Large beach with excellent peaks. For all surfers whithout the crowd.There is a parking in front of the beach so its easy to park your car, there are a lot of currents so you have to know well the place, be with surf teachers or ask costguards.
Its better in the morning because there ar ea lot of peopole in the afternoon !
haha cheers for the info boyo...i enjoyed that little read!
comment by Bodi Dudi, 2007-05-10 15:26:51
Surf? Not as we know it
Never been one for posting on internet forums, generally due to each comment usually culminating in an online fist fight. However, fear not, i've just returned from Famara and i feel compelled, yep thats right compelled, to add my perspective. Where to begin? having dedicated too much of my time to the cold dark waters of the gower peninsula and touring the coastal roads off the north sea wishing i was 6 inches tall to surf the ankle snapping breaks, i decided i needed a break (the holiday kind as well as the water kind). the general criteria of said 'break' being: somewhere warm...where a wetsuit would be obselete, a clean 3ft glassy break. not too much to ask really is it? for reasons still unknown to myself, i concluded that the canaries were the destination and famara the break! the thought of the inital struggle through the teams of chavvie family holiday makers at the airport, all waiting for there thomas cook flights to a land of english football pubs and endless rowdy drunkenss in foreign sunshine....made me cringe! somehow, the feeling manage to subside as i sat aboard a plane with only 11 people on board....how cool is that?? happy days, this isnt going too bad! anyways, arrived at my famara beach house/apartment which was freakin awesome by the way! right on the beach....hence beach house i guess. Famara is a fantastic little place. totally out the way of everything, really chilled out, couple of cool bars, loads of locals, no holiday makers (woohoo!)....really, the whole place kinda epitomises the very essence of a surfers village/town. OK, thats the place....generally awesome! ok, now the beach....Playa de Famara is, i guess, about 2.5-3km long. at the southern/south eastern end you have Famara the town and at the far side you have the monsterous cliffs of Caleta de Famara. Town side, there is a small rocky reef and then for the rest of the beach, its generally all sand. While i was there(Apr/May) there was surf everyday....surfable? will come onto that in a minute. one thing you definately need to know about playa de famara is the amount of wind this place gets and the lack of shelter from it. for about 6 days solid it was blowing a strong consistent 30km wind (give or take 10km) there was surf....but not as we know it! the volume of kite surfers probably pays testament to what sort of beach this place is. the beach is a massive swell magnet and picks up massive volumes of water....unfortunatley there doesnt appear to be much in the way for it to break. the sandbars are really fickel! so...with a strong wind (usually onshore) + crap sand bars = 'A freakin Mess'!! there is loads and loads of white water...which i hasten to add is usually taken up with the abundance of aspiring surfers from the schools and camps trying their hardest to stand on a board for at least a second. with that said tho, on one (yes one) day...we managed to have a slight breeze (still southerly) which produced okay waves i guess...surfable anyway. pumping a solid 4 ft and out back prob 6ft. generally, there are a lot of variables this beach needs to be working properly. if your in the water in any other condition....it just gets frustrating...rides of about 4-5 seconds. Famara is fickel! it is perfect i guess for kite surfers. most people generally head down to the cliff side of the beach. i found that just in front of the old shipwreck and to the left...it was generating (albeit smaller) cleaner waves and of course, less crowded. with regards to sharks....the area around the shipwreck has turned into a breeding ground for hammerheads. i saw two from the beach...but never when i was in the water. there has never been a recorded shark attack in the canaries. i felt safe enough anyways. if you go a little down the coast to san juan, the wave is wicked....probably one of the most exciting i have ridden. can get pretty big and heavy...was about 6ft when i was surfing...a little messy, but the left is awesome. if you like steep take offs and fast exits, definately try it out. watched a local one evening surf it all to him self. ah the locals....i never experinced any probs with the locals....however, the canaries in general, do have a reputation for thinking they are the only place in the world that gets travelling surfers...surf etiquette at the end of the day. everyone just chill out and remember what surfing is about! met some pretty cool people while out there and as i said...did not experience any animoisty. wow, how long have i been typing for??? well, if anyone is still reading...for apr/may, dont expect rolling waves, perfect line ups and clean waves at famara. theres loads to do if the surf isnt working...climbing the cliffs was pretty cool and paragliding. i dont think i will go back to lanzarote...if your lookin for a cheaper foreign surf break i would recommend portugal or spain (france speaks for itself). peurto rico is the next stop for me. hope this has been at least a little helpful....anyone wants anymore info give me a call.Peace Outp.s. for the english girl at lanzarote airport....yes the amy winehouse cd you wanted to buy is in english you crowe!
comment by Anonymous, 2007-04-08 18:26:40
the rock
the rocks you mention are used by some top surfers here doing towin surfing. you need jet skis or boats to get there and is for tru pros only
comment by Anonymous, 2007-08-03 18:01:20