Corralejo Fuerteventura Canary islands

Approaching the northern side of Fuerteventura   

Thursday 17 October started promptly for us. From about 0700 the anchor snubber had been creaking ‘interestingly’. I had snorkelled the previous evening and seen a number of rock ledges between BV and her anchor, which I had reported back to Nicky. Once she had been woken by the noise of the snubber and by the motion of BV on the swell (which she reported as far jerkier than she would have expected) she was concerned that our anchor chain had been caught under a ledge and was keen that we clear it before we risked being caught by the tide rising. Happily, the anchor came up pretty easily, though the chain did describe an interesting pattern across the seabed – maybe it had been around some rocky outcrops. By 0745 we were on our way, turning south from Punta del Aguila, to cover the 8 miles to Corralejo on Fuerteventura where we hoped find a space in the marina. We still hadn’t heard back about our request for a berth but, worst case, we reasoned that we could anchor in the bay next the port to get Alex and Lucy on board. The 8nm passage was under rather grey skies and we even had enough rain to dig out waterproof jackets; it looked like Alex and Lucy were bringing some of the Mancunian weather with them!

Corralejo ferry port   

Nicky put on her best ‘English Lady Abroad voice’ and struck up a conversation with the harbour staff on the VHF radio. We were slightly concerned because there were a lot of yachts anchored just outside the port and the marina looked totally full. However, once they heard that we had applied for a berth we were told to make our way in and look out for a security guard on the green pontoon. Here we moored up in one of the last 2 free spaces. Perfect, and just in time to let Alex and Lucy know before they boarded their flight out from Manchester.

We spent the day preparing BV for guests and, without any travel hitches, Alex and Lucy turned up late in the afternoon to be greeted by clear blue skies.

Corralejo turned out to be a great place for them to start their holiday with us.

The waterfront has a good mix of cafés and restaurants whilst the coastline stretches away with a series of sandy beaches to enjoy. We also saw some reefs further offshore which proved to be very popular with surfers, kite surfers, canoeists and paddle boarders.

We’d discovered the food shops close to the port but coming back after exploring along the beaches, we also found that there were a lot of very cosmopolitan designer label shops and branded diners in the town centre just one block back from the beach strip.

Despite the temptations of McDonalds, Angus Steakhouse or the numerous ‘Full English Breakfasts’ ashore, we ate on board, cooking on our barbecue which seemed to go down well.


Corralejo was so pleasant and relaxed that we stayed a couple of nights. Moored in the marina it was easy for everyone to get ashore and explore the town and it allowed Alex and Lucy to adjust painlessly to life on board. It was definitely holiday time!

Corralejo, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands