Castillo de San Cristóbal
A watchtower raised over the sea in 1577 and rebuilt in 1638, popularly known as the Castillo de San Cristóbal and listed as a Historic Artistic Monument in 1922. It formed part of the defensive system guarding the southern approach to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and stayed in military use until the nineteenth century. Today it stands off the San Cristóbal fishing quarter, reached along the Avenida Marítima on foot or by bicycle.
The tower belongs to the set of fortifications the city built in the sixteenth century to watch over its two approaches from the sea. It sits directly on the rock, separate from the line of houses, and its low cylindrical outline is visible from all along the avenue. It had to be rebuilt after the assault on the city at the end of the sixteenth century, and since then it has remained one of the most recognisable heritage features on the capital's waterfront.
The quarter beside it is fishing San Cristóbal: low houses, traditional painted boats hauled up on the shore and a row of fresh fish restaurants supplied by the local boats themselves. The promenade along the Avenida Marítima has turned this stretch into one of the busiest walks in the city, and the tower works as the visual full stop at the end of it. It is worth checking in advance whether the interior can be visited, since access to the monument is awkward given its position out in the sea.
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