La Cocina Beach

The volcano does most of the work. Montaña Amarilla rises straight from the end of the cove, its yellow rock worn into ledges and overhangs at the base, and in settled weather its colour shows in the calm, shallow water of the bay. Snorkellers meet barracuda here.

The sand itself is a narrow strip about 100 metres long, roughly the length of a football pitch. From the far end you can carry on around the volcano and up to its summit, where the view takes in the whole of La Graciosa and the uninhabited islet of Montaña Clara to the north.

• The walk from the port at Caleta de Sebo takes 30 minutes to an hour on a sandy coastal path, with La Francesa Beach on the way.
• The path is too sandy to ride a bike on. Walk, or come by hired jeep.
• There is no shade on the beach, and no toilets or drinking water nearby. Bring water, food and sun cover from the village.
• The bay is sheltered, yet the beach is windy.
• Crowds vary: some days the cove is full of day-trippers to La Graciosa, on others it is quiet.

Everything starts at Caleta de Sebo, the port village of La Graciosa. From there a sandy track follows the coast southwest, part of a marked route that links the island's southern beaches. On foot it takes 30 minutes to an hour, and La Francesa Beach, ten minutes short of La Cocina, makes an easy stop on the way.

Hired jeeps drive the track too. Bikes bog down in the sand, so leave them in the village. There is no car park and no bus stop near the beach: the last stretch is always the walk or the jeep, and the yellow bulk of Montaña Amarilla marks where you are heading.

Best: early morning or late afternoon, on a calm day.

Avoid: the middle of the day in summer.

Neither the beach nor the walk in has any shade, day-trippers to La Graciosa fill the cove through the middle of the day, and a still sea gives the clearest water for snorkelling.