Whilst on your visit please take the time to visit some if not all of the places listed below. From quaint little villages hidden away in the middle of nowhere, the museums and the many fabulous beaches that can be found here, either by bus or by hiring a car. If you dont fancy the driving why not take one of the many guided tours on offer, sit back and relax, you will be so glad you did!
Much of the information supplied here is by kind permission of our friends at Fuerteventura.com
We have included both Caleta de Fuste and also around the island of Fuerteventura as a whole.
Click on the place name to view that page.
About 10km south of the airport lies Caleta de Fuste - also known as El Castillo, one of the major tourist towns on the island.
Like Corralejo, change is happening fast in Caleta with more buildings cropping up on every corner to help cope with the large amounts of tourists that descend on the island each year.
Caleta de Fuste has one long main street consisting of low-rise buildings where the main bars and restuarants are concentrated. The resort has also expanded inland so if you fancy sampling some of the nightlife but don't fancy the walk, then try to book an apartment closer to the town centre.
There are many quiet tree-lined streets and one of these leads to the the man-made beach - set against a back-drop of hills and a few apartments. The resort now boasts a new golf course that has a club house, restaurants, hotels, and many more facilities. At the Golf Course roundabout there is also a new shopping complex with some fine shops and restaurants, a multi-screen cinema (the films are mainly in spanish) plus a 10 pin bowling alley.
You are never short of things to do in Caleta de Fuste with all the usual watersports available as well as boat trips, diving,and even a submarine offering undersea excursions.
The nightlife is pretty varied too with plenty of bars offering all kinds of entertainment from live music to karaoke and a wide variety of restaurants including English, Chinese, Italian, Indian, Greek and authentic Spanish.
Because of Caleta's central location it's easy to explore the rest of the island if you hire a car.
With tourism booming on Fuerteventura, Corralejo, situated in the north, is one of the most popular resorts on the island.
More and more apartments are springing up each year to cope with the demand, and Corralejo which was once a small fishing village, has now grown into a lively colourful town.
Luckily, Corralejo has managed to retain its original charm and atmosphere, and there are still white sandy beaches in the town centre, where you can 'drop down' and soak up the Canarian sunshine.
Most of the shops, bars and restaurants are along the main street which leads right down through the music square and on to the harbour which looks across the other side of town and the sand dunes.
These dunes (which are a protected nature reserve) lie just beyond the town. The dunes spread for miles along the east coast and this is what makes Corralejo such a popular resort. See our gallery for more fantastic photographs.
No building work is allowed on this area with the exception of the two main hotels in the north, The Hotel Riu Palace and the Riu Oliva beach.
You can still find some of the original houses in the town, these are simple and quaint but most have now been transformed into shops and restaurants.
Corralejo caters for all ages and there's a wide variety of things to do, from watersports, tennis, Glass bottom boat trips, Ferry trips to Lanzarote, Jeep Safaris, Island tours, Mountainbiking, Motorbike tours etc..
It wasn't until 1984 that Costa Calma had its first major tourist boom, despite its incredible white beaches.
Costa Calma (the calm coast) lies about 80km south of the airport (see map) on the edge of the national park area of Jandia.
The very first hotel was built in 1977, but it wasn't until the road from the capital Puerto del Rosario to Morro Jable was completed and Costa Calma was properly connected to the electricity network did tourism really start to take off.
Today of course, the resort is fully up and running with plenty of bars and restaurants and hotels (over 8000 beds). Costa Calma is largely tailored towards German-speaking visitors although there are a few English companies that deal with this area.
The main road into the resort is surrounded by palm trees and Canary pines - quite a rare sight on Fuerteventura. If you've driven all the way from the north (about 2hr drive) then this is a nice stop off point.
The highlight of Costa Calma has to be the long sandy beach of Playa Barca to the southwest. It's always easy to find a quiet, sheltered spot here even during peak season. Windsurfers are particularly fond of this beach because of the strong off shore winds during the summer months.
During the 1990's a new building phase began in order to accommodate as many guests as possible using as little area as possible while trying to retain the natural beauty of the surrounding area. With more tourists on their way there are plans for more shopping centres and a marina.
