Yes!!! It is Carnaval time in the Canary Islands! The best excuse to get dressed up in fancy dress and make a fool of yourself, along with everyone else!

Tenerife festivities start in Santa Cruz on January 27th and run through to February 21st. Special dates to note are February 10th, with the election of the Carnival Queen, followed, on the 12th, by the opening of the Carnaval procession which includes a fantastic fireworks display. For all full list of Tenerife Carnaval dates, click here:

The Lanzarote Carnaval takes place between 5th to the 17th of February, with the date for the carnaval parade (cabalgata) in Costa Teguise being Saturday 27th February 2010. For more information, click here:

Fuerteventura’s Carnival is an epic event – staged between February 1st until April 1st 2010!! The main parade is scheduled for March 13th – one definitely not to be missed. For further information, click here:

Gran Canaria’s Carnival takes place between January 26th to February 20th 2010. For a full lst of scheduled events, please click here- Spanish only

Every year around Christmas, Gran Canaria lays on a very special sight for their visitors. This year was no disappointment as several sand sculptures depicting the nativity were displayed in Las Palmas for all to enjoy.

To tour all of the sculptures can take some time, but as these pictures show, it is worth the walk!

To view all the pictures, please click here:

Ryan Air have finally resolved their differences with the Fuerteventura Government which means that Ryanair have confirmed that it will operate 10 Fuerteventura routes from March 2010 from Bournemouth, Brussels, Dublin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Glasgow, Liverpool, Madrid, Milan and Pisa. These routes will mean 300,000 new passengers and 300 new jobs in Fuerteventura.

Ryanair have also announced an extension of its Lanzarote, Gran Canaria and Tenerife routes for the summer 2010 schedule after the local government confirmed that its airport discount scheme will continue until at least March 2012. Ryanair will operate 53 Canary Island routes this summer with 300 weekly flights delivering much needed growth to tourism, jobs and the economy of the Canary Islands.

Ryanair’s Michael Cawley said: “Ryanair is delighted to return to Fuerteventura with 10 new routes and to extend our existing Canary Islands routes to our summer 2010 schedule to deliver even more low fares, competition and choice to visitors of the Canary Islands.”

For more information click here:

Jobs in the canary islands

jobsinthecanaries.com is the fastest growing website for people wanting to find work or staff in the Canary Islands of Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and Gran Canaria

The site has a forum where jobs are posted regularly by all types of organisations including the media, bar vacancies, child care or even football coaches!

You can subscribe to the forum and be first in know about any new jobs posted. Employers can get notifications of any new C.V’s that have been submitted.

You can see all jobs on offer or wanted, but (free) registration is required to post any jobs or vacancies.

The website has loads of information about what to do before and after you get here, how to go about getting an NIE number, applying for your Residencia and loads of other contributions from their members.

Should you require more advice on working in the Canary islands click here.

Start your search here for a job in the sun in the Canary Islands!

€85,000

Seriously cool studio apartment for sale on a relaxing holiday complex in Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria, with views over the Beach in Puerto Rico.

The apartment has been refurbished to a very modern and practical standard, has loads of storage and brand new bathroom.

Glass sliding doors open to the kitchen area which includes a microwave, fridge and more storage cupboards. The balcony has a table and chairs and looks over to the pool.

This is a fabulously planned apartment and the use of colours makes this a very attractive property and is only a few minutes walk to the beach, bars and shops

To be sold fully furnished as seen.

Excellent investment can easily be rented out.

For more information, click here:

Although having a private swimming pool of your own can be a dream come true, the safety factors can sometimes out-weigh the benefits, especially if you have small children. In addition to this, if you rent out your property, parents may not like the idea of extra stress on their holidays worrying that their child may not be safe.

With this in mind, Gordon and Lorraine d’Andilly created Peace of Mind Pool Safety. After purchasing their own dream home, through Horizon Property Group, they went to the United States and met up with companies selling swimming pool safety fences and were impressed with what they learned. They subsequently bought one for their own property and obtained sole rights for the distribution of this purpose designed removable fencing system throughout Tenerife, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria.

