Last Updated on March 12, 2024 by Suzy McCullough
September-January is a very busy time in our household and we desperately wanted to escape to some winter sun. So we decided upon a bucket list holiday to Gran Canaria.
We started looking at getting some winter sun back in late November. Nearly everywhere was thrown into the mix. In the end, short-haul (around 4 hours), cheap fares on Ryanair and virtually guaranteed sun won the day and we had our outbound flight to Gran Canaria booked. 1 week later we’d booked the accommodation and our return flight home.
About the island of Gran Canaria
There are 7 islands in the Canaries. 4 you can fly to, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. Gran Canaria is the 2nd most populous and the third largest. You can tell that the island has a volcanic history as the scenery is very rocky and stunningly pretty. Because of its location off the west coast of Africa, the weather is pretty much fabulous all year round, especially in the South.
The island does have a few microclimates and the weather in the north and centre of the island can be a lot different to the warmer south. The average high does not go below 20oC all year round.
What to wear/pack for Gran Canaria over winter
I tried for some time to Google about the winter weather in Gran Canaria, as I didn’t want to overpack with our 10kg hand luggage weight limit. I did struggle to find the information I was looking for. But in the end, we got it about right.
For our son, I packed 4 pairs of summer joggers, 4 pairs of shorts, 3 long sleeves tops, 5 t-shirts, 2 long sleeve shirts, 2 short sleeve shirts and a thin hoodie. (plus extra essentials) He wore everything, but the thin joggers were worn more than the shorts.
The days when the sun was out all day we were in shorts. If it turned cloudy then extra layers were usually needed. It was always quite cool first thing in the morning and at night once the sun had gone down.
For myself, I packed 3 pairs of shorts, a tunic dress with a thin long-sleeve top, 3 maxi dresses, 1 long skirt, 1 pair of cool trousers that can be changed into shorts, 1 cardigan, 1 long sleeve top and 5 T-shirts. I wore everything but 1 of the maxi dresses (I had a few things washed while we were there).
Where we stayed in Gran Canaria
We always use TripAdvisor to look at hotel reviews before booking. Then we usually book with booking.com or Jet2 and we read hotel reviews on their websites as well. I’d googled about where the best fishing was and the warmer weather and came up with Puerto Rico on the south of the island. We stayed in a really modern and a very fabulous 4* hotel the Marina Suites, you can read my review here.
My husband wanted to pick the second hotel in another nearby port of Puerto de Mogan. Sadly we missed out on the hotel of his choice by 12 hours. So we booked into his second option, Cordial Mogan Playa, in the same town. You can read my review here for this hotel by clicking here.
Top 12 things to do with kids in Gran Canaria
There is a fair variety of things to do with children on the island. We managed a few of those things and I have also created a post for other days out ideas. Please follow my link here for our top 12 things to do with kids in Gran Canaria.
We went for a ride on a camel – a ride on a glass bottom boat – a ride on a pirate ship – and visited Palmitos Zoo Park plus Gran Canaria is a great island to visit for dolphin spotting.
I don’t think that we could have asked for better weather while we were there. We never had any rain in the day, I think it rained twice at night…although the husband prefers to think otherwise! I highly recommend a holiday to Gran Canaria.
The weather is mostly fabulous, the island is a good size for day trips, there are lots to do with kids, there are some great hotels to stay at and they have an abundance of beaches. Plus some stunning scenery!
Click below for our family holiday video to Gran Canaria.
