Playa del Papagayo, a photo from Lanzarote, Canarias

Photographer's Note

I was very much surprised with amazing sandy beaches on Lanzarote. Based on the experience with Tenerife, La Palma or Madeira, I assumed the beaches will have rather black or grey sand but to my surprise there were many fine golden sand beaches on Lanzarote. Most of them were beautiful, some spectacular, and I will show you a good selection. Those from the north or north-western side were extremely windy and noted to be dangerous for swimming while the south or southeast beaches were perfect for swimming and families. There are three resort towns on Lanzarote: Playa Blanca in the very south/southwest, Puerto del Carmen and Costa Teguise more towards the southeast. The beaches at the resorts were good quality like the one which I showed you previously near Puerto del Carmen. However, the further you got from the resorts the more chance to see something beautiful and with less people. In the very south-eastern bottom tip of the island there are several beautiful wild beaches which are known under a collective name Playas del Papagayo. To reach the Playas del Papagayo you need to drive for a while on an unpaved road, but people did it with all types of cars. It is the closest point from Lanzarote to Fuerteventura. The closest resort town is Playa Blanca. Among the Playas del Papagayo there are several stunning beach coves. I have visited only two, but the photos of others looked amazing too.

This picture presents the most popular beach in this area called exactly the Playa del Papagayo. The view which you see here is the most postcard-like view, but I found this place very photogenic so I will show more. This is the most popular beach there, probably because it is well protected from the wind and waves. I spent more time on the neighbouring beach which had higher waves but there were fewer people and the sand looked cleaner. In fact, we managed to meet on that beach our friends from the UK, a family who also got to Lanzarote for the half term break.

Very far in the distance you see the white houses of the resort town Playa Blanca. On top of the hill there are two restaurants. There were no shops or facilities in the whole area with exception of the two very expensive restaurants. The first one told us that without booking in advance there is no chance to get in on that day, the second one let us in after 45 minutes waiting in a line and it was the most expensive meal we had on Lanzarote. More expensive than a typical meal in the UK.

28.842111, -13.788029

jhm, PaulVDV, ktanska, Fis2, PiotrF, ikeharel, COSTANTINO, jemaflor, adramad, mcmtanyel has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

jhm (211734) 2021-11-12 8:46

Hello Mariusz,

Lovely summery scene with much people enjoy of the sand beach.
Of course also of the sun and pleasant temperatures.
Wen get a nice view about the bay and nice light cloudy sky.
An excellent composition with a wide panorama image too.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John

PaulVDV (62804) 2021-11-12 9:23

Hello Mariusz,
Since the dog species that the Spaniards discovered long ago on the archipelago have long since become extinct, and you recently showed a parrot in a photo, the islands should perhaps change their name. The beaches have already done the adaptation.
This beach is a bit too crowded for me.
It's surprising then that this is not the beach of a seaside resort, but that you can only get there via an unpaved road. In addition, there are only two restaurants. One that I probably can't afford and another that probably doesn't want me as a customer because I like to travel without planning where to eat.
Bit of a surprise to read this. I had always thought that the Canary Islands were a paradise for the lazy and easy-going tourist. Or maybe Lanzarote is the odd one out on this archipelago.
Apart from the many tourists, the beach seems beautiful and the water has a nice blue colour.
You couldn't complain about the weather then. Plenty of sunshine and the small white clouds make a pretty backdrop that is even more attractive in a photo than just a plain blue sky.
The curve of the bay and the beach ensure a good composition.
Looking forward to your next selection on the less crowded places.
Best regards, Paul

ktanska (44492) 2021-11-12 9:23

Hi Mariusz,
Beautiful wide angle beach view. The place is pretty popular but it still seems to be in a fairly natural state. Dry nature of Lanzarote is pretty obvious.
Kari

lousat (138655) 2021-11-12 9:59

Hi Mariusz,yes,this is what i want..ehehe..one of the most beautiful beaches of Lanzarote in a great capture! Still a lot of people,but this is one of the rare islands open for tourists and without Covid restrictions. The colors of water are fantastic, i like a lot the usual top quality. Have a nice weekend and thanks,Luciano

Silvio1953 (220665) 2021-11-12 10:20

Ciao Mariusz, great view of fantastic beach, superb sky, lovely composition with a lot of people, fine details, splendid light, excellent clarity and wonderful colors, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

Fis2 (169791) 2021-11-12 10:23

Czesc Mariusz!
No nie powiem, w pazdzierniku taki widok.
Fajna plaza, cekawy krajobraz.
Dobry kadr i kolorki.
Milego wieczoru.
Krzysztof

