Lanzarote Information

There is only one airport in Lanzarote, its airport code is ACE short for Arrecife and its situated 5km outside of Arrecife, right on the coast at Playa Honda in the centre of the island. The airport has two terminals, T1 is the main international terminal whilst T2 handles the inter Canary Island flights. Both terminals have their own car parks and sit side by side at the airport, the cargo centre is on the roundabout at the exit (see photos below).

Airport information can be found on www.aena.es this shows the arrival and departure information and a list of airlines that currently fly to Lanzarote.

The airport car park has a barrier system, take the ticket and park, the first 30 minutes are free so you can just exit the car park with your ticket, from 31-60 minutes it is 0.017682 cents per minute and then 0.016844 cents per minute. The daily charge is €10.60 for the first 4 days and then reduced to €8.50 per subsequent day. If you need to pay for parking, head to the small white building in the centre front of the car park, put your ticket in the machine and feed in your coins then retrieve your ticket and you can return to your car and exit the car park.

There is space for approximately 300 hire cars for arrivals although it's best to book your hire car before especially during peak times as there is a shortage in school holidays.

The taxi rank is situated directly outside arrivals, there is normally a queue of available taxis waiting, if not one will be along shortly.

There is a bus stop with two routes (línea 22 & 23) these only connect to Playa Honda and Arrecife, for information on these routes and timetables please see www.arrecifebus.com.

Terminal 1 has departures on the first floor, there are 43 check in desks, expect queues on a Thursday! In departures there is a cafeteria, pharmacy and newsagents before you check in.

Once you have your boarding pass you head through a small security section and then you are into the departures waiting area, there is a large duty free shop, Cesar Manrique gift shop, newsagents, toy shop, tobacconists, clothes and shoe shops, florist, local Canarian food and gifts etc. It’s not a huge shopping area but enough to have a quick wander before you board your flight.

The food options are Burger King, Pizza Hut (the only one in Lanzarote),  Häagen Dazs, and a couple of sandwich and drinks bars.

There are outside terraces for last minute sunshine and smokers! If you head to the far right, the terrace overlooks the runway and there is a another terrace overlooking the entrance and car park. There are lots of seats and toilet facilities whilst you wait to board.

When you disembark the plane at Arrecife you will walk through to passport control then a small arrivals hall with 4 luggage collection belts, whilst waiting for your suitcases to appear you can organise your hire car collection or wave to friends and family waiting to greet you if they are stood on the balcony. Once you have your luggage you exit through double doors, if you have a coach transfer there will be a selection of reps waiting for you, the coaches are down the exit to the right, the taxi rank is the exit straight ahead, the bus stop is on the roundabout.

Because the airport is situated on the coast, it is a plane spotters dream! You can walk the circumference of the runway, park at Playa Guacimeta in Playa Honda and head right along the promenade and cycle lane, its about 2km to walk the length of the runway which starts in the sea! Warning, the beach to the side of the runway is known to naturists and you may catch a glimpse of naked bodies as well as planes. If you don’t fancy the walk you can park at the Matagorda side of the airport and watch the planes land.

Above is a selection of photos from the promenade around the airport. If you fancy watching a few planes come and go then Thursday is the best day as its still the main changeover day for the British and there are many flights throughout the day. For anyone landing at Arrecife for the first time, there is a scary moment when the plane banks around and you feel like you are going to land in the sea, hold tight, enjoy the view and you’ll touch down before you know it.  

Here’s a video of a 757 landing from the sea…….

Arrecife Airport Approach from Miguel Naxos on Vimeo.

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