What to see in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: Vegueta, Triana and Las Canteras
With 380,000 residents, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is the largest city in the Canary Islands and Spain's ninth most populous capital. Even so, it is surprisingly easy to get around: the centre is flat and two promenades run along the sea. In a single day you can go from the 15th-century old town past the port to the city beach, and if you are here in October, world music is playing in the streets too.
In this article we head from south to north, the way the city grew: Vegueta, Triana, San Telmo, Doramas park, Santa Catalina and the port, and finally Las Canteras and El Confital. We covered the island as a whole in our Gran Canaria article; here we focus on the city.
Vegueta: where the city was born
On 24 June 1478 a Castilian army pitched camp at the mouth of the Guiniguada ravine, and that camp became the city. The oldest quarter, Vegueta, with its cobbled streets and grand mansions, is still the heart of the city.
The Plaza de Santa Ana is the centre of the quarter. Its steps are guarded by eight cast-iron dogs, one of the city's emblems. They have stood in their current spot since 1895, but their origin is disputed: a photograph taken in London shows two identical sculptures in front of the church of Saint George. Incidentally, the way religious and civil power were arranged around this square later served as a model for the cities founded on the other side of the Atlantic.
The Catedral de Santa Ana was built in two phases: from 1497 to 1570, and from 1781 to the present day. A lift and a short flight of stairs take you up the south tower, and from there you look out over the whole city. A small but telling detail: in 1999 the Asociación Neerlandesa en Canarias, the Dutch association of the Canary Islands, gave the cathedral a bell to replace those carried off by Van der Does's Dutch fleet when it besieged the city. The cathedral's listing, and next to it the listing for the diocesan museum of sacred art.
A few steps away are the quarter's three big museums:
Casa de Colón. It brings together the nine houses of an entire block, and its best-known facade is the green doorway facing the Plaza del Pilar Nuevo. Columbus stopped on the island on three of his four voyages. Casa de Colón listing.
El Museo Canario. Founded in 1879 by Gregorio Chil y Naranjo and a circle of intellectuals. The René Verneau room displays a large collection of skulls of the island's original inhabitants, along with several mummies. Museum listing.
CAAM. The contemporary art centre occupies a historic building on Calle Los Balcones remodelled by Francisco Sáenz de Oiza, and its programme looks to three continents: Africa, the Americas and Europe. CAAM listing.
If you are hungry, the Mercado de Vegueta, opposite the Teatro Pérez Galdós, is the oldest food market hall in the Canary Islands. Market listing.
Triana: the old high street
The Guiniguada ravine separates Vegueta from Triana. Today it lies beneath the road that leads into the island's interior, so you cross one busy road and you are already in the other quarter. Triana has been a protected historic ensemble since 1993.
The backbone of the quarter is Calle Triana, the main street, which runs from the ravine to San Telmo park. Until 1947 a tram known as "La Pepa" ran along it, and some of its rails can still be seen in the paving. Next to Plaza de Cairasco stands the Gabinete Literario, whose building was the city's first theatre; the society itself was founded in 1844. Scenes for Allied, with Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard, were shot here, and so were scenes for The Mother, starring Jennifer Lopez. On the other side of the square, the Hotel Madrid opened as a café in 1910.
The writer Benito Pérez Galdós was born here in 1843, in a house on Calle Cano that is now a museum in his memory. Casa-Museo Pérez Galdós listing.
San Telmo and the Castillo de Mata
Calle Triana ends at San Telmo park, next to the bus station. The small San Telmo chapel here belongs to the patron saint of sailors; the first chapel on the site was founded in 1530. On a corner of the park, the 1923 Quiosco Modernista, designed by Rafael Massanet, now works as a café with a terrace. At the start of the 19th century this was where the city's first quay stood. San Telmo park listing.
Nearby, the Castillo de Mata fortress houses the city and sea museum (Museo de la Ciudad y del Mar). The listing.
Doramas park and the Pueblo Canario
Heading north, Doramas park was once a private English garden around the Hotel Santa Catalina, and century-old palms still stand in it. It took its present shape in the 1950s, to designs by Miguel Martín-Fernández de la Torre. Park listing.
Next to the park, the Pueblo Canario recreates a Canarian village. The painter Néstor de la Torre sketched it in 1937, his brother Miguel built it in neo-Canarian style, and it opened in 1956. The Museo Néstor inside is currently closed for renovation. Every Sunday in October there is Canarian music in the Pueblo Canario: after this article comes out, still on the 18th and the 25th.
Santa Catalina and the port
Santa Catalina park is the gateway for anyone arriving by sea, and it is where the city's English heritage shows most clearly. The park's two buildings, the Elder and the Miller, were the headquarters of English companies; work on the Puerto de La Luz began on 26 February 1883. The British footprint also survives in the Hotel Santa Catalina, the English Club, the Anglican church and the English Cemetery. Santa Catalina park listing.
