Hotels in Santa Lucía de Tirajana

Santa Lucía de Tirajana

Santa Lucía de Tirajana is a mountain village in the south-east of Gran Canaria's interior, set at about 680 metres in the great volcanic caldera of Tirajana. It is the historic head of a municipality whose larger towns, such as Vecindario, lie down on the coastal plain near the GC-1 motorway. Whitewashed houses climb a hillside surrounded by palm groves, olive trees and orchards, making it one of the island's most picturesque villages. The domed parish church of Santa Lucía stands on the village square at the heart of the old town. The small Museo Castillo de la Fortaleza displays archaeological finds from the area together with ethnographic, botanical and zoological collections. In the Tirajana ravine below rises La Fortaleza de Ansite, a rock fortress of burial and dwelling caves remembered as one of the last strongholds of the ancient Canarians, with a modern visitor centre nearby. Every 29 April the village commemorates the events of 1483 at the fortress. Close by are the Tirajana reservoir, wide palm groves and the El Valle oil mill, one of the last examples of traditional olive-oil production on the island. Several hiking trails start in and around the village, crossing some of the most scenic landscapes of the caldera. It suits walkers, cyclists and travellers looking for rural calm and Canarian tradition, while the beaches of the south coast are an easy drive away.