Enjoy Dia de Canarias 2026

Today it's Dia de Canarias day once again, the Canarian 'national' holiday when the inhabitants of the Canaries are allowed to proudly say ''Soy Canario'' (I'm Canarian) and celebrate their feeling of national identity under Spanish colonial rule. Towns and villages enjoy one of the region’s biggest annual cultural celebrations with all things considered typically Canarian. The public holiday is the anniversary of the first session of the Canary Islands Parliament in 1983 and is celebrated every year with traditional music, dancing, food, concerts and many other local events across all of the islands. Wherever you are in the Canaries you will find local events, some also before and after the actual day itself. Below is the poster for the main event in Valle Gran Rey, La Gomera, which starts at 2 pm in the harbour of Vueltas and continues all day until the early hours of Sunday morning:

Naval base planned for La Gomera

Aircraft carrier 'Juan Carlos I' heading for Valle Gran Rey in La Gomera island soon ? (Image:gomeranoticias.com)

It has just been announced that the outer harbour of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey, La Gomera, is to be turned into a Spanish naval base.

After the revelation a few days ago that the Spanish navy has been shadowing and tracking Russian vessels which had been acting suspiciously while in waters around the Canary Islands for a while, it comes as no surprise that European and Nato forces are stepping up surveillance of vessels around these islands.

In a recent article published by local media like gomeranoticias, navy commander Alejandro Fraga Pardo de Guevara was quoted as saying: “It is a satisfaction for the navy personnel to contribute to collective deterrence in the archipelago, our work guarantees the integrity of the territory and prevents conflicts through a credible presence at sea”.

In another interview later rear admiral Juan Antonio Pepino de Bromista-Chistoso revealed: ''In view of the recent growth of global instability and conflict our presence in this remote archipelago in the Atlantic will now be increased significantly with the addition of a new small naval base in La Gomera's Valle Gran Rey to support our existing presence in these parts. This new base will help to protect Spain in line with our European and Nato defence obligations. The measure may also help to reassure the large number of anxious elderly German tourists and residents in the area and in general promote the area's safety.'' However,. the move should also be seen in light of the American president laying claim to the Canary Islands last year, as I reported HERE...

The rear admiral added: "Most ports and harbours of the Canary Islands are extremely busy or at capacity. They also often accommodate busy marinas which hamper our manoeuvrability. Valle Gran Rey's under-used, almost empty, large outer port facility is the natural choice for a new navy base. Further, its strategic far south-western location in the Atlantic with sweeping views over that area of operations and protection by tall mountains shoreside combined with only a small civilian population are making it most suitable.'' 

The long outer pier in Vueltas port with this SAR ship one of its few regular visitors

It is planned that the base will initially be home to 3 to 5 warships only during phase one. The current almost empty ferry terminal is to be converted into the naval base's command centre and an additional two floors will be added on top of this. The pier ''will get a long-range radar, a watchtower, fuel storage and ancillary facilities''. The ferry 'Benchi Express' will continue to operate from Vueltas, but will be moved to the old pier in the inner harbour. 

It remains to be seen how the spending power of the sailors when on leave will transform the nightlife of Valle Gran Rey when the naval base comes into operation on April 1st, 2027...ahoy there!

Space flight with rockoon direct from La Gomera soon

The 'rockoon', a word derived from rocket + balloon (this image and video below: b2space.com)

When I first heard about the planned launch of a rockoon (a huge balloon with a rocket attached to it) to take place in the harbour of Valle Gran Rey, La Gomera, I thought it was yet another funny tall tale or false rumour doing the rounds. But what sounds like something that I might have dreamed up for my popular annual April Fool's Day posts is in fact true and about to happen in the middle of this month.

