For many, many Europeans – in particular from the UK and Scandinavia – Gran Canaria is shorthand for winter sun.

Related: Five affordable and reliably sunny European breaks

And it is a monster of a tourist island. The southern coast, in particular, is heavily built up. In Maspalomas, streets are named after package holiday tour operators, and there are stretches where you are more likely to greet passers-by on the street in Norwegian, German, or English than Spanish. The beaches are fantastic; the long sweep at Maspalomas is wide and well organized, catering to both naturist and gay subcultures. Some beautiful dunes, majestic and often empty, separate it from human development.

Gran Canaria is fun and reliable. Most importantly, it is honest about what it is. And for those who find mass tourism unappealing, the island is full of beautiful places well off the tourist track.

Here here are a few tips, budget-minded and otherwise.

Las Palmas has beautiful beaches right in the city. Photo: El Coleccionista

1. Don’t skip Las Palmas, a lovely city with beaches

You’ll probably visit Gran Canaria for the beaches, but don’t miss Las Palmas. The largest and commercially most important city in the Canary Islands has around 400,000 residents, and its metropolitan area is considerably bigger yet. It’s a real city, in other words. Highlights include the Las Palmas Cathedral, the Cathedral of Santa Ana, the Casa de Colón – dedicated in part to Christopher Columbus – and the Atlantic Center of Modern Art (CAAM). The city also boasts some beautiful beaches.

2. Seek out supermarkets for affordable food

The quality of most restaurants in the tourist zones of Gran Canaria is not great. There are exceptions, of course. I was lucky to discover a restaurant on the edge of Maspalomas serving a lovely goat stew, and Las Palmas also has a handful of good restaurants. Most restaurants, however, really do leave something to be desired.

This means that the supermarket is your best friend. The general prices of supermarket items are very reasonable on Gran Canaria, and there are many big supermarkets in Las Palmas and in tourist towns. Keep an eye out for big names like Eurospar, Hiperdino, Lidl and Mercadona. Take advantage of the fact that many, many hotels offer rooms or cottages with kitchenettes.

Hiking in Gran Canaria includes stunning volcanic scenery. Photo: blinking idiot

3. Take a mountain hike to experience island nature

Gran Canaria is a volcanic island with vast topographical variations. While it is known for its beaches, it also possesses fantastic inland nature. A good English-language resource is the fastidiously updated Rambling Roger website, set up in part to sell the Rambling Roger hiking guides to the island. (Note that the site includes links to PDFs of several free hiking guides.)

4. Bus and taxi are very cheap

A rental car will come in handy if you choose to go for a mountain hike or check out different parts of the island, but most visitors will do fine without one. Happily, the island is well served by bus. Guaguas Municipales serves Las Palmas; long-distance services leave from San Telmo bus station. In addition, taxis in tourist centers are incredibly cheap. In Maspalomas, many visitors take taxis very short distances for €2 or €3 per journey, and the nighttime surcharge is just 55 cents per journey.

Bora Bora The Hotel has excellent rates in the heart of Las Palmas.

5. Saving on hotels

Gran Canaria is full of big hotels, chain and otherwise. Huge volumes of tourists translate into good deals, but we’ll prod you gently toward the small, cheerful hotels instead, where wintertime doubles can be found for €40 per night.

Search over 100 hotels in Las Palmas.

The post 5 Tips for an affordable getaway to Gran Canaria appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

To help independent travelers think about how to launch themselves to the sun from London, we’ve reviewed the least expensive return airfares from the capital of the UK, along with recommendations for independent, non-chain hotels in five dependably sunny places: Gran Canaria, Sharm el-Sheikh, Larnaca, Antalya, and Madeira.

Prices are a lot cheaper than you probably think for three-star hotels. Most of these sleeps offer plenty of amenities and cost no more than €60 per night.

Gran Canaria, Spain

One of Spain’s very popular Canary Islands – and the second most populous of the archipelago’s seven main islands – Gran Canaria can typically be relied upon as a sunny destination all year long.

