Canary Islands - Facts

Canaries FAQs

Pre-Arrival Boat: There are no pre-arrival procedures necessary.
Pre-Arrival Crew: A very wide range of countries do not need a visa to enter the Canaries. See Immigration for details.
Where can I enter? Click on the anchor symbol in the blue “Explore Country” drop down, to see ports of entry (PPF). If coming from another EU country (or mainland Spain), any port can be entered first. See Clearance for details.
Are fees high to enter by yacht? There are no entry or exit fees. See Fees for other costs.
What security concerns should I know about? There is very little crime towards cruising yachts in the Canaries. See Security for more info.

Canaries Facts for Sailors

• The Canary Islands are an integral part of Spain, and as such are part of the E.U. although they have a special economic status.
• The Canary Islands archipelago is located in the Atlantic Ocean, close to the northwest coast of Africa.
• The seven main islands of the Canary Islands are well spaced out so that it is only a day's sail between most of them. The logical route for most yachts arriving from the north is to visit Lanzarote and Fuerteventura first before sailing to Gran Canaria, then Tenerife, La Gomera, El Hierro and La Palma.
• The population of the Canary Islands exceeded 2.2 million inhabitants at the end of 2023. Spanish is the official language, however, English, German, and other languages are widely spoken in the main tourist areas.
• The currency used in the Canary Islands is the euro (EUR).
• Canary Islands is only one hour behind the rest of Spain and nations like France, Germany, or Poland (UTC+1) and shares the same time zone (UTC) with nations like the United Kingdom and Ireland.
• Visitors can enjoy year-round sunshine and a subtropical climate with hot summers and mild winters. See Weather for more details.
• The Canaries remain the logical jumping-off point for yachts crossing the Atlantic to the Caribbean, ever since Columbus started the fashion over 500 years ago, and from November to January, the islands are full of yachts preparing for their Atlantic crossing.
• Alert:  The Port Authority of Las Palmas on Gran Canaria has created a temporary anchorage area exclusively for small craft that will be in place for one month from October 25 to November 25, 2024 to cater for an expected high number of boats heading across the Atlantic.  See this News item:  Temporary Anchorage for Visiting Yachts  for more information.
  
• The most popular ports for this being Las Palmas, Puerto Rico and Puerto Mogan - Gran Canaria, Marina Rubicon and Puerto Calero - Lanzarote and Marina Santa Cruz - Tenerife.
• Facilities for yachts have improved considerably in recent years and more cruising yachts are now spending longer in the islands and some are permanently based there. Also on the increase is the number of yachts sailing down from Europe to spend the winter months in the Canaries' pleasant climate.
• Government-run ports (Puerto Canarios): Fifteen ports throughout the islands are run by the government. There is now a new app for pre-booking berths in these ports, however, the system to deal with bookings via the app and online system is limited and often results in little assurance that a berth is actually available. See this report for more details and Yachting Essentials for guidelines on booking berths and facilities for yachts in the Canaries.
• There are restrictions on anchoring in the Canaries and in many places authorization is required. For rules on anchoring see Restrictions.
• LPG/Gas: If in doubt arrive with propane bottles filled, your gas bottle may not be approved for filling here. For more details see Yachting Essentials section.