The Canary Islands, also known as The Canaries, are situated off of the northwest coast of mainland Africa, with cruise ships calling at Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma and La Gomera, depending on the itinerary. Cruise itineraries which include the Canary Islands are often referred to as the Atlantic Islands and the ships will often call at Funchal in Madeira as well.
Other ports which are often part of a cruise to the Canary Islands can include Ponta Delgada in The Azores, Agadir in Morocco, Lisbon or Oporto in Portugal, Praia in the Cape Verde Islands or Vigo in Spain.
Madeira and Tenerife are popular ports for Christmas and New Year cruises, due to the fantastic fireworks displays they put on, which can be seen so well from the ships, either in port or just offshore.
A good number of Canary Islands cruises are operated from UK ports, generally ranging from 10 to 14 nights in length, and there are some fly cruises from the Mediterranean.
Tenerife, Madeira and The Azores are also popular ports of call near the beginning or end of longer itineraries, such as World Cruises or Caribbean No Fly Cruises.
The main cruise lines to offer cruises from the UK to the Canary Islands include: –
- Royal Caribbean International
- Celebrity Cruises
- P&O Cruises
- Cunard
- Cruise & Maritime Voyages
- Fred Olsen Cruise Lines
(Page updated April 2012)