Accessible Things to Do in the Canary Islands

The Canary Islands boast a wide range of things to see and do for disabled cruisers, with each one providing truly unique experiences. Here are just some of the best accessible activities available on the islands. For more detailed information regarding port accessibility and excursions, please see here.

Go wheelchair-accessible diving

Take a trip beneath Lanzarote’s warm, crystal-clear waters in an adapted wheelchair and meet a wealth of colourful sea creatures, including sea anemones and shoals of shimmering tropical fish. The dives take place at the beautiful Costa Teguise beach, just six miles from the cruise port of Arrecife. Divers are assisted by three trained attendants throughout the experience.

Please note: Wheelchair dives must be booked in advance. Please contact us for details.

Relax on disabled-friendly beaches

One of the Canaries’ best features is their amazing range of beaches – and the good news is a large number of them are accessible for less-mobile holidaymakers. Disabled features include level access from flat promenades, wooden walkways across the sand, and disabled bathrooms and changing facilities.

Many beaches also hire out beach wheelchairs, which have larger tires, making it easy to glide across sandy surfaces. They come in a reclining lounge-chair design too – perfect for basking in the sun with a refreshing cocktail in hand.

Take an accessible tour through incredible scenery

The Canary Islands provide a broad selection of accessible tours, with operators providing pick-ups and returns from the cruise port.

One of the most striking is the Volcano Tour through the lunar landscapes of Lanzarote. It introduces visitors to Timanfaya National Park and its otherwordly scenery of barren lava cinders, red-black volcano cones and active geysers. The park includes educational material in Braille and audiovisual guides that incorporate sign language. Before heading back to the cruise ship, the tour also stops off at a local vineyard for some wine tasting.

If your cruise calls at Tenerife, you’ll be able to take a wheelchair-accessible minibus excursion up the island’s central volcano, the towering Mount Teide. This half-day tour travels along winding roads, through pine forests, typical Canary villages and unparalleled landscapes with incredible views of volcanic scenery and petrified lava rivers. Some tours also stop at a short, flat trail designated for wheelchair users.

See a spectacular festival

The Canaries are a place of continual celebration – which is hardly surprising given what idyllic places they are to live in. Festivals are held throughout the year across the archipelago, so whenever you travel, there’s a good chance of arriving during a party!

Highlights include February’s Santa Cruz Carnival in Tenerife, one of the largest festivals in the world; the colourful International Kite Festival on Fuerteventura in November; and June’s flower festival on La Palma, where the streets are carpeted with mosaics made up of petals, plants and seeds.

Discover exotic parks and gardens

The Canaries are famous for their array of national parks and magnificent gardens – so much so that you can even take a flower-themed cruise that exhibits the best green sites the islands have to offer.

These call in at Madeira, home to a wealth of exquisite tropical gardens and the spring Flower Festival, before heading on to the Canaries. Here they visit the Orchid Gardens of Sitio Litre in Tenerife, the luscious Hidden Valley in Gran Canaria, the Cactus Garden in Lanzarote, and more.

Even if you’re not taking a flower cruise, it’s worth adding one of these great destinations to your itinerary. The Cactus Garden in particular is close to the cruise port of Arrecife and is disabled-friendly.

Explore historic port towns

If you don’t feel like travelling far, the good news is there’s plenty to keep you busy in the Canaries’ port towns too. Retail opportunities abound, with modern shopping centres and high-street stores complementing street markets selling clothes, locally handmade pottery and volcanic rock jewellery.

Restaurants are colourful and lively, serving up an alluring mix of international and Canarian cuisine, including the Islands’ own version of tapas.

There are numerous museums and galleries to investigate, such as the excellent accessible Science and Technology Museum in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. Or you can take the hop-on, hop-off wheelchair-accessible open-top bus tours that introduce cruise passengers to more of the city’s major sights, including the grand Catedral, Museo Elder and Playa Las Canteras.

And of course, wherever you go, there’s never a shortage of beautiful beaches!

The towns in the Canary Islands have various levels of disabled access. Please see our port accessibility information for more details.

Please note: The information we provide on accessible locations and local attractions is subject to change, specific accessibility requirements and availability. We do our utmost to ensure all information is as up to date as possible based on the information we receive.

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Canary Islands Cruise Accessibility Information