Luxury Cruises to the Canary Islands
Canary Islands cruises give you a taste of Spain in a subtropical setting. The combination of country and location off the coast of Africa creates an exotic travel experience that blends the rhythm of island life with the cultural influences of Europe. Add in smoldering volcanoes, otherworldly-looking sand dunes, golden beaches, and colorful architecture, and you have a recipe for travel nirvana.
Our cruises to the Canary Islands will take you to some of the most beautiful destinations in this archipelago. On Tenerife, take a trip to the top of Teide, Spain’s highest mountain, with views across the sapphire ocean and other distant islands. Explore Gran Canaria’s rugged, forested interior and the sand dunes of Maspalomas. In Lanzarote, indulge in sizzling steaks and fish cooked over intense geothermal heat from a volcanic vent—it’s just one of many surprises you’ll uncover on a Europe cruise to the Canary Islands.
Canary Islands Cruise Highlights
National Parks
The Canary Islands are home to exquisite national parks rich in flora and fauna. You’ll find a varied terrain that changes from park to park. Spain’s highest mountain, the often snow-capped Teide, dominates Tenerife’s Teide National Park, with spectacular views and high-altitude hiking. In Timanfaya National Park in Lanzarote, you can ride a camel past dunes, and enjoy a lunch of steak cooked over the sizzling heat of an active volcano.
Beaches
The Canary Islands offer a great variety of beaches, from sparkling black sand on Lanzarote to the rippling dunes at Maspalomas, in the south of Gran Canaria. Tenerife’s finest beach is Las Teresitas, with golden sand imported from the Sahara. Las Canteras, located on Gran Canaria, is considered one of the best urban beaches in Spain. Fuerteventura, meanwhile, is known for its long sweeps of golden sand; head to Flag Beach to watch acrobatic kite surfers.
Food & Wine
The Canary Islands have a distinctive cuisine. Try papas arrugadas, which are tiny boiled potatoes served with salt and spicy mojo sauces. Fuerteventura is famous for its majorero cheese. Sample ropa vieja, a meaty stew, and dine on seafood paired with gofio, a paste of roasted grain flour. You’ll find papaya, mango, pineapple, avocado, and Canarian bananas piled high on market stalls. Meanwhile, there are magnificent wines to try on every island, grown in the rich volcanic soil.
Featured Canary Islands Cruise Ports
Tenerife, Canary Islands
Popular Tenerife combines historic cities with golden beaches, lush valleys, and otherworldly volcanic scenery. Take the cable car up Teide, Spain’s highest mountain, for lunar landscapes and spectacular views. Explore bustling Santa Cruz with a guide, taking in the sights and stopping for tapas. Relax on the golden sand of Las Teresitas beach, and visit the 15th-century university town of La Laguna to admire the colorful palaces, churches, and convents.
Lanzarote, Canary Islands
Lanzarote is starkly beautiful, with active volcanoes and rippling sand dunes that seem to change color as the sun crosses the sky. Try the local Malvasia wine, and admire the work of architect César Manrique, whose bright white buildings with green and blue woodwork are apparent all over the island. The Jameos del Agua, a restaurant in a fern-draped grotto inside a lava tube, is one of his most spectacular structures.
Gran Canaria, Canary Islands
Las Palmas, the capital of lush, mountainous Gran Canaria, has an enchanting old center, Vegueta, the cobbled alleys lined with whitewashed houses adorned with traditional Canarian wooden balconies. See the house where Columbus stayed in 1492 before setting out for the Americas. Out of town, explore the coastal village of Agaete, where cliffs plunge straight into the sea and mangoes, oranges, and even coffee are grown. Or head to Maspalomas in the south to wander through the rolling sand dunes.
Canary Islands Cruise Itineraries
Explore the Canary Islands on our itineraries of 10 to 13 nights, sailing from Barcelona, Lisbon, Southampton, and Fort Lauderdale. You could combine the Canary Islands with Morocco and Spain, or ports in mainland Spain and Portugal, as well as the Portuguese island of Madeira. Transatlantic voyages call at Tenerife, too, on their way between Europe and the U.S.
Itineraries
Why Cruise to the Canary Islands With Celebrity Cruises
You’ll see the best of the Canary Islands on our luxury ships, with a wide range of excursions on offer catering to every taste. You could explore in a 4x4, go wine tasting, head up a volcano, join a tapas-tasting excursion, kick back on a beach day, or even learn how bananas are cultivated.
After exciting days in port, you’ll return to luxury on board, where exciting culinary experiences and world-class entertainment await. Sip a cocktail at the Martini Bar, or watch the sky turn fiery orange from the Sunset Bar. Treat yourself at the spa, and take in spectacular shows in the theater. Elevate your experience with The Retreat®, which includes a stay in one of our luxurious suites along with access to an exclusive restaurant, Luminae at The Retreat, a private lounge, and more.
