The Island of La Palma
I don't know if the Madonna song was written here but La Palma is known as La Isla Bonita - The Beautiful Island. If you're looking
for peace and quiet, La Palma is just the place.
With a surface area of 706 square kilometres and peaks of over 2,400 metres, delightful La Palma is not only one of the smallest and least commercial of the
Canary Islands but also proportionately the steepest island in the world.
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Ease of access to the island's unspoilt volcanic interior, makes it a perfect destination for hikers and
nature lovers.
The most upbeat part of the island is along the eastern coast, which houses the capital Santa Cruz de La Palma, the airport and the main tourist resort of
Los Cancajos. Here the cliffs rise up sharply from the coast towards the backbone of the island - El Cumbre - and you are within easy reach of the volcanoes
to the south, the lovely north-eastern villages and freshwater swimming pools and the sub-tropical rainforest of Los Silos.
An excellent place to rent a holiday home is on the East Side of La Palma. THe area which stretches from Tazacorte and Puertos Naos to Los Llanos and El Paso is known as
The Valley. The coastline is flatter here makng the the beaches more accessible and the area is full of cactus, banana plantations and charming villages with cultivated
gardens.
Other ideal villages to stay in are Tijarafe and Puntagorda in the north of the island, from where you're in easy reach of the Caldera de Taburiente. This
volcano
can only be reached on foot but it's really worth putting your hiking boots on and walking up through the Barranco de las Angustias. The volcanic bowl is truly
awesome - it measures 9 kilometres across and is 1,500 metres deep.
And after a long hike and an afternoon on the black sand of one of the volcanic beaches, you can always sit back and relax with a high quality handmade cigar
made from tobacco grown on the island.
Football on La Palma
Being such a small island, it can hardly be said that La Palma clubs rub shoulders with the the creme de la creme.
The islands two major clubs - Tijarafe and Los Llanos - are semi-professional and play in the Regional Tercera División. Football at this level with volcanoes
in the background is an experience of a lifetime.
There's also a very lively amateur scene on La Palma with many clubs competing in Federación Tinerfeña de Fútbol competitions
against teams from other islands.
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