Things to do in Fuerteventura

What this page is, and what it is not

This is a non-commercial guide. We do not sell excursions, tickets or transfers and we take no bookings. What it does is gather the things the island actually offers beyond the beach and the surf lesson, drawn from the Fuerteventura Tourist Board's own pages, so you can build a day when the wind or the swell says no.

It is deliberately the activity page, not the area page. For where the island's places are and how it is organised, see places to explore; for the coastline, the beaches guide; for the water, surfing, wind sports and the diving and snorkelling below it in our diving guide, and the whale and dolphin watching guide for the wildlife in the same water.

Plan around the wind, not against it

Fuerteventura's wind is the reason the island works for wind sports, and it is also the reason some beach days do not. The tourist board's own beach writing measures the calm: Costa Calma, on the sheltered east coast, has more than ten kilometres of beach where, in the board's words, the wind is discreet and the water hardly moves.

So treat the forecast as the first decision of each day, not a detail. Our surf season guide sets out the wind and swell picture month by month, and the beaches guide covers which stretches suit which conditions.

Beaches that are destinations in their own right

Some of the island's beaches are worth a trip on their own. La Concha, at El Cotillo in the north-west, is sheltered behind a natural reef, which keeps the water calm and makes it a favourite for families. Cofete, at the far south, sits inside the Jandía Natural Park; the tourist board describes twelve kilometres of shore where the sand runs from pale blond to ochre, backed by the peninsula's mountains.

The viewpoint the board singles out for Cofete, the Mirador de los Canarios, also takes in the island's highest ground. Cofete is remote, so read the practical detail before treating it as a casual beach stop; the beaches guide and the driving guide cover the access.

The interior: Betancuria and Tindaya

Inland, the tourist board tells a story that predates the resorts. Betancuria, in the island’s hills, was founded around 1404 by the Norman knight Jean de Bethancourt as the first capital of Fuerteventura and the Canary Islands; it was placed away from the sea to defend against pirates, razed some two centuries later and rebuilt. Its cobbled streets are the visible result.

Further north, Tindaya is the island's other landmark: a solitary mountain rising about 400 metres, six kilometres from the sea in the municipality of La Oliva, which the board describes as a sacred mountain for the island's aboriginal people, carrying more than 300 engravings. Both are quiet, and both reward a slower day than a beach day.

Food and local production

Fuerteventura's food is part of what there is to do. The tourist board points to the cheese dairies that make Majorero cheese from the island's native goat breed — the first Spanish goat cheese to be granted a Designation of Origin — and to the wineries and cheese shops that open their doors to visitors, usually by appointment.

The salt pans are the other easy stop: at the Salinas del Carmen and its salt museum you can follow a salt operation the board dates back more than 400 years. Check opening times and appointment requirements directly with each producer; the food page covers the wider picture.

The water beyond surfing

The island's coastline is a diving destination as well as a surfing one. The tourist board keeps a dedicated list of dive sites, and separately catalogues the natural pools where volcanic rock holds calm water at the shore — a different kind of swim from an open beach.

Ports and marinas round out the sea-based options, and boat trips run from the main harbours. Take the usual care with any shore entry: check the conditions and go with a provider who explains them. Our surf safety guide covers the risks that apply to any swim here, not only to surfing.

Walking and trails

Away from the coast, the tourist board maintains a network of paths and trails, from short coastal walks to inland routes through the barrancos and across the island's pale, dry interior. Walking is the cheapest way to see the parts of Fuerteventura that the resorts do not show, and the island's low relief makes many routes more approachable than a mountain destination.

Go prepared rather than optimistic: water, sun protection and a check of the route before you set out. The driving guide covers the protected stretches that are for walking rather than driving.

Lobos: an offshore day

Two kilometres off the north coast, the small, uninhabited isle of Lobos is a protected natural space with its own beaches and bird life. The tourist board notes that even with no permanent population there is a restaurant on the island — and that you should reserve, because the numbers are limited.

That makes Lobos a half-day trip that needs planning rather than a spur-of-the-moment crossing: sailings, a return time and what you carry with you. Our Lobos page covers the practical side, and the day trips guide places it among the other trips you can do in a day.

Museums, families and the quiet option

For a mixed group, the island's museums and places of interest, its leisure centres and its activities for children give the tourist board's own answer to a wet or windy day. They are spread across the island rather than concentrated in one town, so pair one with whatever sector you are already in.

And sometimes the right thing to do is nothing ambitious: a town walk, a long lunch or an afternoon near where you are staying. A good holiday does not require an attraction every day, especially one with a surf session in it.

How this guide chooses

Every place, figure and classification here comes from the Fuerteventura Tourist Board's own pages below. The framing — grouping the island into activities rather than areas, and the advice about pairing them with the wind — is editorial. We do not rank providers and we take no bookings. Opening times, prices and access rules change, so confirm them locally before you travel.