The sunny Spanish island of Gran Canaria is the perfect place for an unforgettable family vacation. But what are the best things to do in Gran Canaria with kids?
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Belonging to the Canary Islands archipelago, Gran Canaria is sometimes called the “miniature continent” because of the huge diversity of fauna, flora, and climate in a small space here. On the island, you can see volcanoes, dunes, pine forests, and tropical vegetation, thanks to which Gran Canaria is a UNESCO biosphere reserve. There are also large tourist centers full of monuments. And all this can be admired all year round thanks to the beautiful weather.
The island of Gran Canaria is shaped like a circle and has an amazingly diverse landscape. It measures 50 km in a circle diameter, and that’s not little. To explore the beauty of this island even with kids, it is most convenient to rent a car, ideally right at the airport. This will save you money on the airport taxi.
For car rentals, we can recommend the great Discover Cars website. Here you will find a wide selection of vehicles from 500 different companies from all over the world. Vehicles are differentiated by size and interior space. We personally, especially like the wide range of filter options, such as the amount of the required deposit, the type of gear, the minimum number of seats, or the option to rent a child car seat. Car rental companies are verified, so you don’t have to worry about making the wrong choice. In any case, renting a car will greatly facilitate your travel and deepen your experience of visiting the island of Gran Canaria.
Aqualand Maspalomas
Aqualand Maspalomas with an area of 13,000 m2 is the largest water park in Gran Canaria. The property is open all year round and features 33 slides and 13 entertainment attractions. The children will not want to leave. All ages will have fun here. The specialty of the water park is swimming in the pool with sea lions (not included in the ticket price, must be arranged individually).
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Holiday world Maspalomas
Holiday World Maspalomas / Gran Canaria Park is located near the resort of Maspalomas in the south of Gran Canaria. It offers more than 30 attractions, which are accompanied by entertainment shows, gastronomic venues, and much more. Here you will find a ferris wheel, roller coaster, chain carousel, merry cups, autodrome, air bumper boats, airdrop, or quad bikes. For the youngest children, there are pony rides, performances with parrots, or a 4D cinema. It’s up to you, you decide how you want to have fun!
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Camel Safari
Camel Safari Park La Baranda has located about 12 km from Playa del Inglés in the Fataga Nature Reserve, which has been declared a special protection area. Here you will find the “Oasis of a Thousand Palms”, in which you will feel like in the Orient. You will discover tropical gardens with various fruit trees, such as papaya, mango, guava, etc., in an area of more than 10,000 square meters.
But the main ones here are the camels. You will ride a camel caravan, you can also feed them here. You will meet D. Gustavo, a kissing camel, very popular with young and old.
There is a restaurant in the park where you can enjoy typical island dishes, and a museum with historic Canarian farm implements.
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Natural Reserve of Las Dunas de Maspalomas
The desert landscape of Dunas de Maspalomas, sometimes adorned with sand dunes up to ten meters high, is often called the “Little Sahara”. It is one of the most famous and sought-after tourist attractions in the entire Canary Islands.
The Dunas de Maspalomas stretch in sight of the Faro de Maspalomas, a lighthouse that has become a hallmark of the area. It is also the southernmost place on the island of Gran Canaria.
The Maspalomas dunes were not formed by blown sand from the African desert, as is sometimes mistakenly stated. Their origin is much more prosaic – they are of marine origin, they were formed from corals crushed by waves.
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Elder Museum of Science and Technology
The Elder Museum of Science and Technology is a science-interactive center with more than 20 departments dedicated to the reproduction of major world scientific discoveries. The motto of the man is “Touch is allowed”.
The museum is spread over four floors full of interactive exhibits. There is also a 3D cinema and a planetarium. The ground floor of the museum, called Tecnos, is dedicated to technology. Everything is possible here, from piloting a powerful fighter jet and learning what the plane is from inside, to simulating the dizziness provided by the Robocoaster attraction or entering the virtual reality and driving simulator.
The first floor is divided into two parts, Xploratorium and Gaia, which contain physics, mathematics, and biology, a planetarium, the Dome of the Waves, a cetacean area in the Canary Islands, and a science workshop where various experimental activities take place.
Booking.comOn the second floor, there is a temporary exhibition hall and also a space dedicated to the Canarian engineer Agustín de Betancourt, a place where you can discover works developed by this famous engineer through interactive models.
