Canaries Yachting Essentials

Electricity

Voltage: 220 V / Frequency: 50 Hz

Note – Type L plugs/outlets may have different pin spacing. The smaller and closer pins are for a rated current of 10 A, the bigger and wider pins are for a rated current of 16 A.

LPG / Gas

The nub is the name of the most commonly-used domestic gas in the Canaries. In Gran Canaria, some propane bottles can be re-filled with propane (see below), however, in the rest of the islands only butane is available so propane & butane bottles will be re-filled with butane.

The following range of bottles can be filled in the Canaries.

• All Spanish bottles;
• Calor Gas bottles with a blue butane or orange propane fitting;
• A number of US and Scandinavian bottles with a left-hand feminine fitting [however will want to see an expiration date on the bottle – see note below];
• French Jumbo bottles;
• Any other bottle that coincides with the Spanish fittings.

Bringing a kit of adaptors with you will unfortunately not help; bottles in the Canaries have to be filled directly from the plant’s authorized taps.

Note: 

• Some Calor propane bottles have an escape valve that is slightly raised. This creates a problem since the filling head cannot fit over it.
• Also some black, plastic American bottles, with a central slightly interior valve, cannot be filled.
• Where a safety date stamp shows, this cannot have expired or it won’t be filled.
• The same goes with US bottles (or any other bottles) that are stamped with the date of manufacture/certification and not an expiration date. Some plants will need to see a future date on the bottle somewhere in order for it to be legally filled. The DISA plant in Arrecife are strict on this.
• Payment by cash only
• Camping Gaz canisters can be exchanged at the local fuel station.

In Lanzarote, gas bottle filling is done at the Arrecife DISA plant (ask in marinas for the availability of delivery service) from 9 am – 3 pm weekdays.

In Las Palmas de Gran Canaria filling is done at the DISA Salinetas plant from 9 am – 11 am weekdays. Maximum 2 bottles per person. Most propane bottles/tanks can be filled here. Cruisers have, however, had mixed experiences here (see report) and the number of bottles permitted, and types of valves seem to vary depending on who serves you on the day. For directions see DISA.

Note: Since 2014 the DISA plants on Lanzarote and Fuerteventura could NOT refill 3.9Kg Calor gas bottles. It appears this situation has not changed.

Fuel

Fuel berths at:-

• El Hierro: La Restingua
• Fuerteventura: Caleta de Fustes, Morro Jable and Puerto Rosario.
• Gran Canaria: Las Palmas, Pasito Blanco, Puerto Rico and Puerto de Mogan.
• La Gomera: Playa Santiago, San Sebastian and Vueltas (Valle Gran Rey).
• La Graciosa: Caleta del Sebo.
• La Palma: Santa Cruz and Tazacorte.
• Lanzarote: Arrecife, Marina Rubicon and Puerto Calero.
• Tenerife: Candelaria, Las Galletas, Los Cristianos, Los Gigantes, Puerto Colon, Radazul, San Miguel and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Water

Water is available at all ports, but not always showers.

Navigation Hazards

The WACS cable lands in the Bay of Salinetas, about 9 nautical miles south of the port of Las Palmas, and 0.3 km south of the Port of Taliarte, on Grand Canary Island. Mariners are asked to keep anchors at least one mile away. See this report for more details.

Marinas

• There are restrictions on anchoring in the Canaries and in many places authorization is required. For rules on anchoring see Restrictions.
• Gran Canaria’s south coast has several good marinas at Pasito Blanco, Puerto Rico and Puerto Mogan. There are haul-out facilities at all of them as well as at the fishing harbor of Arguineguin.
• Docking facilities in the capital of Tenerife have improved dramatically with the opening of Marina Santa Cruz in the very centre of the capital Santa Cruz. A smaller Marina Tenerife operates in the fishing harbor. Outside of Santa Cruz there are good facilities at the marinas at Radazul, Los Gigantes and Puerto Colon. The boatyard at Los Cristianos also has haul-out and repair facilities.
• Lanzarote now has three marinas: Puerto Calero, Marina Rubicon and Marina Lanzarote (Arrecife). All three have boatyards and a range of services. Not to be missed in Playa Blanca, Lanzarote – if you are a diver – is the Underwater Museum.
• On Fuerteventura there is a small marina with haul-out and some repair facilities as well as fuel at El Castillo and new pontoons and services (but with limited repair facilities) in the capital Puerto Rosario. Corralejo in the north, and Morro Jable in the south, are full most of the time.
• San Sebastian, the capital of La Gomera,has its own marina, located in the northern part of the commercial harbor. Be warned of strong winds as you approach this Island.
• New marinas have opened in the westernmost islands of La Palma at Santa Cruz La Palma and Tazaorte and on El Hierro at La Restinga and La Estaca.

Finding a Berth in the Canaries

Alert:  The Port Authority of Las Palmas on Gran Canaria has created a temporary anchorage area exclusively for small craft that will be in place for one month from October 25 to November 25, 2024 to cater for an expected high number of boats heading across the Atlantic.  See this News item:  Temporary Anchorage for Visiting Yachts  for more information.

For some useful guidelines re. Government-run ports see this report – https://www.noonsite.com/news/canary-islands-how-to-book-a-berth-in-government-harbors/ (December 2020)

Main points to remember are:

• Avoid “reservation/booking platforms”. These are not updated and will probably result in failure to get a berth where you want.
• Wherever possible, contact the marina authorities directly by phone to secure a berth. This is easy with private marinas, but a little more complicated with public-run ones.
• In public-run marinas, harbor officials only work from Monday to Friday, 0800 to 1500. Make contact during these hours and you likely will be successful in getting a berth. Out of these hours public-run marinas are managed by security staff, very helpful with berthing but not able to assist with reservations.
• Fifteen ports throughout the islands are run by the government (Puerto Canarios). There is an app for pre-booking berths in these ports, however the system to deal with bookings via the app and online system is limited and often results in little assurance that a berth is actually available. Visiting these ports can be rather like a lottery, but turning up un-announced does risk being turned away (indeed there have been reports from boats arriving in Graciosa without reservations being told to leave). See the website www.puertoscanarios.es, for details of all ports and where you can also download the app. It’s also possible to book online via the website. Whichever way you pre-book, it is always recommended to call the port prior to arrival to double-check your booking has been successful.
• In all of the Puertos Canarios, charges are for the day and not the night, (so on the invoice it may look like an extra day is billed, if people are used to being charged by the night).

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