Compare?

[Roy]

How does Fuerteventura and Lanzarote compare?

I've been to Lanza a few times but never been over to Fuerteventura, not even for a day trip. When I ask around people seem to love it hate it and the 'hate it's' have put me off spending a week there just in case I come home feeling the same way. I must admit, from Google Earth it does look a bit bleak.

Would you recommend a visit or do you think I would spend the week looking across toward Playa Blanca in regret. I've had a range of comments and I'm keen to avoid as one person said "its ok if you like spending time on the beach surrounded by a scattering of naked Germans with little else to do".

[Anne Bond]

Hi Roy

Well, I can only tell you about our experience of Fuertaventura, which was, admittedly, about fifteen years ago, just after Christmas for two weeks. Jandia was the place we stayed in. Which, when we got there, had a large contingency of Germans, Scandinavians and Spanish and a very small amount of Brits. I had always thought the Brit portrayal of Germans as being cliched, but, boy did I have my eyes opened on that trip. They openly took the mickey out of any posh Brit's accent (not ours, Cockney and Saaf London), let the hotel's doors close in your face and the lift doors close when it was obvious you were running to catch it. :fool
The Thomson hotel was an aparthotel built into the side of a cliff, with many floors, and was a firetrap. All the fire doors were padlocked shut! :yikes
The resort was man-made, with a few very LOUD bars, and a mix of mostly nice restaurants. All prices of food and drinks were very high, two omelette and chips cost us £10.00, a lot, all that time ago. The menus were multi-lingual, with Spanish, German, Swedish, Italian and English at the back. Most of the waiting staff were unfriendly with some notable exceptions. The beach, although beautiful and stretching for miles, was incredibly windy (apparently they hold the world wind-surfing championships there), and if you were not on the beach at 6.30 in the morning, the horse-shoe arrangements of black volcanic rock that were used as windbreaks were all taken by guess who. Mind you, that wasn't a big problem for us as it rained for most of the fortnight we were there! :rain
What you also have to remember is that Fuertenventura is the biggest Canarian island, and the route across is through mainly featureless rock; very boring to travel through. So, I would never visit again, in fact, we stupidly let it put us off the Canaries for years before we dipped our toes into the water again (thank God it was Lanzarote the next time). I have spoken to some people that love Fuertaventura, who visited Caleta De Fuste (spelling?) and the other resort the name of which escapes me. But I would definitely be one wistfully looking at Playa Blanca wishing I was there instead!:khu
Perhaps someone who likes Fuertaventura can post to give a bit of balance against my decidely biased opinion!