On the third floor, there is a mural of the pioneers, a virtual walk through the history and creations of the men and women who created the scientific knowledge, as well as the Canary Research Center. There is also a 3D cinema that offers the spectator to enjoy the most amazing landscape in the world without leaving Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
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Poema del Mar Aquarium
The giant aquarium in the capital Las Palmas is a relatively new attraction that opened at the end of 2017. Its founders are the same people who are behind Loro Park and Siam Park on the island of Tenerife. In the local facility, which has the shape of a huge wave from the outside, you will see over 350 species of animals close in the glass corridors. It is one of the largest aquariums in Europe.
The park is divided into three parts – Jungle, Deep Ocean, and Coral Reef. Most impressive is the faithful presentation of the various ecosystems that allow visitors to move to different parts of the world for a while. Among the many animals that can be seen in this Poema del Mar aquarium are crocodiles, four-eyed fish, big black piranhas, pig turtles, blacktip sharks, coconut crabs, jellyfish or electric eels, which can produce shocks of up to 850 volts.
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Sioux City Park
Western town Sioux City One of the great attractions of the island of Gran Canaria – an imitation of life in the western town. Here you will find cowboys, horseback riding, and classic buildings that we know from movies.
As soon as you enter the amusement park, you will feel like one of the inhabitants of the Wild West. If you decide to walk through the city, you can become part of a bank robbery and see a sheriff facing real outlaws.
Be sure to visit the local animal farm: Canary goats, cows, ponies, donkeys, chickens, and more. You can also dress like a real cowboy or an Indian at the local store and, of course, take away unforgettable memories of the great times of the American Wild West, but in the Canary Islands.
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Cocodrilo Park Gran Canaria
This park is not just a specialized zoo but was established as a rescue center for exotic fauna. There are placed animals that were illegally imported, confiscated on the black market, or that were taken away from their owners due to unsuitable conditions for their breeding, or due to abuse. Crocodiles are the largest here. They have several species here and the annotated show during feeding is also interesting. They are doing well here, so you can see even very cute, small, but very dangerous offspring several months old. Of course, it is possible to take pictures with a crocodile.
Booking.comThe crocodile park also hosts shows of various animals bred here, with an explanation of their needs, breeding, attractions, and their story of how they got to the zoo. You have the opportunity to look at them very closely, and if you dare, to stroke them. Such as various snakes, lizards, turtles, goats, parrots, felines, and canines, and the local dog breed Perro de presa canario – Canary Mastiff. Another interesting and annotated program is feeding tigers. There is also a restaurant in the park, which works on the principle of fast food.
Everything you spend here goes to support the breeding of animals in this facility.
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Palmitos Park
Palmitos Park is the largest zoo on the island. It’s not as big as Loro Parque on Tenerife, but it looks a lot like it. The biggest attraction here is the dolphin show and the children’s favorite show with parrots, where 10 big birds will be introduced, who have rehearsed various funny scenes. Both shows can be watched several times a day. Surprisingly, the show with predators, who have their mannerisms as the main stars, is also very funny, and sometimes it happens that during the exhibition they fly away and falconers release one predator after another to lure them back on the trip home.
In Palmitos Park you will find a large aquarium with a plethora of colorful fish. The butterfly factory is also very interesting, where beautiful butterflies hatch, fly all around, and even land on you and make a live decoration. You will also find a greenhouse with beautiful orchids. The park is one large garden where something blooms every season. You walk under mature ficus trees, which many people have at home, only in a much smaller design, or around two-meter shrubs, flowers, and various types of cacti and succulent plants.
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Angry Birds Activity Park
Angry Birds Activity Park is the only amusement park in southern Europe licensed by this famous mobile video game. The park with various activities was created with the intention of developing children through games that combine movement and fun. Each game section increases physical activity according to age categories. This amusement park in the town of Mogán, in the south of the island of Gran Canaria, is a complete paradise of games that helps children and their families with physical development.
Angry Birds Activity Park is a place with many corners for games, jumping, and exploring. For athletes, it offers football, basketball, and volleyball courts. There is a treadmill for Formula 1 pilots, for acrobats – trampolines, skate ramps, and a padded circuit for parkour. And for the most clever air cannons for shooting rubber balls at evil pigs. Just like in the game, but in the open air.
