Papagayo beaches

Playa del papagayo

Papagayo beaches ratings:-

8.5/10 – Overall rating

9/10 – natural beauty
7/10 – swimming safety
7/10 – access and parking
8/10 – water quality and clarity
4/10 – local amentities
9/10 – entry and exit from water
7/10 – crowd factor
7/10 – Marine life and snorkelling

Drive times

40 minute drive time from Costa Teguise
25 minutes drive time from Puerto del Carmen
15 minutes drive time from Playa Blanca

Papagayo Brief Summary

Papagayo beaches are famous for being the most natural and beautiful beaches in Lanzarote.
Located in the San Marcial del Rubicon national park near Playa Blanca there are eight beaches in total. The most famous called Playa de Papagayo.

Getting to the Papagayo Beaches

To access the beaches by car or bicycle take the road out of Playa Blanca towards Femes. Take a right on the large roundabout and follow the track. A small payment is needed at the booth.
Journey time by car from Playa Blanca is around fifteen minutes, most of this time taken by the drive along the dirt tracks.

Walking follow the coastal promenade to the Eastern end then up to Calle Las Palmeras and onto the track that leads to the beaches starting with Playa Mujeres
Another more difficult walking route is the follow the coast eventually along the Paseo playa de Afre and the eastern end of Playa Blanca. The follow a steep and small track up the rocks at the end of the Playa de Afre beach. Continue on the track to the beaches.

About the Papagayo Beaches

The Papagayo beaches are renowned as the most picturesque and beautiful beaches in Lanzarote.

The Papagayo group of beaches are set in the national park of San Marcial del Rubicon along a small peninsula on the Southern most tip of Lanzarote.

The beaches are in an isolated area with nothing else except the access track ending in parking areas for each beach.

Each of the beaches have a different size, shape and character but are similar in their golden sand and crystal clear waters.

Enter the national park via a pay booth along a dirt track which connects all eight of the Papagayo beaches.

The Papagayo Beaches mainly face South West. The direction the beaches face mean they are sheltered from the prevailing Lanzarote wind so can be enjoyed almost everyday of the year.

The beach called Playa del Papagayo and the far end of the peninsula has two establishments selling food and drinks. The other beaches have no facilities and no lifeguards. Remember to bring lots of water and sun cream The sun can be surprisingly strong.

Descriptions of each of the Papagayo beaches.

Here is a detailed description of each of the beaches as you pass them on entering the beach area after the pay booth.

Playa Mujeres

Playa mujeres

The first Papagayo beach along the track heading south is called Playa Mujeres. Take the right turn off the track about 1.2kms after the pay booth. You will enter a large car park to leave your car. The beach starts just in front of the car park and stretches south around 400 meters.

At the Southern end of Playa Mujeres are two further coves called Playa Rincon Escondido and Playa Caleteon Marcial. These small coves are accessible at low tide but be careful as the tide comes in as you can get cut off.

This beach has no facilities so bring water and sun cream plus any food you may need.
There are no sun beds or lifeguards. You can lay down your towels at any part of this lovely sandy beach and water entry and exit is over sand.Playa del Pozo

Playa del Pozo is a quiet beach due to its distance from the closest car park. To get there drive straight along the track until you get to the large car park closest to the Playa del Papagayo beach. Once park walk North in the direction of Playa Blanca until you see the large beach of Playa del Pozo. There are some rocky outcrops to the Southern end of Playa del Pozo. The Northern half of the beach is nice sand. The beach is around a 500 meter walk from the Car Park. You will pass two other smaller cove type beach of Playa de la Cera and Playa de los Boluditos on your way to Playa del Pozo.
If you want a quiet beach with the fewest other people this is the beach to chose. The North end of the beach is sheltered by rock escarpments to the North and East. Swimming, snorkelling and sunbathing are good here with the facilities of Playa del Papagayo within a few minutes walk.

Playa de los Boluditos

Playa de los Boluditos is a small cove with steep cliffs all around. Access is tricky. At lower tides you can walk around the rocks from Playa de la Cera just to the South. Be careful especially at higher tides. Very quiet cove with good sea access. The beach is only around 30 meters across. Good shelter from winds.

Playa de la Cera

Playa de la Cera

Playa de la Cera is a popular Papagayo beach. It is close to the main car park and adjacent to the very popular and pretty Playa del Papagayo. On the headland between Playa de la Cera and Playa del Papagayo are two nice bar/restaurants. The beach is accessed by a slanting path direct from the Car Park. Playa del Cera is a cove with good shelter around 80 meters in width. Water access is good, sea is normally calm and safe.

Playa del Papagayo

Playa de Papagayo

Playa del Papagayo is the most famous, photographed and beautiful beach of the papagayo beaches.
The beach consists of a cove like bay with rocky outcrops on either side. The golden sandy beach has raised banks on all side except the West so is sheltered from almost all wind directions. The large car park is close by at around 200 meters away. On the headland are two establishments to buy food and drink. The beach and headland face west to Sunset drinks here can be amazing.
Swimming and sunbathing on the beach are very good. Entry and exit to the sea are fine with some rocks so take a little care. There are rarely waves or dangerous currents in the bay but take care with inflatables on offshore wind days.
The beach is popular and can get busy especially on weekends. Snorkelling is good due to rocks on ocean bed giving shelter to many varieties of fish.

Papagayo Restaurants

SaraDev Playa

SaraDev playa is a very small cove like beach of just 15 meters width. It is located on the Eastern aspect of the very Southern tip on the Papagayo peninsula. Access is tricky by walking across the headland and exploring until you can find it. With luck there should be almost nobody there. Not suitable for families or children. There is sand on the beach with water exit over sand.

Playa Caleta del Congrio

Playa Caleta del Congrio

Playa Caleta del Congrio is a large and little used beach facing South East. The beach is around 500 meters wide. Get to the beach by parking in the main Playa del Papagayo beach car park and walking South. You will pick up the sandy track that leads down to the beach. The is a nice sandy beach with few people. The prevailing winds in Lanzarote are North East so you can be a little exposed on windy days. Entry to the sea is good with good swimming and snorkelling.

Playa Memos

Playa Memos is a nice sandy beach facing South South East. It is a sandy beach with some rocks in the middle.
You can get to the beach by walking from the main Playa del Papagayo beach or by parking in the Camping Papagayo car park.

This is the closest beach to the Papagayo campsite with is open from the 10th of July to the end of August. The beach can get busy during this period.

Camping Papagayo

If you wish to camp in the idyllic landscape of the Papagayo region then spending a few night in the camp site can be a great way to do it.

The campsite in Papagayo has dedicated camping plots for Campervans, Caravans and Tents. There are all the facilities you could need on the campsite with access to all the amazing Papagayo beaches. The closest beach adjacent to the campsite is Playa Memos.

The campsite is open from the 10th of July to the 1st of October. Reservations should be made online at https://www.acampadapapagayo.com/

Prices:
Plots for a Campervan are 11 euros per night with a maximum of four people and 3 euros per night per extra person.
Lost for tents with a maximum of 4 people are 8 euros per night and 3 euros per night per extra person.

You can arrive any time after 10am on your day of arrival and leave at 7pm on the day of departure.

Facilities on the campsite include:
Toilets
Showers
Fridges
Drain water hook ups for camper vans
Toilet water hook up
Communal lighting
Electricity
24 hour security

All the Papagayo Beaches:

Playa Memos
Playa Caleta del Congrio
SaraDev Playa
Playa del Papagayo
Playa de la Cera
Playa de los Boluditos
Playa del Pozo
Playa Mujeres