The company behind the venture with the slogan ''taking your business to space'' is B2Space Ltd. It was founded 2016 in the UK and later expanded to Spain with the ''purpose to provide a reliable, flexible and low cost access to Low Earth Orbit for small and micro satellites'' and ''High Altitude Operations and Near Space Testing''. The idea is that a stratospheric globe carries the rocket up close to the earth's atmosphere before its ignition to leave same for space, saving lots of fuel.

Vueltas harbour (Google maps)

The next launch, planned for a ''window of opportunity between November 16th and 23rd 2025'', will be from the harbour of Vueltas in La Gomera, selected as the ideal site because of its remoteness and safety, plus I'd say the predominantly favourable weather played a role , too. According to the local press  ''this maritime environment allows to meet security requirements and obtain the necessary licenses''. Could Valle Gran Rey's little-used harbour now transition to a spaceport ? There's a couple of acres of vacant space available. Before launch, on November 14th, the company will present the system, the associated planned activities, and further details in the harbour of Valle Gran Rey. 

The presentation will take place in the terminal building (Estacion Maritima) in the outer harbour at 11:30am and is open to to the public. The launch of the rockoon is planned for Sunday Nov. 16th, if conditions are favourable. Be there to see it all, or if you fancy hitching a ride. A few space babies and space cadets in La Gomera might feel tempted to stow away and go higher. Rock on, rock-oon, next to the moon ! 

Seriously though, the above is true and the company's video below shows how they intend to do it:

Summertime is fiesta-time

...and more about fiestas in La Gomera can be found HERE...

A Happy Christmas To All

Image taken just before Christmas 2022 in Vueltas, Valle Gran Rey

La Gomera's oldest citizen

La Gomera's oldest citizen is Antonio Navarro from the harbour village of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey. Born the 29th of December 1914, he just celebrated his 107th birthday and he still clearly remembers all the events and experiences during his long life. Congratulations !

Antonio once imported clothes and shoes to Valle Gran Rey and he also built apartments to rent out to tourists. This accommodation is still officially listed as 'Apartamentos Navarro' today and available to book.

UPDATE Dec.31st 2022:

Antonio just celebrated his 108th birthday, see below:

                     (source of images: Ayuntamiento de Valle Gran Rey)

UPDATE May 20th 2023:  Sad news as Antonio has passed away, RIP.

Carnival programme 2020 VGR

Note: The carnival parade is on Sat. 29th of Feb. from 5:30pm

Carnival 2020 in Valle Gran Rey

This year's carnival of Valle Gran Rey takes place from the 24th of February to 1st of March 2020 and the main venue and stage will be in the harbour of Vueltas. The theme is television, but anything goes really, as usual...

Rare concert in new venue

A rare concert by Diego Barbeito aka 'Capitan Amor' is happening this Sunday, January 12th 2020, at 7:30 pm in a new venue in Valle Gran Rey. The former disco 'Quasimodo' has reopened as 'Club 432' after many years of closure. It is right at the beach of Vueltas in the basement of the apartment block that also houses the pensioners social club (formerly 'Bar Nº2'). Diego Barbeito is an excellent Argentinian Tango musician and artist, who as 'Capitan Amor' performs his own modern electronic rock-pop compositions and songs. He has been living and working in Valle Gran Rey for many years with his Argentinian wife Manix and they both also teach classic Tango dancing.

A tango workshop and concert will take place in the same venue the following Sunday, January 19th 2020 (see below).

Valle Gran Rey Christmas programme 2019

Above the programme for the Christmas season in Valle Gran Rey. First there's the annual 'Noche en Blanco' with live music and late shopping in Vueltas this Saturday. A similar event takes place a week later in La Playa. The New Year's Eve fiesta happens in La Playa this year and then we'll have the main Los Reyes Christmas fiesta from the 5th to the 7th of January 2020 in El Guro.

Keep the fingers crossed !

