|
Located just 100 kilometres off the coast of North Africa, it is the second biggest of the
canary islands, after Tenerife, and has the longest beaches in the archipelago region. The island is a paradise for sun, beach
and watersports enthusiasts.
The island is widely believed to be the oldest of the Canary Islands. Its strange form
was created out of a series of volcanic eruptions many thousands of years ago.
The first tourist hotel was built here
in 1965 followed by the construction of the airport at El Mattoral, heralding the dawn of a new era for the island. Fuerteventura,
with its 3,000 sunshine hours a year, was placed firmly on the world stage as a major European holiday destination.
The
island is on the same latitude as Florida and Mexico and temperatures here rarely fall below 18°C or rise above 24°C. There
are no fewer than 152 beaches along its coastline - 50 kilometres of fine, white sand and 25 kilometres of black volcanic
shingle.
The summer Trade Winds and winter swells of the Atlantic make this a year-round surfers' paradise. Sailors,
scuba divers and big game fishermen are all drawn to these clear blue Atlantic waters where whales, dolphins, marlin and turtles
are all common sights.
Much of the interior, with its large plains, lavascapes and volcanic mountains, consists of
protected areas which can be best be explored in a 4x4 or (for the more daring) with a cross-country motorbike.
ABOUT CALETA DE FUSTE
Fuerteventura’s busiest holiday resort has been built up around the town of Caleta
de Fuste also known as costa caleta about six miles (10km) south of the island’s airport. The resort’s horseshoe-shaped
sandy beach is man-made, covered with golden sand imported from the sahara desert.
The resort is steadily growing in facilities and popularity, the latest addition being 2
new golf courses and the atlantico centre. The old town consists of a long main street lined with low-rise buildings containing
several restaurants and bars. Nightlife is fairly lively and there are numerous watersports on offer, boat trips and even
undersea excursions on a submarine. Accommodation is mainly in apartment blocks. Caleta de Fuste’s central location
makes it a good base from which to explore the rest of the island.
|