The Elder building now houses the Museo Elder, a science museum on four floors with interactive exhibits, a 3D cinema, a planetarium and simulators; a good pick for a rainy day or with children. Museo Elder listing. Near the port you will find the Mercado del Puerto and the Poema del Mar aquarium.
On the La Isleta side stands the Castillo de La Luz, the oldest defensive fortress in the Canary Islands, dating from 1494. Since 2014 it has been home to the Fundación de Arte y Pensamiento Martín Chirino. Castillo de La Luz listing.
Las Canteras and El Confital
The city's beach, Las Canteras, is three kilometres long, with a promenade running its whole length. It starts in the south at the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus and ends in the north at La Puntilla, where you find the fishermen's last corner. The stretch called La Cícer is a surfers' paradise. In front of the beach, La Barra, a limestone reef more than 100,000 years old, shelters the water as a natural breakwater. On most days of the year you can see across to Tenerife and the Teide. The beach is just three or four streets from the cruise terminal. Las Canteras listing.
The Auditorio Alfredo Kraus at the southern end of the beach is the work of Óscar Tusquets, conceived as "a fortress that protects and a lighthouse that guides". It has 25 halls, the large window of the symphony hall looks out to sea, and beside it stands a large bronze statue of Alfredo Kraus by Víctor Ochoa.
Beyond the northern end of the beach, a coastal path takes you on foot to El Confital, part of the protected natural landscape of La Isleta. The Cruz de El Confital on top of the hill is one of the best spots for watching the sunset. El Confital listing. We wrote about the swimming rules and Gran Canaria's other beaches here: The best beaches in Gran Canaria.
If you want a beach closer to the centre, Las Alcaravaneras lies between the port and the city centre.
If you are here now, in October
From 21 to 25 October Las Palmas hosts WOMEX 26, the international professional gathering for world music, which returns to the city after its 2018 edition, with the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus as its main venue. The public programme brings fifty performances on six stages. The three venues are on the seafront promenade, and you can walk from one to the next. According to the official website, the open-air Plaza Stage set up on the Plaza del Espigón offers nine evening concerts over three days, free of charge while capacity lasts.
In the same month, Casa África holds its Africamía programme from 16 to 18 October, and El Museo Canario hosts archaeology days on 21 and 22 October. Every Sunday in October there are free guided tours of the old town hall (Casas Consistoriales), and the San Lorenzo farmers' market and the Vegueta craft fair are open. For more autumn ideas: The Canary Islands in October: what to expect.
The rest of the year
Since 2023 the Las Palmas carnival has been a Festival of International Tourist Interest, with Santa Catalina park as its main stage. The city's birthday is celebrated on 24 June, with a big night on Las Canteras beach and fireworks at midnight. On the night of 9 to 10 August come the San Lorenzo fireworks. In January and February there is the Festival de Música de Canarias, in April the international film festival, and between September and October the Masdanza contemporary dance festival. At Christmas a nativity scene is carved out of sand at La Puntilla.
Getting around
On foot: the centre is flat and two promenades run along the sea, so most of the sights are within walking distance.
City buses: the yellow buses of Guaguas Municipales cover the whole city. With the LIVE tourist card you get unlimited travel for 24 or 72 hours from the first validation.
Island buses: Global services leave from the Santa Catalina and San Telmo bus stations for every part of the island, and you can pay with a contactless bank card. We covered getting around without a car here: The Canary Islands without a car.
By bike: the city has almost 50 kilometres of cycle lanes.
From the airport: the city is 20 kilometres away, about 20 minutes on the GC-1 motorway.
If you fancy a market, the Mercado Central is in the city centre, and on Sundays the Las Palmas flea market (rastro) is worth a stroll, in Parque Blanco along the Ramblas Alcalde Juan Rodríguez Doreste. We will publish a separate article on Gran Canaria's other markets, day by day, on 18 October.
Sources: City of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria tourism website (lpavisit.com): Vegueta, Plaza de Santa Ana, Catedral de Santa Ana, Casa de Colón, El Museo Canario, CAAM, Mercado de Vegueta, Calle Triana, Plaza de Cairasco, Casa-Museo Pérez Galdós, San Telmo park and chapel, Las Canteras, Auditorio Alfredo Kraus, Santa Catalina park, Museo Elder, Castillo de La Luz, Castillo de Mata, Pueblo Canario, Doramas park, El Confital, San Cristóbal, the city's history, transport, festivals and the October events guide; Gran Canaria tourism website (grancanaria.com); official WOMEX 26 website (womex-festival.com); Guaguas Municipales; Global.
Cover photo (cropped): Catedral de Santa Ana, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Bengt Nyman, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.