On arrival at Lanzarote airport take a taxi to your hotel in the nearby resort of Costa Teguise – a journey of approximately 10 minutes. After checking in and picking up your bikes from the local bike shop just 300m away the rest of the day is yours to do as you please. You might be tempted to relax on Las Cucharas beach, to enjoy the lovely hotel pool or you could go out and explore the local area on your bikes. In the evening you will find there is a good choice of restaurants and bars to choose from in Costa Teguise.

Your cycling tour starts in earnest today and the route leads you north into the least developed region of the island. Impressive, extinct volcanoes line the quiet road, a reminder that these islands are relatively new in geological terms. After 12 km you reach the small village of Guatiza. The cacti plantations you see here support the cochineal insect from which a natural red dye is derived. You may also choose to stop and visit the Cactus Garden, a beautiful botanical amphitheatre designed by Lanzarote’s most famous son, the artist and architect, Cesar Manrique.

After passing through the quaint, white fishing villages of Arrieta and Punta Mujeres you enter the Corona Badlands. The wild, untamed landscape around you is only 5000 years old and was created by a massive eruption of Mount Corona – the brooding volcano to your left. The eruption created a 10 km long lava tube which can be visited today and descends from the volcano and out into the sea.

If you’ve opted for the shorter cycling route then from here you will shortly turn inland to the village of Haría – your overnight stop. If you are up for more adventure then continue cycling along the wild and beautiful north east coast to the isolated village of Orzola at the northern tip of the island. Here you turn inland and begin an ascent along a quiet winding road that offers ever more impressive sea views to your left. At the t-junction you have a choice, do you turn left and descend, with a couple of minor climbs to Haría or do you turn right and take on the strenuous climb to the Mirador del Rio (River Lookout) 448 meters above sea level? The author recommends the latter as the views really are breathtaking across the strait to neighbouring La Graciosa and you can also visit one of Cesar Manrique’s most impressive creations, a balustrade cafe and viewing platform built into the lava.

From the Mirador you have an exhilarating and scenic descent along the ridge-line looking down at the wild west coast. The final section of the ride leads you inland through a peaceful and very green part of the island to the village of Haría where you stop for the night.

After breakfast you leave Haría, following the road to the head of the Malpaso valley. The gentle ascent affords fabulous views back across the palm trees to Haría. After a final, steep but thankfully short section you arrive at another Mirador (viewpoint) where you may be tempted to stop for coffee and doughnuts whilst drinking in the fabulous view.

Narrow lane leads you along a ridge to the isolated chapel of Nuestra Senora de las Nieves. Park the bikes and walk over to the cliff edge for a truly spectacular view of Famara beach some 600 meters below! You’ve earned it so it’s now time to enjoy a wonderful long descent down to the town of Teguise. Once the island’s capital, the town is a warren of winding streets and alleyways, a good place for a lunch break. The descent continues to the village of Nazaret where you can stop to visit another of garden that was once the home of actor Omar Sharif. A little further downhill you come to Tahiche where it is possible to visit Manrique’s own, rather amazing house and museum built into an old lava flow.

The route then heads into the La Geria wine region. The vineyards here are rather unique as each vine sits in it’s own little, ash-covered hollow, protecting it from wind and aiding moisture collection. You’ll spend the next two nights in either the sleepy village of San Bartolomé or Teguise.

Today’s ride is an optional, circular route to the north shore of the island so if you prefer you can take a day off from cycling. If you opt for the ride then you’ll head north across a wide plain that bisects the island. The good road and level terrain invite you to push yourself towards the distant coastline.

Before long you reach the fishing village of Famara with it’s sensational beach at the foot of the towering Famara Cliffs. Seafood lovers may be tempted to enjoy a leisurely lunch at a waterfront restaurant while others may be drawn to the 3km long sandy beach.

Leaving Famara you cycle past Club La Santa, a sports resort with an impressive array of facilities that attract athletes from all over Europe. As you pedal through this region you are likely to be passed by all sorts of athletic types with all the latest cycling gear, including hi-spec triathlon bikes with aerobars – don’t be intimidated!

The route then heads back inland on a gentle ascent towards Tinajo. In Tiagua you can visit a farmhouse/museum showing how islanders lived over 150 years ago. A little further on, near the village of Tao, you’ll see a very impressive volcanic crater where ash is extracted to service the unique agricultural techniques used on the island.

The final stretch of the ride leads you through the island’s wine growing region back to San Bartolomé and Teguise.

