Accommodation
At the last count Lanzarote offered visitors a choice of over 200 hotels and
apartments to suit all tastes and budgets. The leading trade organisation on the
island, which represents almost 80% of these establishments, is the
Asociacion Insular de Empresarios de Hoteles y Apartamentos
de Lanzarote,, which is often abbreviated to ASOLAN. As with any
holiday, it is certainly worth while checking the location of your chosen
accommodation before booking, which hopefully the resort map pages of this site
should be helpful. If your chosen accommodation is towards the rear of a resort,
it may also be worth checking if they provide a courtesy bus service into the
town centre.
Banks
Most banks on Lanzarote are open from 9am to 2pm Monday to Friday. Always
remember when exchanging any form of money to take along your passport, check
the exchange rate before dealing, and collect a receipt before leaving the
premises. For those who feel nervous about carrying large sums of money and
their passport around together, most hotels will also gladly exchange money at
perhaps a slightly lower rate. Most banks also have hole in the wall type cash
machines where you can withdraw money using either your credit or debit card.
Don't forget that the official currency of Spain is now the Euro.
Bars
There is a wide variety of bars throughout all resorts, most of which either
offer live music, karaoke, Sky Sports, or videos of films not yet released in
the cinema.
Buses
A very reliable bus service is operated by the
Transporte Interurbano de Lanzarote
throughout all of island.
Camping
Although there are no official camp sites on Lanzarote, you may however see some
locals camping on certain parts of the island during the summer and in order to
do so, they have been granted special permission from the local
Council/Government. These camps include:
Camping de Papagayo
Camping de Papagayo has a camp site for 2,000 people, this is split 50:50
between tents and caravans.
Camping season: June to September.
For information and application form please contact:
Ayuntamiento de Yaiza
Plaza de los Remedios
35570
Yaiza
Lanzarote
Telephone: +34 928 836 220
Fax: +34 928 830 035
Email:
social@ayuntamientodeyaiza.es
Camping de San Juan
Camping de San Juan is situated at Famara, and is a small camp site with a
maximum capacity of 100 people.
Camping season: from June to September.
For information and application please contact:
Ayuntamiento de Teguise
Avda. General Franco,1
35530
Teguise
Lanzarote
Telephone: +34 928 845 001
Camping El Salao
Camping El Salao is situated at the La Graciosa inlet and has a camp site for
500 people.
For information and application please contact:
Ayuntamiento de Teguise
Avda. General Franco,1
35530
Teguise
Lanzarote
Telephone: +34 928 845 001
Chemist
You can always spot a chemist shop by the green cross they all display. Outside
of normal opening hours, a notice on the door will always give the address of
the nearest duty chemist.
Cycling
Lanzarote's rolling landscape and lack of any really high mountains makes
cycling a very practical way of getting around the island. The Insular de
Turismo de Lanzarote are keen to promote this type of "green tourism" and have
produced a number leaflets "Plan de Rutas Cicloturisticas de Lanzarote" which
literally translates into English as "plan of cycle tourism routes", and these
are available free of charge from most of the tourist offices around the island.
Disabled Access and Facilities
Although all of the hotels and apartments on the island are required to provide
full disabled access to their facilities, as in the UK, the extent that these
modifications have been carried out does vary between each establishment. For
independent travellers who are are looking to hire a mobility scooter on the
island our recommended points of contact are either:
Mobility Aids Lanzarote
Telephone: +34 928 346 005
Mobile: +34 606 754 342
Email:
enquiries@mobilityaids-lanzarote.com
Web Site:
www.mobilityaids-lanzarote.com
Island Mobility SL
Telephone: +34 928 349 533
Mobile: +34 696 389 034
Email:
info@islandmobility.com
Web Site:
www.islandmobility.com
Doctor
Part of the Salus Group, Clinica Lanzarote is one of the oldest and most
established health care organizations in the Canary Islands, serving both the
local community and all of the major tour operators and hotels in Lanzarote for
over 15 years. Clinica Lanzarote offers around the clock, 24 hour ambulance and
medical service which can be reached on their free phone emergency number 900
100 450, or at any of their 3 medical centres around the island at;
Avenida de las Playas, 5
Puerto del Carmen
Telephone: +34 928 513 171
Fax: +34 928 510 885
CC Lanzarote Park, Local 17
Playa Blanca
Telephone: +34 928 519 039
Fax: +34 928 519 039
Avenida de las Islas Canarias
Costa Teguise
Telephone: +34 928 826 009
Fax: +34 928 827 016
Electricity
The voltage in Lanzarote is 220 volt. Most British items will work with the
correct adaptor from the UK standard 3 pin to European 2 pin socket.