Flights
easyJet, Norwegian, Thomas Cook, Thomson Airways, Iberia Express, and Ryanair fly to Gran Canaria’s Las Palmas Airport from various London hubs. The cheapest return fare we found in early June runs £119.98 ($186) on easyJet via Gatwick. (check flights)

Flying time: 4 hours 15 minutes.

Hotel
Tusity Bed&Chic (General Vives 76, Las Palmas) offers double rooms for around €60 per night. Rooms are modern and cheerful and beautifully maintained. (see all hotel options)

Tip
Head inland. Gran Canaria might be a beach destination, but its mountains are full of great, well-signposted hiking trails. Check out Rambling Roger’s site and apps for more information.

Sunny skies and blue waters await at Larnaca, one of the most popular spots in Cyprus. Photo: Peter Fristedt

Larnaca, Cyprus

Larnaca is one of Cyprus’ two major gateways. Long popular among British tourists, it has become a major hub for tourists from across Europe.

Flights
Aegean and British Airways, easyJet, Monarch, Norwegian, Thomas Cook, and Thomson Airways fly from London airports into Larnaca Airport. The cheapest return flight we found for travel in early June: £151.98 ($235) on Thomson in and out of Gatwick, with a rather inconvenient return in the middle of the night. (check flights)

Flying time: 4 hours 30 minutes.

Hotel
Kalimera B&B, located in the village of Agia Anna, is a well-loved guesthouse with rates beginning around €60 per night. A rental car is highly recommended for guests. (see all hotel options)

Tip
Take a break from the beaches in Nicosia, the world’s last remaining divided capital.

Take a vacation along the sunny Turkish coast in Antalya. Photo: Stephen Downes

Antalya, Turkey

Antalya, located along the Mediterranean coastline of southern Turkey, is a massive tourism center as well as a major city in its own right – Turkey’s eighth largest.

Flights
easyJet, Monarch, Pegasus, Thomas Cook, and Thomson Airways fly from various London airports to Antalya Airport. The least expensive return flight we found in early June was on Thomas Cook from Gatwick, at £138.98 ($215). Like the cheapest round-trip to Larnaca, however, this flight features a middle-of-the-night return journey. (check flights)

Flying time: 4 hours 20 minutes.

Hotel
The 16-room Hotel Twenty (Tuzcular Mh., Imaret Sk) is located in the center of Kaleiçi, the old town of Antalya. Double rooms are priced very affordably at around €30 per night. (see all hotels options)

Tip
Walk through Hadrian’s Gate, one of Kaleiçi’s star attractions.

The stunning island of Madeira makes the perfect getaway destination. Photo: lietz.photography

Madeira, Portugal

Madeira, a Portuguese island located north of the Canary Islands, is loved for its verdant gardens and hilly terrain.

Flights
British Airways, easyJet, Monarch, Norwegian, and Thomson Airways fly from London airports into Madeira-Funchal. The least expensive flight we found in early June was on Monarch in and out of Gatwick, for £151.98 ($235). (check flights)

Flying time: 3 hours 45 minutes.

Hotel
Pensao Astoria (Rua João Gago 10, Funchal) offers double rooms from €38 close to the city center. (see all hotels in Funchal)

Tip
Try a glass of sercial, the driest of the Madeira wines. Tastings can be organized at Blandy’s Wine Lodge, at Avenida Arriaga 28 in Funchal.

The waters are bluer than blue in Sharm el Sheikh. Photo: Mr. Theklan

Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt

Sharm el-Sheikh, at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, attracts tourists from across Europe and beyond all year long.

Flights
easyJet, Monarch, Thomas Cook, and Thomson fly from various London airports. The cheapest return airfare we found for travel in early June runs for £280.98 ($435) on Monarch into and out of Gatwick. (check flights)

Flying time: 5 hours 30 minutes.

Hotel
Sunshine Divers Club is a popular diving hotel located in Sharks Bay, an independent hotel in a field of chain outfits. A double room for a single week goes for around €275 (about €40 per night) in June, including breakfast. Check out more hotels in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Tip
Escape the hubbub of the resort town on a desert stargazing tour.

The post 5 affordable and reliably sunny breaks from London appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.