Lanzarote

If any one island speaks to the volcanic nature of the Canary Islands, it’s Lanzarote. More than 100 volcanoes shape its lunar landscape, creating an otherworldly tableau of black and red rock that contrasts sublimely with the deep blue sea and the island’s whitewashed villages.

With numerous volcanic cones rising from frozen-in-time lava fields, Timanfaya National Park is easily Lanzarote’s most spectacular site. While there, eat if you can at El Diablo restaurant, where food is cooked using the heat of the volcano. The restaurant is one of many projects designed by visionary Lanzarote-born architect César Manrique, famous for his ability to harmoniously blend nature, art and architecture. A great example is Jameos del Agua, where a restaurant and concert hall have been built around a dazzling azure lake in an underground lava cave.

Lanzarote’s volcanic soil has also proved perfect for growing malvasia grapes, especially in La Geria, whose world-renowned bodegas are well worth a visit. On the coast, beaches like Famara in the north and Papagayo in the south are among the Canaries’ most beautiful, the former great for surfing, the latter ideal for families.