The Canary Islands are all unique and beautiful. So why settle for one island during your vacation or internship on the Canary Islands? Under the term island hopping, changing islands, within a group of islands, has been popular and known for a long time. We also think it’s a great way to see as much of the Canary Islands as possible. The Canary Islands are each accessible by ship or by plane, especially between the islands exist many and good ferry connections. We think that it is a nice way to travel by ferry. Today we would like to give you the most important information about traveling by ferry around the Canary Islands. In addition, we will tell you about our experiences with island hopping.

If, like us, you like to explore and get to know as many places as possible…. you’ve come to the right place! We would like to give you a lot of information that you need for island hopping by ferry.

The two shipping companies that serve the islands are Fred. Olsen Express and Naviera Armas. The former is an offshoot of the Norwegian shipping company Fred. Olsen S.A. The ferries are yellow and share the typical blue and red logo. Naviera Armas, on the other hand, is a Spanish shipping company. It is based in Gran Canaria, with white and red ships. The two competitors often offer the same routes, so it is always worthwhile to make a price comparison. Such are offered by many websites.

In addition to routes between the Canary Islands, they also offer trips to the Spanish mainland. Fred. Olsen Express only offers the connection from Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to Huelva. Naviera Armas, on the other hand, offers connections to both Huelva and Cádiz. It connects a total of five Canary Islands with the Spanish mainland. Those are: Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La Palma. These routes are of course operated in both directions. So, for your vacation or internship on the Canary Islands, you can also travel by ferry and bring your car with you, for example. There is also a desire to establish a ferry service to Western Sahara or Morocco, but negotiations are stalling. Currently, the African continent is not served by any shipping company from the Canary Islands.

The Canary Islands are located in the Atlantic Ocean next to the Western Sahara and politically belong to Spain. Geographically, the archipelago is assigned to Africa, which is especially noticeable in the climate and vegetation. Every single island has beautiful beaches and much more to offer. We will show you now how you can visit the other islands by ferry during your vacation or internship on the Canary Islands, and what you should keep in mind.

First of all, you need a ticket, which you can easily book on the website of the selected shipping company. Comparison portals will help you choose the best connection for you. On the day of the trip, you need to bring your ticket and your ID card with the ID card number you used when buying the ticket. You will not be able to board the ferry without your ID card. It is advisable to bring a jacket for the crossing, as well as anti-nausea medication in case you are prone to seasickness. In any case, you need a sense of adventure and energy, but also a plan of how to get from the port to your destination and from there to your planned activities. Especially on the smaller islands, bus connections are good and it is advisable to rent a car or make a detailed plan in advance.

Overnight accommodations are available on all Canary Islands, but of course the easiest option is not to plan an overnight stay at all, but just to make a day trip. This is a good option on many islands, as some neighboring islands are barely an hour apart. If you decide for an excursion without an overnight stay and return to your main island the same evening, you will save the costs for accommodation.

However, if you would like to visit a more distant or larger island, accommodation is recommended. You will find them on all known booking sites. Alternatively, there are also campsites on many islands where you can book a pitch. However, when booking, pay attention to the distance to the activities you want to do. Without good planning, you will quickly waste time unnecessarily.

The Canary Islands differ in size and location. Accordingly, ferry connections vary in quality and travel times. For example, it is easier to visit several other islands from the central islands of Tenerife or Gran Canaria than from the more remote islands of El Hierro or La Palma. Therefore, in the following we will explain only the ferry connections from the four largest Canary Islands. These islands not only have the most convenient ferry connections, but are also the most suitable for an internship on the Canary Islands.

Tenerife is the largest of the Canary Islands and from here you have the possibility during your vacation or internship on the Canary Islands to reach all other Canary Islands with a direct ferry. In the following we show you which islands you can visit especially well by ferry from Tenerife.

The small island of La Gomera, which is still free of mass tourism, is served by both ferry companies from Los Cristianos in the south of Tenerife. There are a couple of ferries a day. The trip takes less than an hour each way. Therefore, exploring La Gomera is very suitable as a day trip! Possible activities on La Gomera include guided tours, hiking, or sightseeing in the capital city of San Sebastián de La Gomera. This is the city where Christopher Columbus prepared himself for his great voyage to India (and landed in America).