Pronounced 'El Coateeyo' this small rustic little fishing village is dedicated to the virgin of good travel (Virgin de Buen Viaje) these words can be seen painted on the cliffs in the old harbour.
Situated on the northwest corner of Fuerteventura, Cotillo is a peaceful place but it offers some good restaurants, bars, a few shops and more recently, lots of new accommodation.
Like it or not, El Cotillo looks set to become the newest tourist resort on the island. The main reason for this has to be the fantastic beaches and lagoons that lie to the south of this little harbour town.
If you turn left as you head into Cotillo you head towards the cliffs.
From here there are several footpaths that lead down to the Playa del Castillo, one of the nicest beaches in this region.
Further to the south are the beaches of Playa del Ajibe de la Cueva and the Playa del Aguila, both wild and remote.
Here you'll find nothing but steely blue sky, dark blue ocean with white foam, and fine white sand.
This is truly the surfing and windsurfing Mecca of the island.
During the winter time the swell can be so huge that on very rare occasions the waves break over the new harbour wall.
These monster waves have even been known to sink some of the small fishing boats that are moored there. Many experienced surfers head to the beaches of El Cotillo and those between El Cotillo and Corralejo because of these conditions.
The best advice here is to only enter the water if the waves are reasonably gentle-looking. This is normally during the summer months. If it's windy, (a lot of the time it is) there are several nice places for sheltered sunbathing between the lava stones.
What was once a small fishing village with only 200 inhabitants, Morro Jable has now grown into one of the biggest holiday resorts for German tourists on the island (with around 8,000 inhabitants). It was during the early eighties that tourism first took off after the construction of the first Robinson club.
At this time you could only get to the resort via rough sand tracks and it wasn't until 1982 when the new main road was finished that things really started to happen.
Nowadays Morro Jable has something for everyone. The miles of golden beaches and clear blue seas, shops, bars and restaurants of attract thousands of tourists each year (at present there are around 16,000 beds).
Morro Jable lies 100km from the airport but there are plans to build a new road directly to the resort.
Despite all the tourism the old village still remains intact and there is a quaint harbour in the west of the town which is used by local fishermen and yachtsmen and you can still escape the hustle and bustle should you wish to take a leisurely walk along the promenade or check out one of the local beaches.
Some of the beaches here are the longest and most beautiful in the Canary Islands stretching 35km and there's plenty to do for the water sports enthusiast from jet skiing to windsurfing.
Its also possible to take a jet foil from here over to the neighbouring island of Gran Canaria.
Morro Jable continues to grow each year spreading further afield (as do many of the main resorts on Fuerteventura) and a new marina is also being planned for the future.
This is one of the oldest villages on the island. Built in the 18th century Antigua was once the capital of Fuerteventura but only for a very short while (one year)! Then the honour was passed on to La Oliva (the capital today is Puerto del Rosario).
The present population of Antigua is around 3000 and the total area is 250 sq.km.
The picturesque church (Cruz de los Caldos) that dominates the town was built in 1785 and stands amongst well kept trees and shrubbery. This church is usually open to the general public in the mornings and sometimes during the afternoons. Next to the church is the beautiful village square which is filled with flowers all year round.
Antigua also has a fully restored windmill which is now a cultural centre and a tourist attraction. Inside is a craft shop selling local handicraft and art.
Despite being a fairly sleepy village, Antigua has a few social facilities for the local people such as a school, library, post office and a clinic. The church hall is used for a general meeting point.
The main economy is based on agriculture and fishing (from the port of 'Pozo Negro') although a lot of the younger people are now finding work in the nearby resort of Caleta de Fuste.
Antigua is also famous for it's market so keep an eye out for the flyers that advertise this event.
Just outside the town is the home of Fuerteventura's very own TV station which broadcasts local news and events all over the island.
Fuerteventura's former capital Betancuria lies in a picturesque valley next to a dried up stream which flowed up until the 16th century.
