Timanfaya National Park, Lanzarote

Explore the Timafaya Nacional Park in Yaiza, Lanzarote.

Timanfaya National Park, Lanzarote
© Desmetjes

The Timanfaya Natural Park is located on the municipality of Yaiza, Soutwest of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.

Parque Nacional de Timanfaya
© Andrés Nieto Porras

Timanfaya
© Son Of Groucho

The origin of the Timanfaya Nacional Park was in 1730 and 1736 when, in one of the most fertile places of Lanzarote, happened one of the most important eruptions in the volcanology’s history.

Over many years, what used to be fertile fields were converted into authentic lava fields and more than 20 populations were buried under the anger of the craters. This brutal natural action transformed this unusual place into a National Park in 1974.

The park extends in more than 51 square meters and it holds a chain of volcanoes known as Montañas de Fuego, the ones that were responsible for most of the eruptions.

This terrain extension reaches the sea and, despite its hostile appearance, many animal species live here like the Haria lizard, crows, seagulls and shearwaters. Also, it’s important to highlight the existence of a great variety of lichens (more than 300 species) as well as reeds and other endemic plants and flowers.

Very close to the park we might find the La Mancha Blanca Visitor’s Centre, where we might discover some interesting information about Timanfaya. Here you might also take a look at the permanent exhibition with interactive panels and volcanic simulation.

The Montañas de Fuego and all the Timanfaya National Park are a must see if you’re staying in Lanzarote. While visiting the Montañas de Fuego you might get a strange startling feeling.

The first site to visit is known as Hilario’s Islet, a place where the underground reaches a temperature of 140ºC (284ºF) only 10 cm below the surface and 400ºC (752ºF) if you dig 6 meters.

On this place you might find the El Diablo Restaurant, with a circular architecture and totally integrated with this location. This restaurant has a natural oven punched into the mountain and that it seems to descend to the depth of the volcano, which is where they cook most of their dishes.

The next stop on this trip is the Ruta de los Volcanes. On this spot you have the chance to watch all the points of interest on the park. From specially conditioned buses you might take a 14 km trip through the principal volcanic zones with geological interest where you might see volcanoes, lava tongues, stoves and volcanic tubes.