THRILLGROUNDS Ground 44 · Canary Islands: Lanzarote, Fuerteventura & Gran Canaria · Spain · Famara · Puerto del Carmen · Corralejo · Maspalomas · Valsequillo
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The Risco de Famara, a 600-metre wall of rock rising straight out of the Atlantic behind the surf at Caleta de Famara

28° 05′ N · 15° 40′ W · From a jump door over the Maspalomas dunes to a buggy in the lava · Ground 44

Canary Islands: Lanzarote, Fuerteventura & Gran Canaria

Three islands, three hundred volcanoes.
None of them asleep enough to be boring.

Tenerife has its own page; this one is the other three. Lanzarote is the lava island, with the 671-metre wall of the Famara cliffs at its northern end and buggies on the volcano tracks. Fuerteventura is sand and wind – dunes at Corralejo, surf on the west coast. Gran Canaria is the one with mountains: a via ferrata up a cliff above the sea near Maspalomas, canyoning in a ravine that runs all year, and a skydive that lands in the dunes. These grounds start at 3,000 m over Playa del Inglés and end at ground level in a Can-Am on the lava.

1 · the view3 · sweaty palms5 · heart in your throat
Jump
A tandem pair under a green-and-black canopy against a blue sky (symbolic image, not Gran Canaria)

Stop 1 · Tandem skydive · El Berriel aerodrome to the Maspalomas dunes

3,000M · EXIT ALTITUDE

Three thousand metres, then the dunes come up yellow

The Cessna spirals up from El Berriel for twenty minutes. At 3,000 m the door opens on the whole dune field of Maspalomas; forty seconds later you are under canopy, and the sand is the landing strip.

Pulse 5/5 our editors' rating
Exit altitude
3,000 m (10,000 ft)
Freefall
30–40 seconds, then 5–8 minutes under canopy
Landing
in the Maspalomas dunes at Playa del Inglés; take-off at El Berriel
Price
€250–299 direct, by operator; maximum 90–100 kg

Direct only. Two operators (Skydive Gran Canaria, iJump) share the El Berriel strip; neither GetYourGuide nor Viator lists a tandem here. Manawa does, and will be linked once our account there is live. Photo: a tandem under canopy elsewhere, not Gran Canaria.

↓ Above your pulse limit – keep falling

Paraglider pilots laying out their wings on a cliff-top launch above the sea (symbolic image, not Famara)

The Risco de Famara is Lanzarote's edge: a wall rising from the surf to 671 m at Peñas del Chache. With a north-west wind the tandems launch from the cliff line; on other days from Mácher above the Guardilama volcano.

Pulse 4/5 our editors' rating
The cliffs
Risco de Famara, up to 671 m at Peñas del Chache above a 2-km beach
Launch sites
Famara (north-west wind only), Mácher on the Guardilama, Mala
Flight
20 minutes €90–140, 30 minutes €120, 45 minutes €140, an hour €200
Season
year-round; the site changes with the wind

Photo: pilots laying out their wings on a cliff-top launch, not Famara.

↓ Above your pulse limit – keep falling

Stop 2 · Tandem paragliding · Risco de Famara, Mácher & Mala, Lanzarote

671M · THE FAMARA CLIFFS

A 671-metre wall with the Atlantic at its foot

A climber clipped to a via ferrata cable on a cliff above the sea (symbolic image, not Gran Canaria)

Stop 3 · Via ferrata · the cliffs above Bahía Feliz, near Maspalomas

80M · THE CLIFF

Iron rungs up an eighty-metre cliff, a 60-metre bridge across the top

Half an hour up a dry valley from Bahía Feliz, then the harness goes on: rungs and cable up a cliff of 75–80 metres, the south coast and the sea behind you. At the top, a 60-m suspension bridge, the longest on the island.

Pulse 3/5 our editors' rating
The wall
about 75–80 m high; the route runs about 2 km in all
Extras
60-m suspension bridge, a zipline and a swing on some routes
Who
beginners with a guide; helmet, harness and ferrata kit provided
Time & price
about 4 hours, €62–70

Photo: a via ferrata on a sea cliff elsewhere, not Gran Canaria.

