Playa del Cañuelo

Access is from Atlanterra: take the turn-off before the Río Cachón, then follow the CA-2216 towards the Faro Camarinal. Just before the lighthouse building, a gate blocks cars from going further, and a small car park serves as the starting point. If there is no space, there are places lower down along the road, near the accesses to the Playa de los Alemanes. On foot, you walk up the road for about 400 metres to the lighthouse, then several paths converge and drop through the vegetation to the beach. Allow 30 to 40 minutes of walking in all, on ground that is not technical but does slope.

The beach has no services at all: no water, no built shade, no refreshment stand. You have to bring everything: water, snacks, a parasol if you want one, bin bags to take your rubbish away with you. That is precisely what makes it worthwhile: there are often just ten of you spread over hundreds of metres of sand, with clear water fed by the Atlantic currents. The best window is May-June and September-October: mild temperatures, few people, a dry path.