The Guayadeque gorge is easily the most interesting day trip in East Gran Canaria, especially combined with Aguimes old town and an afternoon swim at Arinaga. It's also a pain in the neck for visitors.
You'll get one from looking up at the high cliff walls and cave houses, then from ducking into the cave houses and chapel. Even the restaurant at the end of the road is carved into the rock.
Sound carries in the gorge and you'll hear dogs barking from their cave kennels and the shrill cry of kestrels as they harry the buzzards overhead. And then you'll notice the hum.
From their hives clustered high up on the valley sides Guayadeque's bees feast on a rolling buffet of flowers. The first course is a feast of pink and white almond blossom in January, followed by yellow broom, purple lavendar and blue bugloss flowers. There's always something in flower here: Guayadeque is one of the most biodiverse spots in Europe, home to dozens of unique Canarian plants.
Try the honey in the cave shops by the chapel half way up the valley.
Guayadeque was a stronghold for the island's original inhabitants. They were the valley's first troglodytes and their traces are everywhere. Visit the interpretation centre at the beginning of the valley road for details on their lives here and the traces they left behind.
Modern day locals still live in cave houses in the valley, although many have turned them into rural houses for visitors. In the old days it wasn't just the people that lived in cavesbut entire farms with everything from cows to rabbits dwelling inside the rocks.
Alex Says: Guayadeque is vertigo-sufferers gateway to the landscapes of central Gran Canaria. You get the monumental cliffs and rocks of the cumbres without steep drop offs.
This is one of the most common questions we get in our Facebook Group (with over 30,000 members) and fortunately, it is an easy one to answer. The Gran Canaria Info admin team and the fans in our Facebook group agree...
The best car hire companies in Gran Canaria are local ones with desk at the airport and honest pricing policies that don't have any hidden insurance or fuel deposit costs. They just rent you a good car at a good price with no fuss at all.
We recommend Mr Car Hire Gran Canaria (Nick); an idependent car rental professional who works with all the main local rental companies in Gran Canaria. This means that he can always find you a good deal.
Mr Car Hire also offers fully comprehensive insurance on all car rental, three-day bookings, and delively of your car right to your door anywhere in Gran Canaria.
We advise all Gran Canaria visitors to avoid booking the cheapest possible car on generic car rental websites or via their flight company because you often end up paying large deposits, extra fuel and insurance costs and all kinds of other costs once you arrive to pick up your car at the airport.
More on Gran Canaria car rental problems here.
Lex Says: Our guide to driving in Gran Canaria like a local is pure gold (unlike the car rental company you really should avoid at all costs)
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