↓ Above your pulse limit – keep falling

A canyoner in a red life vest abseiling down the white face of a waterfall (symbolic image, not the Cernícalos)

The Cernícalos is the one gorge in Gran Canaria with water all year, and green in a way the rest of the island is not: willows, moss, pools. You abseil four waterfalls, the biggest 12–14 m, with slides and jumps between them.

Pulse 3/5 our editors' rating
Abseils
four waterfalls, up to 12–14 m
Between
natural slides, jumps and pools; the only canyon on the island with year-round water
Who
no experience needed, a normal level of fitness; equipment provided
Time & price
about 4 hours, €62–85, from Telde or Valsequillo

Photo: a waterfall abseil elsewhere, not the Cernícalos.

↓ Above your pulse limit – keep falling

Stop 4 · Canyoning · Barranco de los Cernícalos, Valsequillo, Gran Canaria

14M · THE BIGGEST ABSEIL

Four waterfalls on a rope, in the only ravine that never dries

An off-road buggy throwing up dust on a desert track (symbolic image, not Lanzarote)

Stop 5 · Off-road buggy · Lanzarote's lava tracks, Corralejo's dunes, Gran Canaria's canyons

0M · ON THE LAVA

Three hours in a Can-Am across the lava fields

The islands' most-booked adventure is a buggy: an automatic Can-Am, two up, in convoy over Lanzarote's lava tracks to the quarries under Peñas del Chache. Fuerteventura does it in the dunes, Gran Canaria in the dry canyons.

Pulse 3/5 our editors' rating
Lanzarote
3 hours, on and off road through the volcanic north; 5,540 reviews
Fuerteventura
Corralejo: 2–2.5 hours, about 42 km, through the dune park and the volcano tracks
Who
full car licence, on Lanzarote held for 2 years, drivers 18–21+; passengers from 1.20 m
Price
€60–150 per buggy for two

Photo: a buggy on a desert track elsewhere, not Lanzarote.

↓ Above your pulse limit – keep falling

Touchdown. Now build your day on these grounds.

    Also on these grounds

    The grounds in numbers

    ActivityPulseThe numberDurationFromReviewsBookable online
    Tandem skydive · Gran Canaria5/53,000 m, dune landing1.5 h on siteSkydive Gran Canaria / iJump—no – book direct
    Paragliding · Famara, LanzaroteBook now →
    Via ferrata · Gran CanariaBook now →
    Canyoning · CernícalosBook now →
    Buggy · Lanzarote lavaBook now →

    Before you jump

    Can you skydive on the Canary Islands?

    Yes, on Gran Canaria: Skydive Gran Canaria and iJump fly from the El Berriel strip in the south and jump from 3,000 m (10,000 ft), with 30–40 seconds of freefall and a landing in the Maspalomas dunes at Playa del Inglés. €250–299 direct, maximum 90–100 kg. Neither GetYourGuide nor Viator sells it; Manawa does.

    Where do you paraglide on Lanzarote?

    From the Risco de Famara when the wind is north-west – the cliffs rise to 671 m at Peñas del Chache above a 2-km beach – otherwise from Mácher on the Guardilama volcano or from Mala in the north. Tandems cost €90–140 for 20 minutes, up to €200 for an hour, and the operators fly all year.

    Is the Gran Canaria via ferrata for beginners?

    Yes – the routes above Bahía Feliz near Maspalomas are built for first-timers with a guide: a cliff of 75–80 m on rungs and cable, a 60-m suspension bridge at the top, about 4 hours with a 30-minute walk in. Helmet, harness and ferrata kit are provided; €62–70.

    What licence do I need for a buggy tour?

    A full car licence – on Lanzarote's volcano tours it must be held for two years, and drivers are 18 or 21 and over depending on the tour. Passengers need no licence and can ride from about 1.20 m. Prices are per buggy for two: about €60 in Corralejo, €65 in Gran Canaria's canyons, €150 for the three-hour Lanzarote tour.

    Is canyoning in Gran Canaria possible all year?

    In the Barranco de los Cernícalos, yes – it is the only ravine on the island that keeps water year-round. The half-day route abseils four waterfalls of up to 12–14 m with slides and jumps between; no experience needed, about 4 hours, €62–85.