Euro
The Euro is the name of the common currency of the 12 countries forming the
European Monetary Union. Since January 1999 Spain has been a member, and the UK
has opted out at this time. Euro notes are issued in 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and
500 denominations and are identical in all member countries of the EMU. The
designs symbolise European architectural heritage but not royal or national
monuments. The coins are issued as 1, 2 and 5 cents and are copper in colour,
10, 20 and 50 cents yellow in colour and finally 1 and 2 Euros white and yellow
in colour. Although all the coins have a common European face, each member state
is allowed to stamp their own motif on the reverse face.
European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)
The European Health Insurance Card, which is often abbreviated to EHIC, replaced
the old E111 Form on 31 December 2005, and entitles British citizens to reduced
cost, or sometimes free, medical treatment that becomes necessary while you’re
in a European Economic Area country or Switzerland.
The EHIC is normally valid for three to five years and covers any medical
treatment that becomes necessary during your trip, because of either illness or
an accident. The card gives access to state-provided medical treatment only, and
you'll be treated on the same basis as an 'insured' person living in the country
you're visiting. Remember, this might not cover all the things you'd expect to
get free of charge from the NHS in the UK and you may have to make a
contribution to the cost of your care.
Although the EHIC also covers any treatment you need for a chronic disease or
pre-existing illness, it won't however cover you if getting medical treatment is
the main purpose of your trip.
If prior to 31 December 2005 you ticked the relevant box on the E111 application
form, an EHIC would have been automatically sent to you during January 2006,
however, for new applications they are also available from the
Department of Health web site,
by calling the EHIC Applications Line on 0845 606 2030, or alternatively by
completing an EHIC application pack from any local Post Office branch.
Food
Restaurants in Lanzarote cater for a wide range of tastes. In the larger resorts
you can get anything from a traditional English breakfast to a Chinese take
away. For those visitors on self catering breaks, all resorts have a number of
Spar type supermarkets, which, in recognition of the high number of British
visitors, stock readily recognisable UK branded goods, although in many cases
the prices charged may be considerably higher than those you would expect to pay
at home. The underlying principle of consumer choice was once explained by a
local shopkeeper as, "if you don't like the price, you don't have to buy",
however, the stark reality is unless you are prepared to travel out of the
resort "you do have to buy", which of course the local shopkeepers are only too
aware of.
Getting Married in Lanzarote
Getting married in Lanzarote can be extremely complicated. In very simple terms,
if one of the partners has lived legally in either Lanzarote or Spain for at
least two years, then the civil marriage can be carried out at the local town
hall, followed by a religious ceremony in church or other approved location.
However, if neither of the partners fulfill the above residence requirements,
then the civil marriage will have to take place in their country of residency,
followed by a religious ceremony in church. In practical terms for UK citizens,
this usually means a civil marriage taking place in the local registry office in
the UK, which can then be followed by the religious ceremony on Lanzarote. For
further information on marriage in Lanzarote our recommended point of contact
is:
Lanzarote Weddings
Telephone: +34 619 042 153
Fax: +34 928 524 448
Web site:
www.lanzaroteweddings.com
Email:
info@lanzaroteweddings.com
Golf
Costa Teguise currently has the only golf course on the island, which is
actually built at the base of a now long extinct volcano. The course was first
opened to the public during 1978 to a challenging design by John Harris. Contact
details for more information are:
Golf de Costa Teguise
Avda. del Golf, s/n
35509
Costa Teguise
Lanzarote
Telephone: +34 928 590 512
Fax : +34 928 592 337
Email:
info@lanzarote-golf.com
Web site:
www.lanzarote-golf.com