LA GOMERA: Bigger isn’t always better

Jul 26 2008 by Edward Stephens, Liverpool Daily Post

La Gomera, Canary Islands _320

Edward Stephens discovers the tiny island gem of La Gomera and a sense of tranquillity

AS THE coach climbed from sea level into the mountains, every hairpin bend – and there were a lot of them – seemed to reveal a steeper drop than the one before down sheer-sided ravines.

The journey from the harbour where we had arrived by catamaran reminded me of the final scene from the Italian Job, except that on our journey there was no such dramatic finale.

The ravines, or barrancos as they are known locally, are one of the reasons that La Gomera has not fallen foul of the ravages of high- rise tourism that have blighted some of the larger Canary Islands.

The second smallest of the seven islands in the Canaries archipelago, it lies just 15.5 miles south west of Tenerife in distance – but in reality the two are worlds apart.

You won’t find any blazing strips of neon-lit buildings in La Gomera, or any high-rise hotels.

In fact, you won’t find too many hotels at all on this little island, where in 1492 Christopher Columbus stopped to take on water and provisions before setting off to discover the Americas.

With direct flights from the UK, most people do what we did and fly from their local airport to Tenerife and then make the 45-minute journey to La Gomera using the Fred Olsen catamaran service.

If you are looking for a quiet, relaxing holiday destination where you can switch off completely, you will be hard pressed to find anywhere better.

The complex sits atop sun-baked cliffs in the south of the island and every apartment and villa looks out to sea.

But, while most holiday complexes are built around a central pool area, the landscape of La Gomera has allowed this complex to be built in tiers.

Each one has a garden fronting it and, where the plants end, the view out to sea begins, so your terrace or balcony is totally private.

The pool area itself is on the lowest terrace, out of sight of most of the accommodation, but just a couple of minutes’ walk away. There’s a superb infinity pool, a separate pool for serious swimmers and a children’s pool.

If you prefer to swim in the evenings, there’s also an indoor pool, not to mention sports facilities like tennis courts, bowls, table tennis, croquet and even crazy golf.

You can sit on your terrace and not hear or see a soul, or you can sit by the pool and enjoy the cooling breezes of the Atlantic.

A cliff path from El Balcon leads to the sleepy little town of Playa De Santiago, where there are a handful of restaurants, bars and shops, although the excellent on-site restaurant, with its ocean view, serves a superb three-course dinner for just 18 euros.

But, for the active, the big appeal of La Gomera is the National Park of Garajonay, which sits in the centre of the island and accounts for around one tenth of it.