Today’s ride leads you through one of the most fascinating volcanic landscapes in the world.

A beautifully smooth ribbon of black tarmac guides you into the Natural Park of the Volcanoes. This extensive region is the site of some relatively recent and prolonged volcanic eruptions that devastated the island and its inhabitants between 1730 and 1824.

After a few kilometers of cycling through this virgin volcanic landscape you arrive at the turn-off for the Timanfaya National Park. If you decide to enter the €9 entrance fee includes a very informative and interesting 30 minute guided coach tour through the park itself. You’ll also see demonstrations showing just how hot the ground beneath your feet still is!

After leaving Timanfaya, a short ascent is followed by a long and exhilarating descent out of the park to the town of Yaiza where you have a choice. Do you continue straight on to Playa Blanca, the short option, or turn right and head out to the coast to the fishing village of El Golfo? If you opt for the longer option you can stop to marvel at the impressive crater at the southern edge of the village that is being besieged by the Atlantic. El Golfo is charming little village, famous for its huge choice of waterfront seafood restaurants and an ideal place for a prolonged lunch break.

An exceptionally smooth road leads you through the tortured lava fields along the south coast towards Playa Blanca. It’s worth stopping off at Los Hervideros (the boiling pots) to peer down at the foaming ocean through holes and fissures in the lava rock. Playa Blanca, a pleasant resort town at the southern tip of Lanzarote will be your home for the next two nights.

You’ll be spending another night in Playa Blanca tonight so today you have some choices. You can simply relax in Playa Blanca, either by the hotel pool or on one of the beautiful Papagayo Beaches on the edge of town. Alternatively, if you opted for the shorter itinerary yesterday then you may like to take a leisurely ride up the coast to El Golfo for a leisurely seafood lunch. The final choice, if you’re up for a full day’s cycling adventure, is to catch one of the ferries across the strait to neighbouring Fuerteventura for a tour of the northeast corner of the 2nd largest Canary Island.

Fuerteventura:

After disembarking in the bustling resort town of Corralejo the route leads you south along the coast. The buildings soon thin out and you enter a pristine world of dazzling white sand and turquoise sea. The Dunas de Corralejo are an immense area of sand dunes and stunning beaches more reminiscent of the Sahara Desert than the Canary Islands.

A few kilometers further south the familiar volcanic scenery reasserts itself and you turn inland to begin a gentle ascent through a dramatic and barren landscape. Shortly after passing through the village of Vallebron you begin to descend towards an open plain dominated by Montana de Tindaya, a huge volcano revered as sacred by the Maxoratas, the original inhabitants of this island.

Slightly further on you reach La Oliva, the capital of Fuerteventura until 1860. The road north to Lajares has contrasting views on either side of the road, to your right the extensive lava flow from the towering Montana de la Arena and to your left a flat, desert-like landscape. In Lajares you’ll see a fine example of the traditional windmills, so typical of Fuerteventura, before turning eastwards back towards your starting point. The final descent to Corralejo provides some superb views of the town, Lobos Island just offshore and Lanzarote on the horizon. There are some great restaurants in the old town of Corralejo if you wanted to enjoy a meal before catching the ferry back to Playa Blanca.

Your final day’s ride leads you north to the Island’s capital, Arrecife. The day starts with quite a tough climb to the village of Femes, perched 600m above sea level on a saddle between two volcanoes. This can be avoided by taking an alternative route via Yaiza instead if you prefer.

After a relaxing downhill run to the town of Uga you again enter the La Geria wine producing region and begin following a scenic road lined with the, by now familiar, ash-covered vineyards. Timanfaya National Park makes dramatic a backdrop on the horizon off to your left.

After a a few kilometers you turn right and make a gentle ascent to the village of La Asomada from where a long and exhilarating descent leads you all the way to Puerto del Carmen, the biggest and most popular tourist resort on the island.

It has to be said that the town centre of Puerto del Carmen is a little on the ‘tacky’ side but before long you join a pleasant beach side cycle path that leads you north past the more tasteful beach-side development of Playa Honda.

It’s easy cycling all the way up the coast to the finish from here so take your time and perhaps stop for a swim at one of the many beaches along the way.

Eventually you arrive in the bustling capital of Arrecife. Check-in to the opulent, beach side Gran Hotel and then take a stroll through the pleasant old town to the picturesque marina were you’ll find plenty of great restaurants to celebrate your achievement.

After breakfast it’s time to take a taxi to the airport, just 10 minutes away, for you home-bound flight.