We are going to Gran Canaria for a week after Christmas. Any suggestion on which area to stay? We have 2 kids 7 & 9 yrs, so love to stay closer to beach.
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Hudson Valley
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I love GC, but it’s kind of weird. The best location for you might depend exactly what you’re looking for out of your time there. My experience there is all mid-January, and there are nearly zero vacationing families—I don’t know how the family landscape might shift just after Christmas.
Las Palmas is a nice, provincial city, with a pretty beach. But there’s not a lot going on and it’s cool there in the winter, and can be quite grey.
There are some tiny beach towns along the east coast, but they don’t have much going on—mostly windsurfers living out of RVs. The bigger small town along that side are bedroom communities for agricultural workers and the hoards of people it takes to serve the tourists in the south.
If actual time on the beach is a priority you have to stay on the south side, which is a strange land of working/middle class Northern Europeans getting drunk and/or sunburnt in purpose-built tourist towns.
My first suggestion would be Puerto de Mogán. It’s a cute town that almost feels authentic. The small beach is calm and protected, and it’s right there in town. But this is the most remote, literally the end of the costal highway that loops 3/4 of the island.
At the other end of the southern stretch, closer to the airport, you might look at San Augustin. It’s a little higher end than neighboring Playa Del Ingles, but it doesn’t have a lot in the way of amenities.
Meloneras, near the lighthouse, has a few nice resort hotels and a tony-ish shopping area.
I’d avoid Playa Del Ingles, which is run down and kind of trashy. (Though, I’ll confess, it’s where I stay!)
Puerto Rico kind of freaks me out—it’s a dystopian desert canyon covered in vacation accommodation. Ive heard the beach is nice, but I’ve never been.
Note that a fair amount of the accommodation there isn’t easily booked by North Americans—it’s more sold through European travel agent packages.
Many visitors there are content with a lazy resort vacation. (The staff at my hotel marvels at how I like to do things and go places, compared to most guests who don’t leave a half-mile radius.) If you want a bigger experience you’ll need a rental car. The local companies are best for this—Cicar and AuroRiesen. Prepare to clench your jaws driving in the hills.