Both providers offer ferries to Gran Canaria from Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Destinations on Gran Canaria are either the capital Las Palmas de Gran Canaria or the port city Agaete. The journey takes less than 2 hours and the ferries run several times a day.Gran Canaria is a very large and varied island. Here you have a lot of leisure activities: You can hike, look at picturesque towns, go shopping, enjoy the party life in the south of the island, or relax on sunny beaches. Famous are especially the dunes of Maspalomas, where you feel like in a desert.

La Palma is one of the smaller Canary Islands and is still very natural. You can reach the island from Los Cristianos with both ferry companies and with Naviera Armas also from Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The trip takes about 3 hours from Los Cristianos and much longer from Santa Cruz. There are many beautiful waterfalls to hike to, a volcano that erupted only a few years ago, and impressive natural swimming pools.

The island of El Hierro, which is located in the very southwest of the archipelago, offers above all beautiful nature experiences and is also particularly suitable for hikers.

It can only be reached by Naviera Armas from Los Cristianos. The trip takes about 2.5 hours, but it is worth it, because the island is beautiful and also great for diving.

Currently you can only get to Fuerteventura from Tenerife with Naviera Armas. But there are two different ports of call: Puerto del Rosario and Morro Jable. The trip is a bit longer and takes at least 4.5 hours to Morro Jable and even longer to Puerto del Rosario. There, however, are particularly beautiful sandy beaches and stone formations to marvel at. We recommend the ferry ride from Tenerife to the surfer’s paradise Fuerteventura only for stays of several day

Gran Canaria is one of the most popular islands of the Canary Islands and also there are ferry connections to almost all other islands. The exception is the western island of El Hierro, which is only served from Tenerife. Except for Tenerife, all islands are served exclusively from the capital Las Palmas.

Fuerteventura can be reached quite quickly from Gran Canaria during your internship on the Canary Islands. The rides start from a duration of 2 hours to Morro Jable. The volcanic island has many beautiful beaches and towns to offer and is especially popular among surfers! The ferries leave several times a day and ensure you an unforgettable trip! The island is equally suitable for longer trips, if you would like to experience more of this great island.

The largest Canary Island, Tenerife, is very diverse and has a special center with the Teide National Park. Around the highest mountain in Spain you can marvel at many unique natural wonders. Tenerife also offers you a lot of fun during your visit to the Canary Islands. Here you can find everything: nature, party centers, great beaches, action like paragliding and much more! Another advantage: with a fast connection you can reach the island in under 2 hours.

If you have a lot of time (a few days), you could also go all the way to Lanzarote by ferry. The island is the home of the green stone olivine, which you can buy everywhere throughout the Canary Islands. The trip to Lanzarote by ferry takes at least 5 hours, so for this route most people prefer to get on a plane and reach their destination faster.

From Fuerteventura there are four other islands that can be reached by ferry.

The absolute recommendation from Fuerteventura is to take the ferry to Lanzarote. The trip only takes half an hour and is therefore perfect for day trips. And you always have a day off during your internship on the Canary Islands, don’t you? On the neighboring island of Lanzarote, rock formations and enchanting sandy beaches are just waiting to be explored!

Within 2 hours the ferry from Morro Jable reaches Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. There is a lot to see and do on Gran Canaria, which is why we recommend spending more than just one day here. The capital Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is picturesquely beautiful and very historic. But there are also many other great cities, beaches, hiking destinations and much more. Around Playa del Inglés in the south there are additionally many places to party.

To Tenerife, the connections are not quite as good and a trip takes at least 4.5 hours. Nevertheless, the largest island of the Canaries is suitable for longer stays, as there is a lot to discover here in all areas.

From Lanzarote you can reach 5 other islands during your vacation or internship on the Canary Islands. Some trips unfortunately take a long time, but with the right planning a lot is possible!

For a day trip from Lanzarote, we clearly recommend exploring the small neighboring island of La Graciosa. The trip to La Graciosa takes only 25 minutes with the ferry company Líneas Romero and goes several times a day. On the smallest of the Canary Islands there are few inhabitants, neither paved roads nor cars. So enjoy the beautiful beaches there in peace or take a walk through the breathtaking landscape.