Founded in 1405 by the Norman conqueror Jean de Bethencourt (hence the name Betancuria) it has a fair amount of history behind it.
The reason for its location was to protect the capital from pirate attacks, although in 1593 the pirate Jaban penetrated the Betancuria and reduced everything including the Santa Maria church to a pile of rubble and ash.The church was not rebuiltuntil 1691.
Betancuria was capital for quite some time until the local people started moving away from the town due to lack of arable land. In 1834 Betancuria bowed down and handed the honor over to La Oliva (who then handed over to 'Puerto de Cabras' known today as Puerto del Rosario).
On the main street running through the town is the Casa Museo Arquebiologico, flanked by the famous cannon the building contains a collection of important and fascinating archeological finds. Highlights here include fertility idols, an idol frieze that was discovered near La Oliva, and also numerous farming implements.
The Centro Insular de Artesania, next to the museum, documents traditional arts and crafts.
Betancuria's income comes mainly from day visitors. The church which has now been fully restored is open to the public from 10am until 6pm and there's also a church museum.
If you really want to see some local handicraft this is the place to come. Try a visit to the 'Casa Santa Maria' where you can watch the local artists at work and even purchase some of the hand made products from the quaint local shop.
The Santa Maria restaurant serves excellent food with a superb view of the workshops and the village. If you're still up for it, you can then try out the wine and cheese tasting next door.
Cofete sits in one of the most isolated corners of Fuerteventura. Access to this area is only via one of the small dirt tracks but it's still well worth the effort just for the views. But do remember to take some supplies with you!
As you pass the highest point between the peaks of Pico de la Zara and Frail you are rewarded with spectacular views of the north and south of the island.
Another place worth a visit in the area is villa winter - of Gustav Winter. This house stands on a fenced piece of land the same shape as Fuerteventura and the position of the building on the plot is the same as its location on the island.
Originally designed as a manor house, the house of winters was intended to ensure land cultivation in that region. Many people used to live there in almost total isolation at a time when agriculture, animal farming and cheese making were only just developing.
The town itself is almost a ghost town and many of the owners only use the houses there as weekend retreats, although there are a few locals that live there on a permanent basis. As time passes more and more houses are springing up.
Cofete town makes an ideal stop off point for day trippers exhausted from the rough tracks and the climb up the mountain, there is a small bar in town should you need some 'liquid refreshment'.
This is one of the biggest towns on the island and owes its sucess to the fact that all of the islands tomatoes were once shipped from here. They are now mainly shipped from the main port in Puerto del Rosario.
From the harbour it's possible to view all of the streets and small alleys that are built into the hillside.
Gran Tarajal is a very relaxing place, and it's a joy to wind down watching the local fishermen at work and to stroll along the beach promenade.
This town isn't trying to be anything special, and this makes it far more authentic than most of the other coastal towns on the island.
Gran Tarajal is one of the most important non-touristic areas and it has all the services of any of the major towns such as a police station, post office, shops, schools, a local council office etc.
There are also many concerts, competitions and fairs etc held here.
One highlight of the town centre is the beautiful fountain with six sea horses spouting water.This is situated right in middle of a shady oasis of tall palm trees just beside the church that was built in the 20th century.
The construction of this church was financed by an emigrant returning from Cuba, who also introduced metal wind-wheels to the island.
Just ten minutes drive from the main tourist town in the north Corralejo, is the small village of Lajares.
The first thing you notice upon entering the village is the football stadium that was built in 1990. The town also boasts a 'lucha canaria' area this is a form of wrestling that's very popular throughout the Canary Islands.
The main attraction for tourists has to be the local lace shop 'Artisania Lajares' where you can watch the local women making lace and embroidering. Many coach trips use this as a stop off point for refreshments and the chance to buy some local canarian handicrafts The shop is open from 9am to 7pm through weekdays and till 1pm Saturdays.
In the southern part of the town are two windmills next to the church. Pictured is the newer one of the two (the 'female' windmill known as 'Molina'). This windmill was still in use up to 20 years ago, but the owner and his wife still live there.
