Where can you sleep?
The island of La Gomera offers a great variety of accommodation to all kinds of visitors: for those looking for a more touristic place to stay, you can do so in the eastern, western, and southern parts of the island, where most of the beaches are concentrated, and where you will also find a very lively culture and entertainment scene for both the day and night. And for those who would prefer engage in a more active tourism, the surroundings of the National Park of Garajonay, hide a great amount of rural accommodation, especially in the towns of Hermigua and Agulo.
What to do in the area?
Declared a Protected Biosphere, the nature of La Gomera is one of the main attractions of this island. The main protagonist of its landscapes is no other than the National Park of Garajonay, which occupies 10% of the island. If you would like to enjoy getting some bird-eye views, do not hesitate to go to the top of the Garajonay summit, at 1,487 meters above sea level. For those who would prefer enjoying of a more quiet activity, you can stroll by the more than 600 Km of paths will unveil the wildest and most beautiful nature. The wildern, virgin aspect of the beaches of this island has remained almost intact, with some of the most popular being La Playa del Inglés in the capital, or in the town of Vallehermoso.
The crystal-clear quality of its waters make of these beaches one of the most attractive spots of the island to do scuba-diving, and explore in depth the rocky caves and the beauty hidden in them.
Do not lose track of the natural reserve of Garajonay, which can offer you all of this.
What typical foods are recommended?
Even though the gastronomy of La Gomera has many influences from the regional gastronomy of the Canary Islands, it also has its own peculiarities. Due to the great abundance of crop areas, the local vegetable produce such as the yams, palm and tropical fruits are very common in this gastronomy of this area, apart from those from the land and from the sea. The 'almogrote', elaborated with goat's cheese, is one of the most popular dishes, and so is 'potaje de ñame', a yam-based stew that is usually served on a wooden bowl. The 'papas arrugadas' and 'mojo picón' are usually the perfect side to most of the traditional fish dishes. As for dessert, palm honey is commonly used in the local confectionery, resulting in recipes such as 'leche asada', or 'tortas de cuajada'. Similarly to the other islands of the archipelago, La Gomera has a longtime wine-making tradition, especially of white wine.
Where are the festivities?
In the island of La Gomera you will find a very festive atmosphere during most of the year, where religious celebrations co-exist with popular and traditional ones. The most popular festivities here are the ones of Fiesta de la Virgen de Guadalupe, held in San Sebastián de la Gomera during October, and the Fiestas Colombinas, on the 6th of September. Another key date for both locals and visitors that you must write down in your calendar is the carnival of La Gomera, during which the streets of this island are filled with merriment and colour, welcoming visitors to a great amount of carnival parades and music concerts, without forgetting about the opening speech of the carnival, known here as the 'pregón', or the announcement of the queen of the carnival.
