Things to do in Fuerteventura: from Corralejo to Cofete

• Without a car: the dune beaches south of Corralejo are a short bus or taxi ride from town, and boats cross to Lobos from Corralejo harbour. Inland, the cheese museum near Antigua and the windmill centre at Tiscamanita each have a bus stop about 100 m away.
• On a grey or windy day: the windmill centre at Tiscamanita and the La Cilla grain museum in La Oliva. In the rain, the El Carmen Salt Pans work too, since part of the visit is indoors.
• With children: the La Alcogida Ecomuseum, with its goats, hens, camel and donkey; the lagoon at La Concha in El Cotillo, which fills on some high tides; the cobbled path up Calderón Hondo.
• The strangest beach: Popcorn Beach, made of white rhodoliths as knobbly as popcorn. You're not allowed to take any away.
• Sunday and Monday: the cheese museum and the salt pans open every day. La Alcogida, Tiscamanita, La Cilla and the archaeological museum in Betancuria are closed on both days, and Villa Winter on Mondays.

South of Corralejo, the largest dunes in the Canary Islands roll straight down to the sea. The sand is almost white and powder-fine, made of shells and the skeletons of sea creatures that the wind has broken down and heaped up. A road runs through the dunes, so you can pull over and be among them in a minute. Come early or late in the day: at midday there is no shade, and a strong wind lifts the sand into the air. Keep the car on the road and in the car parks, since the sand itself is protected.

Since 2019 every visitor has needed an online permit from the island government, the Cabildo, now issued through Lobos Pass. Numbers are capped, so get yours in advance. Walking the whole island, caldera and lighthouse included, takes three and a half to four hours on signposted trails, and you have to stay on them. There is no shade or drinking water, the one restaurant fills up, and camping has been banned since 2007. Bring food and water for the day, and check the time of the last boat before you set off.

The west coast around El Cotillo gets heavy surf, but just north of the village, low volcanic rocks shelter coves where the water stays flat even when the wind is whipping up the open sea. The water there is clear enough for a mask and snorkel. For a sunset with Lanzarote on the horizon, drive ten minutes on to the El Tostón lighthouse, where the old keeper's house holds a museum of the island's traditional fishing.

Getting there: the El Cotillo bus stop is about 420 m from Los Lagos in a straight line. La Concha has a free car park about 170 m away.

Jean de Béthencourt founded Betancuria in 1404, and it stayed the island's capital until 1834, even after pirates razed it in 1593. The church of Santa María and the roofless ruins of the Franciscan convent stand in the village, and entry to the archaeological museum is free. The road there winds through bare hills of rust and cream, and you have to keep to the tarmac.

On an island with almost no rain, life depended on water and grain. Majorero is Fuerteventura's goat's cheese, made under a protected designation of origin. Gofio, a toasted grain flour, fed the island for generations, and it is why windmills once dotted the plains. The cheese museum runs tastings, charged separately and best booked in advance. At Tiscamanita, ask about a combined ticket that also covers the cheese museum and the El Carmen Salt Pans. Tefía, where La Alcogida stands, has a windmill with six sails as well.

Getting there: buses stop about 88 m from the cheese museum and about 100 m from the Tiscamanita centre. For La Alcogida, the Tefía stop is about 950 m away in a straight line, and the car park is right by the entrance.

From Morro Jable a gravel road climbs to a pass over the Jandía ridge, where the Cofete viewpoint looks down on the beach; the light is best around noon. A standard car manages the road at a careful pace, but many hire contracts don't cover unpaved roads, so check yours. If you don't have a car, take Tiadhe bus 111, which runs from Morro Jable to Cofete twice a day. On the way south, stop at Sotavento, between Costa Calma and Morro Jable: the water there is calmer than at Cofete, and on a windy day kites fill the lagoon. About 20 km down a gravel road from Morro Jable, the Punta Jandía lighthouse marks the island's south-western tip. Fuerteventura's highest peak, Pico de la Zarza (807 m), rises on the Jandía peninsula too.

A hire car is the practical way to see Fuerteventura and the only easy way into its remote corners; the hire desks are at the airport. The FV-1 runs from Corralejo to Puerto del Rosario and the FV-2 on to Morro Jable. Buses link Puerto del Rosario and the airport with Corralejo, Caleta de Fuste, Morro Jable and El Cotillo, but you'll need a car or a tour for most of the empty beaches. Carry water, since many of the places above have no toilets or drinking water. When the calima blows (a dust-laden wind off the Sahara), visibility can fall to 100–200 m, so drive with care.

Places and practical details come from our catalogue. The Lobos permit and the Cofete bus were checked on the Cabildo de Fuerteventura and Tiadhe websites in October 2026.