Every pool fence installation is customized, right down to your choice of height and colour. It is manufactured and installed to the specifications of your pool area and also includes the option of a Patented removable, self-closing, self-latching, key-locking gate. The Australian manufacturer of Magna Latch promotes the latch as “The World’s Safest Gate Latch”.

Peace of Mind Pool Safety work together with pool installers, garden landscapers and property management companies to ensure that all holiday home owners are aware of pool safety issues and of the benefits of installing a pool safety fence system.

These benefits include increased rental income, particularly during off-peak periods when families with pre-school children tend to holiday. As the fencing system is fully removable, it can be taken down, rolled up & stored conveniently when there are no kids around!

The company mission is that “the installation of a pool safety fence should go hand-in-hand with the installation of a swimming pool or a spa”.

The protection of children around water should NEVER be overlooked.

For more information, click here:

So you want to learn Spanish? Forget slogging it out over textbooks, how about learning in the Canary Islands? If you want to get an unforgettable study abroad experience and learn from the Spanish then Study Spanish Abroad in Spain, are the ideal solution!

International Partners for Study Abroad offer you different Spanish immersion study abroad programmes. The School has been specialised in teaching of Spanish to foreign students since 1964. During which, thousands of students have attended the school and spread their good reputation all over the world. The teachers are native Spanish speakers, are highly specialised, have university degrees and are experienced and passionate about teaching their native language. You will learn Spanish as you learned your native language – through practice and continuous communication.

Study Abroad offer a wide range of options in Spanish courses in both Tenerife and Gran Canaria as well as Mainland Spain, with along with accommodation and activities. You can study Spanish language and culture from one week to as long as you like.

For more information click here:

Ideal for a holiday home or as a rental investment, a lovely apartment on a small friendly beach resort in Gran Canaria. Ideal for families and located just 200 metres to the Yumbo shopping centre and 400 metres to the Playa del Ingles beach, with a bus stop just steps away from the hotel.
The apartment has one bedroom, lounge with open plan kitchen and a bathroom.
The Balcony over looks the pool and garden areas of the complex.
A communal swimming pool and Jacuzzi near the pool bar. There is Internet access is in the Complex, and pool tables.

All for an extremely affordable

Fancy seeing Gran Canaria with a birds eye view? The safest way to paraglide on the island is with Fly Canarias, they specialise in packages where everything is arranged for you, tandem flights, video and photos. Paragliding in the Canary Islands can’t get any easier.

Whether you want to start a course, or just enjoy a one-off experience, Fly Canarias can cater for your needs. From children to experienced pilots, from cross to acro, from terrified beginners to all round experts all can enjoy over 300 flying days a year. They have all kinds of budgets to suit all pockets and dates are also flexible.

Your family and friends can enjoy the beach and watch you flying, or they can fly next to you on a tandem paraglider with an experienced pilot.

Tandem flights are also available in Tenerife and La Palma and courses will be available later in 2009

For more information click here:

Gran Canaria, in an effort to improve its image as that of just tourism, has formed a new Spa, Wellness & Health Association (GCSWHA) aimed at bringing a different type of tourist to the island.

The launch is part of an effort by the island to shed its mass tourism image,and trying to promote its world class facilities to open up different holiday ideas.

Gran Canaria has brought together the top spas, medical and recuperation facilities on the island to arrange the very best tailor-made wellness and medical holiday packages to suit the needs of UK travellers.

The Canarian Island is famed for its climate, averaging 24 degrees all year round, its natural mineral waters and Aloe Vera already has some of the top rated Spas in Europe including Lopesan Costa Meloneras Resort Spa & Casino and The Lopesan Villa del Conde Resort & Corallium Thalasso, so the new spa is in good company.

Superbugs are virtually non existent on the island and the cost of treatment is up to 40 per cent less than other UK and European medical tourism destinations even with the current exchange rate which, together with no waiting lists makes Gran Canaria an ideal destination for your medical requirements.

For further information on the Gran Canaria Spa, Wellness & Health Association, visit Gran Canaria Wellness.