TRAVELSPECIAL
Canary Calling
With winter on its way , now ’ s the time to plan an affordable warm water getaway . Simon Rogerson looks at three of the most popular Canary Islands , and what they have to offer visiting divers
With autumn comes a perennial question for UK-based divers in search of sunshine and warm water – where can you go without breaking the £ 1,000 barrier ? Your best options are the Red Sea [ see September ’ s Travel Special on southern Egypt ] or the Canary Islands .
With the Canaries , we are presented with a European-style diving destination , conversely located off North West Africa , in the Tropic of Cancer . For topside tourism it has the promise of predictable , mild weather , beaches and established resorts that cater for northern Europeans in search of warmth . For the diving traveller , these islands represent an opportunity to explore a multi-layered environment with shimmering schools of fish , plus unique creatures both benthic and pelagic . There are wrecks , volcanic structures , caverns and an entire ecosystem adapted for the sand-dominated environment .
Incidentally , ‘ Canary ’ doesn ’ t refer to some garrulous songbird , but a species of large dog that roamed the land before the Castilian conquest . There were pre- Castilian people as well , nomadic groups related to North Africa ’ s Berbers , thought to have migrated there using small boats , from about 3,000 years ago . Today the islands are an autonomous community of Spain .
Being a mainstream tourist destination means that flights to the Canary Islands are affordable , though prices fluctuate by season . This is a subtropical environment , so you get water that is noticeably warmer than the UK and a mixture of fish species from both climates .
Expect a temperature range of 18-24 ° C , blue water and visibility of 15-25m . There is coral , but it ’ s the branching variety rather than the reef building corals of tropical latitudes . In the cooler months of winter , you are likely to see a predator that is otherwise very rare – the angel shark . The following sections will set out some of the virtues of our three principal destinations , but , very broadly , here ’ s what to expect from each . What they all have in common is easy-access diving , with many dives taking place from the shore rather than going out on boats . Let ’ s take a closer look .
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