areas - sand dunes and La Charca lagoon. The climate here is special and unique. Maspalomas is protected by a mountain range, there is almost no rainfall. All year round is dry, sunny, moderately warm weather.

The dunes of Maspalomas look almost alive. Their topography is unstable, the outlines of the dunes are constantly changing, the sand hills are moved by the wind. It seems that only the yellow sand under the deep blue sky changes, while the surrounding space and time stand still.

The dunes are especially beautiful at sunset, under the golden evening sun and light pink clouds. It is impossible to call it an absolute desert - among these sands there are representatives of desert flora: thickets of broom and tamarisk - ephemeral plants with a short cycle of development, able to move with the movement of the dunes. There are also rare insects living here. Some species are found only in Maspalomas and in the deserts of Africa.

Closer to La Charca Lagoon, the sandy landscape changes to the green zone of El Oasis. There are tall palm trees and seabirds. On the shore of the lagoon there are huge prickly balls of Sitnik. During the day the birds take shelter from the heat in such spheres. In the oasis you can find the "queen" of Gran Canaria - the giant canary lizard el lagarto canarion.

In La Charca Lagoon nature has created unique conditions for fauna and plants.

During the rainy season, the narrow sand bar separating the lagoon from the Atlantic is eroded and the salt concentration rises with it. With the ocean waters comes fish, shellfish, and seaweed.

It's good to wander the dunes on foot, but you can also move through this little desert on a camel as it should be. You can rent a majestic "ship of sands" and move along the dunes toward the western end of the nature reserve.

Above the beaches of the El Oasis area rises a darkened old lighthouse Faro de Maspalomas. This lighthouse is a working. The Faro de Maspalomas was built in 1890 when the area was deserted. To this day, the Faro points the way for ships. From the 60-meter high viewpoint of the Faro de Maspalomas, you can see the dunes, the turquoise lagoon of La Charca and the endless ocean.

The dunes of Maspalomas have been designated a national park since 1994.