Lower Valle Gran Rey with the port of Vueltas (top)

Yesterday the parliament of La Gomera approved a government motion calling for the reopening of the ferry service between Los Cristianos in Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey in La Gomera which had recently been suspended indefinitely by shipping company Naviera Armas (see previous post). The motion also calls for the port of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey to be included in the list of Canary Islands ports with an 'obligatory public service' (Obligación de Servicio Público, OSP) by the Canarian ministry for transport, which would mean that a ferry connection will have to be provided.

Further, the approved motion also calls on the port authority to further improve the harbour of Vueltas and integrating it better into the town.

In an interview La Gomera's president Casimiro Curbelo also said that ferry company Armas was already actively looking 'in all of Europe' for a suitable ship to charter with which the ferry connection can be reopened viably.
In 2018 the service transported more than 170.000 passengers and 30.000 vehicles, most of which would have passed through the national park in the mountains had the ferry not been there.

Just after the announcement of the suspension of the service about 1.200 signatures for a petition in support of the ferry line were collected in Valle Gran Rey in a very short time and presented to the local mayor.

Keep the fingers crossed...

Bad News

It has recently been announced by the ferry company Naviera Armas that the ferry service between Los Cristianos in Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey in La Gomera has now been suspended indefinitely. The direct service between the two ports by high speed catamaran was introduced two years ago, but since this summer only sailed at weekends. The company has also stated that it will study the viability of a similar ferry service to be reinstated in the future, possibly with a smaller vessel. 

This is sad news for Valle Gran Rey and bad news for the forest in the national park which is experiencing higher volumes of traffic since the ferry stopped operating as all goods and traffic have to go across the mountain through the park on that road now.
Read more with an update ...

Major Reggae Festival in Valle Gran Rey

A major Reggae event is coming to the port of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey this Saturday, Sept. 28th 2019 from 8 pm. Several bands will perform during the night. The fifth edition of the 'Reggae Can' festival is touring the Canary Islands and is the largest event of its kind here. This year the theme is 'Reggae Against Plastic' and no single use plastics will be allowed at the event. No cover charge and all are welcome.

A previous 'Reggae Can' event.  Image: eldia.es (click for more info)

Ferry to VGR back in service

The direct ferry between Los Cristianos and Valle Gran Rey which had been out of service for some time due to the annual testing and inspection of the vessel in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, arrived back in the port of Vueltas late last night and is operating scheduled sailings from today and bookings can be made through the Armas website once again.

The port of Valle Gran Rey

The port of Valle Gran Rey situated in Vueltas handled about 158.000 passengers in 2018, most them using the new high speed car ferry service introduced by Naviera Armas towards the end of 2017 and the smaller Fred. Olsen passenger ferry which arrived in the autumn of 2017. The latter also sails to La Gomera's southern port of Playa de Santiago which handled almost 41.000 passengers in 2018. I took the above image of Vueltas ln late December 2017 when a small luxury cruise ship passed by at sunset.

The beer ship is back

Above: The three-masted 200ft sail training ship Alexander von Humboldt II, sometimes nicknamed 'the beer ship', heading for Vueltas, the harbour of Valle Gran Rey, at about 8:30 am this morning. Read more about the vessel...

Hiker falls to death

Vueltas harbour seen from  La Merica mountain (Archive)

The emergency services were alerted yesterday afternoon after a hiker had fallen from a cliff on La Merica mountain in Valle Gran Rey, La Gomera. In a difficult operation the body of a female hiker was recovered with the help of a search and rescue helicopter and brought to the harbour of Vueltas. The victim was reported to have fallen from a great height into a ravine with difficult access.  Her male partner was said to have been brought off the mountain by rescue helicopter, too, suffering from shock.

