Playa Blanca or Puerto Del Carmen – Which Lanzarote Town Is Best?
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Stuck between Puerto Del Carmen and Playa Blanca in Lanzarote?
I’ve been to Lanzarote more than 30 times. It was my parents’ favourite holiday destination growing up, and now I travel there with my kids. So it’s safe to say I know a lot about planning a Lanzarote holiday.
Puerto Del Carmen is best for a self-catering holiday. Accommodation here is mainly apartment complexes; there aren’t many hotels or resorts (unless you go up to Matagorda). Because of this, Puerto Del Carmen has a lot of restaurants, bars, and shops.
If you’re looking for an all-inclusive holiday, a luxury hotel, or a resort feel, Playa Blanca is best. There are a lot more three-, four-, and five-star hotels here, many of which have entertainment programmes and kids’ clubs.
However, since many hotels in Playa Blanca offer half-board or all-inclusive, there aren’t as many restaurants and bars. There’s still plenty, just not as many as you’ll find in Puerto Del Carmen.
If you’re worried about the travel time from the airport, don’t be. Puerto Del Carmen is closer to Arrecife Airport, about a 15-minute drive. But Playa Blanca is only 35 minutes away and roughly 20 minutes from Puerto Del Carmen, so it’s not a make-or-break factor.
It’s easy to get from Puerto Del Carmen to Playa Blanca. So, if you’re staying in Puerto Del Carmen, I recommend visiting Playa Blanca for the day (and vice versa).
After all, there’s no correct answer to this question. It’s really a matter of personal preference, depending on the type of holiday you want. But by visiting both Puerto Del Carmen and Playa Blanca, you’ll be able to decide which is best for you for a future visit.
Hi,
We have been to both places and they are awesome, I personally love Puerto de Carmen because it’s all on your doorstep, playa Blanca was a beautiful day trip for us.the people are so helpful and friendly and the bus that goes along the strip (3) goes to all the nice places on the island for less than 3 euros, it’s a no brainer 😉truly wonderful island 👍👍👍👍👍
We returned to Lanzarote for the first time since the mid 1990s, in early April last year.
The only time we had been before was with my young stepson when he was 4yrs old and for a long weekend, Thursday to Monday staying in Costa Teguise on All Inclusive (£5pppn and £35pp return flights) when I worked at First Choice Holidays in Manchester.
So last year we stayed S/C in PDC and enjoyed the huge choice of eateries and nightly entertainment venues.
We’re going back again this year staying closer to the the old town and Playa Chica beach.
I found a good price for All Inclusive especially by comparison to S/C or B&B.
It gets some sniffy comments but it’s apartment based and they are big accommodations, more preferable than being stuck in a hotel room – and we’re already familiar with places to eat out on our travels.
We don’t stay in, we’re always out day and night, so the AI is just for convenience and will be breakfast with a couple of drinks when we get back late afternoon and before going out again in the evening.
Roll on September!
We took buses everywhere and also came back on the ferry from Puerto Calero.
Loved Arrecife and the small boat inland harbour through the other side of the old town.
We have 10nts to fill and may possibly take the day trip by ferry to Fuertaventura or stay overnight there.
We shall see… we just make it up as we go along 👍