Many years ago Lajares was a popular place and local people came from miles around on foot or with donkeys to grind their roast grains. Nowadays many 'giris' - expats - are settling there.
The village of La Oliva was the political center of Fuerteventura from the early 17th to mid-19th century, and you can still see some of the buildings standing today. La Oliva is now home to the local district town hall (Ayuntamiento).
Directly in the centre of town is the main church (Parroquiade Nuestra Seiiora de Candelaria). This pretty little church has a square bell tower visible for miles around, and a finely-carved wooden door. Highlights inside the church include the mudejar ceiling, and a large painting of The Last Judgment, a baroque altar painting by Juan de Miranda (1723-1805), and also some fine trompe 1'oeil work.
Surely the grandest part of town and the main tourist attraction has to be townhouse the Casa de los Coroneles, or house of colonels which is currently under restoration. This was where the military governors of the islands used to reside. Above the main entrance is the family coat of arms with a crown a tree and a goat. The wooden balconies are decorated with carvings. It has been said many times that the building has 365 windows, but this comes mainly from comments made by the poor who expressed their opinions on the wealth of the people who were living in the house claiming they had "as many windows as there are days in the year".
Further from the centre of town is the Casa del Capellan where the local priest once lived. This building has a stone door and windows that are decorated with floral designs. Unfortunately the building has been left to decay.
Located just between the church and the Casa de los Coroneles, is the 'Casa Mane' art centre (Centro de Arte Canario Casa Mane). Here you can visit the exhibition halls that house work from well know Canarian artists. On the ground level there are rooms for current exhibitions and a sculpture courtyard, while the basement contains a large contemporary art gallery. Among the the permanent exhibits are the works of Alberto Manrique.
The population of La Oliva is around 10,000 people with an area of approx. 356 square kilometres.
The picturesque little town of Pajara only has a small population despite its administrative importance on the tourist centres of the Jandia peninsula.
Pajara village (not to be confused the municipality of Pajara) has a population of around 700 and the town (for Fuerteventuran standards) has a fair amount of trees and bushes. There are even lawns and a freshwater swimming pool. Just outside the Town Hall sits a fine old disused 'donkey driven' waterwheel, and close to that is the leafy church square.
The church (Iglesia Nuestra Senora de la Regla) was built between 1687 and 1711 and is one of the most beautiful on the island. There are many different motifs decorating the glamorous stone doorwayand the Virgin that stands at the altar was brought to the island by a wealthy emigrant (allegedly from Mexico). The church opens from 11am till 1pm and in the afternoon from 5pm till 7pm.
Not far from Pajara is the small quiet town of Tuineje. It was close to here in 1740 that 37 farmers armed with just five muskets and various agricultural implements battled against a 50-man English pirate troop that were carrying guns and cannon. The battle took place on the Montaņa de Tamacite and surprisingly, even with their lack of weapons, the local people won the battle attacking the English before they had time to reload. Thirty Englishmen and five local Fuerteventurans' (or Majoreros) were killed that day, and two captured the cannon that can still be seen in front of the museum in Betancuria today.
This scene has also been immortalized in a painting in the church 'San Miguel Arcangel'.
In 1966 La Pared made its attempt to become a new exclusive tourist town in the south of the island. At present the town still only consists of small bungalows, a hotel and some private detached houses.
Situated in on the North west coast of Jandia, La Pared gets its name from the stone wall which allegedly ran from East to West coast of the island that divided Fuerteventura in two halves (Maxorata and Jandia).
The town's water supply comes from the natural caverns in the mountains free of charge because only gravity is needed for pressure not pumps. All the major roads are finished but you'll find access to the beaches is via dirt tracks.
To be honest, there isn't a great deal in the village, but there are some great restaurants in the area, a golf practice course with tee offs covered in artificial grass, and a horse-riding school.
A great place to spend a family day out is at the restaurant Bahia Mar which has a panoramic view of the coast, a fully equipped swimming pool with water slide, and children's playground. After your meal you can sit on the terrace or stroll down to the local beach to enjoy the breathtaking sunsets.