Get ready for New Year's Eve 2018

There'll be plenty of entertainment to welcome the new year in La Gomera during 'Noche Vieja' (literally 'old night', i.e. New Year's Eve). The main fiestas will be in the larger towns' squares and in Valle Gran Rey it is the turn of the Plaza San Pedro in La Playa with three bands playing from about 10 pm until 6am. In the capital the town's main square will fill up for the music before midnight. Usually people ring in the new year with 12 grapes, one for every month of the coming year and a glass of cava (Spanish champagne) at midnight, often after a meal in a restaurant. Most restaurants will have special set menus which often include the grapes and a glass of bubbly. But do book your table early as many will fill to capacity. There will be many open private and public parties and live music gigs in Valle Gran Rey, e.g. the Cacatua will have oldies in the beer garden and in its upper bar DJs. It's situated in the harbour village of Vueltas, generally the most lively area at night. There's several more options all over Valle Gran Rey and I'm sure you'll be able to find them as you will hear them. Some parties only get really going after midnight and continue into the early hours of the 1st of January, so make sure to have a good siesta-nap during the day before you go out...

Harbour village 'Noche en Blanco' 2018

Above the programme for the 2018 Noche en Blanco (night in white) Christmas  promotion in the harbour area of Valle Gran Rey which offers entertainment for young and old, live music in the streets and special offers in the shops - all happening in several spots around the area this Friday Dec. 21st 2018 from 5pm. Don't miss Fran Baraja and band, who drew a large crowd last year with their lively set. They'll be playing twice on the corner where the 'Bistro' cafe is in the harbour village of Vueltas. 

Direct ferry between Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey

The Alcantara 2 in the port of Valle Gran Rey 

For some time now the ferry company Naviera Armas has covered the route between Los Cristianos on Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey on La Gomera. Different vessels were used and some days stopovers and even a change to another of their ferries in San Sebastian de La Gomera were involved making the the whole journey a bit cumbersome at times.

Presently the company offers a twice daily direct connection between the two ports in both directions with the fast catamaran ferry 'Alcantara 2'. The service is bookable with Canarian ferry operator Naviera Armas (see the Travel, etc., page of this blog), even though this ferry still sails in the colours of the ferry company Trasmediterranea. The explanation for this is that Naviera Armas bought 92,71% of Trasmediterranea which was owned by yet another company, Acciona. This € 260 million deal, which had to pass Spanish and European competition legislation, makes Armas now the largest passenger and freight ferry operator in Spain.

The Alcantara 2 previously served the connection to El Hierro island in 2013, that time chartered by Armas. The 240 ft vessel was built in Freemantle, Australia in 1995 with a top speed of 32 knots. It can accommodate over 500 passengers and 120 vehicles while offering the usual services such as a bar/cafeteria, a shop and a children's play area.

The journey between Los Cristianos and Valle Gran Rey according to the ferry schedule should only take an hour and a half, but that seems a bit over-optimistic as most of the sailings have taken about two hours. Please note that ALL ferry companies seem unable to achieve their ETA (estimated time of arrival) - the sailings usually take a fair bit longer.

Anyway, the service is most welcome and avoids the long haul by bus or car across the mountains and the whole island of La Gomera. The hope is that more delivery trucks will use this service instead of driving through the national park.

When you're planning your trip to the south-west of La Gomera, please note that the Naviera Armas schedule is only available 1-2 weeks ahead of the sailing and even if it hasn't changed much in recent weeks, this makes it difficult to plan ahead. However, there's no shortage of places on this service and it can be booked prior to sailing in Armas' port terminal offices where English is spoken.
UPDATE 23-11-18:
The above ferry service is now bookable well in advance, presently until the 10th of February 2019. As it is 'Black Friday' today, there's a 50% discount available on all bookings with Naviera Armas until a minute before midnight Sunday 25th of Nov. 2018. To avail of this discount you must tick-click the second box under the acceptance of their terms and conditions, which states in Spanish only that you wish to avail of their 'promocion Black Friday'. It is easily overlooked and the booking will proceed at the regular price if you don't tick the second box, but that extra click just gave me 50% off the fare for two.
+UPDATE Dec. 15th 2018: A faster vessel will operate this ferry route from today. Read more...