Puerto del Carmen

The bay where Puerto del Carmen stands was inhabited before the Normans reached Lanzarote, and from at least the 16th century it appears on maps as Tiñosa or La Tiñosa, a name probably of indigenous origin related to place names on El Hierro and Tenerife. After the Castilian conquest it became an anchorage: in 1591 the engineer Leonardo Torriani described its natural harbour, the best on this rocky coast, and the port later grew through trade with the other islands and the mainland.

In 1900 La Tiñosa was declared a Port of General Interest, but larger ships needed deeper docks, and in 1928 the title passed to Arrecife, which became the island's chief port. In 1904 the settlement counted 194 inhabitants, most of them fishermen. In 1957 the village was renamed Puerto del Carmen in honour of Nuestra Señora del Carmen.

Tourism changed everything. Its first hotel opened in 1967, and as cheap flights brought northern Europe within easy reach the village became a resort, its beaches lined by the Avenida de las Playas and its low white apartment blocks spreading about a kilometre inland. It is now the island's main tourist town, chosen by most of Lanzarote's visitors, while the old harbour keeps something of the fishing village it replaced.

Puerto del Carmen is a resort town, and much of its character comes from the visitors who return year after year, above all from Ireland, Britain and Germany, along with Scandinavians and mainland Spaniards. The seafront has many Irish and British bars, some with live music and sport on television, while the old town around the harbour keeps a more Canarian feel, with whitewashed houses and terraces over the boats.

The local calendar follows the Catholic year and the sea. The town's patron is the Virgin of Carmen, and her festival at the end of July is the main local celebration. Carnival brings a parade in February, and sport has become part of the town's identity: the Ironman triathlon is held in May, and a national-qualifying triathlon follows in June. Diving is one of the most popular activities, with clear water and dive sites close to shore.

The wider island's culture is shaped by the artist and architect César Manrique, in recognition of whose conservation work UNESCO declared the island a biosphere reserve in 1993; his works, from the Jameos del Agua to the Mirador del Río, are within reach of the town. The Portuguese writer José Saramago lived in nearby Tías until his death in 2010, and his house is open to visitors.

About 11,300 people were registered in Puerto del Carmen in 2022, making it the second-largest town on Lanzarote after Arrecife, the capital. It belongs to the municipality of Tías, whose small old centre lies a few kilometres inland, and the whole island had about 163,000 inhabitants at the start of 2024.

Almost the entire local economy revolves around tourism. Lanzarote receives more than a million visitors a year, and most of them stay in this town, so work means hotels, apartments, restaurants, bars, shops, dive centres and car hire. The population present on any winter day is far larger than the census figure.

The rhythm of the town follows the visitors: busiest in winter and at Easter, with Spanish families in summer. Daytime life centres on the beaches and the seafront, evenings on the restaurants and bars, a few of which stay open until early morning. Tap water on the island is desalinated and tastes brackish, so many people drink bottled water. Shopping for residents centres on a mall built into a hollow in the volcanic rock above the old town.

Canarian cooking appears beside the international menus of the seafront. Papas arrugadas, wrinkly potatoes, are small local potatoes boiled in their skins in heavily salted water until a fine salt crust forms, eaten with mojo, a sauce of olive oil, local peppers, garlic, paprika and cumin or coriander, either red and spicy or green. Gofio, a flour of roasted wheat or maize, is an old island staple, and goats supply much of the meat and cheese. Paella and seafood appear on many menus in town.

The island's best-known product is its wine. In La Geria, inland from the town, vines are planted in hollows dug into the black volcanic ash, called picón, which helps them catch rainfall and overnight dew and keeps the water from evaporating; the method also protects the plants from the wind. The vineyards are a protected area and part of the Lanzarote wine region. Ron miel, a honey rum made in the Canaries, is drunk as a shot, often with a little lime.

The seafront strip is lined with bars and restaurants from end to end, serving everything from tapas and paella to steaks, pizza and British breakfasts. The old harbour has the restaurants with terraces over the water, and the Sunday morning market at Teguise, inland, draws visitors from across the island.