If you fancy escaping from your resort for the day you can get to La Pared via road from Pajara or from the road north of Costa Calma.
Puerto del Rosario
The capital of Fuerteventura since 1860 Puerto del Rosario sits close to the airport and has a population of around 18,000.
Once called Puerto de Cabras (goat harbour) the town developed into an important port during the 19th century after taking the capital of the island from La Oliva.
The church in the centre of 'Puerto' is dedicated to the patron saint 'Virgin del Rosario' and it wasn't until 1956 that the town was given the more pleasant name of Puerto del Rosario (port of the rosary).
Puerto is more of an industrial area and isn't really geared up for tourism, although many people still visit the town from the nearby resort of Caleta de Fuste to do some shopping. Until recently it wasn't that attractive, but now the main street has been finished off, many of the roads resurfaced and the harbour promenade has been rebuilt.
The harbour area is the oldest part of town and it is from here you can find all of the small alleys lined with old Canarian style houses.
There is one place worth a visit and that's the home of the former exile poet Miguel de Unamuno which is now a museum.
There are plans for a tourist quarter and a municipal park. This year (April 2006) the biggest shopping mall on the island opened its doors right here in Puerto del Rosario.
Puerto has improved very much over recent years. Spreading inland are more and more excellent shops, and a few years back industrial estates have been introduced offering 'Cash 'n' Carry' warehouses, giving residents more choice at better prices.
Although there isn't much to say about the village itself Tefia (to the south of La Oliva) is the home the the new 'Eco museum' called La Alcogida. This fascinating place is based upon an old Canarian village and gives an insight into how life must have been before the arrival of tourism on Fuerteventura.
There are eight small houses including a main farm house. And inside are examples of old ovens, milling wheels and live demonstrations of lace making, basket weaving, pottery, cheese making, carpentry and a blacksmith.
The 'village' even grows its own Canarian crops.
As you enter the site you'll be handed a remote control unit, upon reaching a post with a specific number on, click the corresponding number on your remote and listen to commentary in your own language.
If you fancy delving into the history of Fuerteventura head for Tefia.
The village and protected zone of Tindaya sits at the foot of the 401m mountain of the same name.
Tindaya was once regarded as a very religious place and the mountain was considered sacred. This can still be seentoday in more than 100 carvings of 'feet' (podomorphs) in the smooth rock. These strange carvings which sit at the very top of the mountain, were only recently discovered in 1978.The feet are said to be there to ward off evil spirits.
On a clear day it's possible to see mount Teide the highest mountain / volcano on Tenerife from the top of Tindaya. Old inhabitants used to see mount Teide as the residence of the devil and all the carvings face in that direction.
The rock of the mountain (traquita) is very hard and defies erosion and when smoothed down and treated makes an attractive fascia. The stone can be seen today decorating the walls of Fuerteventura airport.
This small goat farming village was recently thrown into the limelight because of a project to build a 'gigantic cube' inside the Tindaya mountain. A contemporary Basque sculptor Eduardo Chillida, intends to 'hollow out' the mountain. Chillada said he wished to create "a great space where we would feel smaller than what we think we are, and more tolerant to one another, a place of tolerance".
The project would also include a public park making Tindaya one of the islands major tourist attractions.
Vega de Rio Palma
This valley and its village of the same name is one of the most beautiful areas on the island.
The impressive church (Nuestra Seņora de la Peņa) which was built in 1666 is surrounded by greenery and the white and clay coloured buildings sit on the edged of the stream with little terraced fields in between.
Up until the 16th century there was a mountain stream that flowed through the village. It was along this stream that Jean de Bethencourt and his army marched upstream in the 15th century.
Just beyond the dam is the tiny white chapel (Ermita de Virgin de la Peņa). At the altar hangs a painting showing the discovery a statue of the saint which now stands at the main church. This statue was brought to the village by Jean de Bethencourt. Sortly afterwards the church was totally destroyed by 'Jaban' the pirate in 1593 but the statue was hidden so well that it was only rediscovered in the 17th century.
Vega de Rio Palma makes an ideal stop off point as you travel around the island.