Tue (91612) 2021-11-12 10:51

Hello Mariusz,
The weather looks much better here with sunshine and a blue sky with only a few charming white clouds. The sandy beach had attracted lots of people and they are nicely scattered around the composition. The rock formations look nice as well.
Lars

PiotrF (54246) 2021-11-12 15:25

Czesc Mariusz
Milosnikiem plaz raczej nie jestem, ale gdy juz na nich odpoczywam wole takie troche dzikie bez calej tej infrastruktury. Oczywiscie przy rodzinnym wypoczynku szczegolnie z dziecmi kryteria musza byc nieco inne co zrozumiale. Ladny kadr z tego miejsca, piasek przypomina troche ten z nadbyltyckich plaz. Maly klif i chmurki to dodatkowa ozdoba zdjecia
pozdrawiam
Piotr

ifege (47013) 2021-11-12 19:59

Hi Mariusz
You must have been happy with this glorious sunny day for taking good beach photos.
cheers
Ian

COSTANTINO (115583) 2021-11-12 23:17

Hello dear friend
thanks for the sharing
I AM FEELING BETTER looking at
this photo and bringing meoriew
from summer holidaysI am in Luxwmboutg
where my daughter lices
and works and the weather is too foggy
three days now...
so your photo gave me hope
for better days
regards
Costantino

jemaflor (146330) 2021-11-12 23:28

Hi Mariusz,
nice beach and mood for the end of october. well framed, nice colors with this pleasant warm sunlight, tfs.

ChrisJ (171280) 2021-11-13 4:43

Hi Mariusz

Even though the Canary Islands are off West Africa in the Atlantic Ocean, this still has a Mediterranean look and feel. A superb beach scene with good colour and sharpness. Tfs!

Gerrit (62042) 2021-11-13 6:26

Hello Mariusz,
a popular but attractive beach with still plenty of room and a great view.
Thanks and regards,
Gerrit

ikeharel (112475) 2021-11-13 7:41

Hello Mariusz, many thanks for your supporting critique on my storks pictures.
I had debated with myself which beach picture from Lanzarote looks more attractive - both are and wonderfully allocated on the image space.
The big volcanic rock on the far side, evident for Geo-acrivity from long ago. Strong anchor point on the scene.
Wish you a nice weekend,
Ike

pajaran (114971) 2021-11-13 8:13

Pozdrav.

Lep pogled i trenutak, intereantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepa plaza i litica sa kucama u pozadini, dobro pokazano sa lepim bojama, kontrastom, perspektivom i uhvacenim trenutkom sa belim oblacima na plavom nebu.
Dobar rad, lepa fotografija.
Lepo mesto za odmor sa lepim pogledom.

Zelim vam lepu i mirnu noc, sve najbolje.
Paja

jmdias (114318) 2021-11-13 12:16

mariusz

a nice place to open a new restaurant. hahaha.
in a small town in central Brazil I had a similar problem, but I had dozens of options and I had to choose the less expensive restaurant.
very beautiful beach with many people and nice details as the rocky natural wall ahead. yes, I thought these beaches would be black.

take care

jorge

Royaldevon (85638) 2021-11-13 15:00

Hello Mariusz,

The beach is a little crowded for me, but I do appreciate the quality of the sand and the lovely colour of the sea.
You have chosen a good angle so that the curve of the beach guides very naturally to the rocky headland and, there is a fine sense of perspective, as the figures become smaller.
I was surprised to learn about the expensive restaurants, quite unusable for normal beach dwellers. I always imagined that The Canary Islands were tourist friendly and good value for money.

My warm regards,
Bev 😊

adramad (72564) 2021-11-17 13:29

Hello my friend Mariusz.
You are showing me both with this beautiful image, as well as those that I see already uploaded later, some great beaches, which is just what I did not visit, because I prefer tour tourism, I also have an allergy to the sun, for which I miss little for the beaches, when I go down to Almuñecar my friend has the house on the edge of the beach and I can bring an umbrella, with which sometimes I go down for a while.
You can see the beach with a lot of people and with very clean water, beautiful cotton clouds that give you a good bonus to this beautiful postcard.
Wonderful image, sharpness, exposure, colors and POV are excellent.
Photo very well done. I like it
Enjoy a good day.
Very best regards.
Luis.

mcmtanyel (67709) 2021-12-14 21:35

Hello Mariusz,
A fantastic beach,making me long for the summer again.
Regards,
MT