One of the best discoveries I have made over the past few years is going on a winter sun holiday. The shorter days and inclement weather which we experience in Ireland at this time of year spurred me on to book a sun holiday for the first time to Lanzarote, one of the Canary islands situated in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of West Africa, in January 2024. I did so after doing some research and discovering that Lanzarote is quite popular with British and Irish holidaymakers for its year-round warm weather with an average annual temperature of 22ºC. Such was the benefit to my wellbeing from that first trip to Lanzorate that I decided to return twice in 2025, in February and December.
The island is easily accessible by regular flights with Ryanair and I travelled there from Ireland West Airport this year, staying overnight at the National Marian Shrine in Knock before my latest trip so that I could have a prayerful and peaceful start to my holiday. I booked into fully equipped spacious apartments with a private swimming pool close to the resort of Puerto del Carmen. Although it’s a four hour flight from Ireland I feel it was well worth it and it lifted my mood a lot. It is such a restorative experience going to Lanzorate during winter time and having guaranteed sun, and I have every intention of returning to Islas Canarias for more winter holidays in the future.
This time I stayed for seven days on the island which gave me sufficient time to rest and let my mind and body recover from the busyness of life back home. For relaxation all I needed to do was sit on the balcony of my apartment and bask in the sunshine and just let myself be. I also need some structure to my holiday time and seek something more than the sun and because I know the geography of the area it helped me in planning some activities in nature. I cycled along the coast to Costa Teguise and took part in a small group Hike Across Timanfaya’s Volcanic Landscapes exporing Lanzarote’s unique volcanic landscape.
I also booked a Sailing Day Trip around the volcanic island of La Graciosa, the smallest of the eight main Canary Islands, located two miles north of Lanzarote across the Strait of El Río. Although the island is not a mass tourism destination it has outstanding natural beauty and its spectacular beaches certainly make it a hidden gem well worth discovering. It felt like being on a desert island where you could literally forget about everything and enjoy the splendid sunshine while gazing at the turquoise sea that caresses its shores. It was a special experience, a time to be still and enjoy nature and silence, and to be grateful.
Spirituality and practicing my faith is an important part of any holiday I embark on and and this aspect is one of the reasons why I am drawn back to Lanzarote. I have attended Mass in Parroquia de San Ginés, a Catholic parish in Accerife, the island’s capital, regularly during my time there on holiday. It has been so uplifting to take part in the liturgies at this parish which is vibrant and charismatic. The church was packed for Sunday Mass and Mass for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and it was inspiring to witness the closeness of the Catholic community there and their enthusiam for the faith.
Earlier this year I was invited to attend the Charismatic prayer group at the parish and despite the language barrier I believe the Holy Spirit is always moving and moulding all things new. There is a great Marian devotion to Our Lady in the Canary Islands and on the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception it was very moving to attend a prayer vigil of Adoration in the church which is in the heart of the city. Being in the sun gives me physical, emotional and psychological healing, and these benefits are very important, but sitting in the church in adoration is spiritually soothing and like sun for the soul.
