El Cotillo Fuerteventura: Exploring the Town

Date Nights are highlights of any holiday and we try and go for a good few each time we’re away. As Fuerteventura is spent with the extended family, getting out with just us two is even more important. Fortunately for us, the island is filled with exciting things to do. Whether that be an evening on Popcorn Beach, or simply a day spent on the road exploring, we tried to make the most out of being abroad. One day we wanted to explore El Cotillo Fuerteventura. The aim was simple; go exploring, grab a cold drink and enjoy the seaside.

El Cotillo Fuerteventura: Exploring the Town

We arrived at El Cotillo Fuerteventura about 4pm and the sun was beginning to hide behind the incoming clouds. There had been the annual festival the night before and so around us people were tidying up and cleaning but, because of this, the town itself was relatively quiet.

The Old Harbour

We began wandering about the town and headed to the Old Harbour for the first stop. This was a pebbled cove with large cliffs on either side. The Old Town itself is built into these, making for a very picturesque view on multiple angles.

The main sight of the Old Town are some impressive cliffs that surround the cove. There are also a few cool murals and paintings for people to discover. Whilst there is not a lot to see, the atmosphere is great, and I would completely recommend experiencing it. There are also some nice bakeries and restaurants, but make sure you book them early.

El Cotillo Town and New Harbour

Once we had taken in the atmosphere, we decided to walk up the hill to the newer part of the town. Before the tourist boom of the eighties, the town of El Cotillo Fuerteventura relied entirely on fishing as a source of income. Given its location, facing inwards to the Canary archipelago, these waters were rich in fish and so a new harbour needed to be built to sustain this.

The new harbour is at the Northern point of the town and boasts an impressive concrete wall that meets a large rock in the sea, creating an artificial cove. This large harbour also apparently has its own impressive wildlife, with tales of juvenile (baby?) sharks and even manta rays being found here. We were not lucky enough to see any, but we did stumble across a stunning little interior design shop – annoyingly I couldn’t get away with carrying some of these gorgeous rugs home.

After a little retail therapy, we grabbed a cool drink and sat by the New Harbour. Here we were treated to impressive views of the Western coastline. El Cotillo beach, a popular destination for kite-surfers and general thrill-seekers, could be made out. The beach itself seemed to go on for miles and was protected by large cliffs behind it. I would to have loved to spend some time there, but it is especially windy and the water is rough (hence the hotspot for water sports), so we instead headed back the other way to Playa de la Concha.

Playa de la Concha

El Cotillo Fuerteventura is home to Playa de la Concha, a famous beach on the island. Jack’s family used to spend a lot of time here when they were little. In fact, the apartment that they used to rent is just a few hundred metres away! We arrived at the beach in the evening. This was great as the final tourists were heading back, leaving just the locals who usually accumulate here for a picnic. We had decided to eat dinner at a restaurant, but we had brought with us some cool drinks with us. Jack wanted to go in the sea for a bit of snorkelling. The beach here forms a natural lagoon when the tide is out and so the biodiversity is high. Parrot fish, barracuda, octopus, eagle rays and various other tropical fish are a common sight here. Equally, there are no boats that can get past the external reef so snorkelling can be done in peace.

We then just sat there drip-drying and catching the days last moments of sunshine. There was little wind and most people had or were going home. It was really peaceful. We tucked into to our 3D crisps (I would highly recommend) and drank a Fanta Limon (I would also highly recommend). When the temperature dropped slightly, we thought that it was probably time to retreat. Before heading home however, we thought we would drive to the Lighthouse, which sat just a few miles away.

The Lighthouse, El Cotillo

We drove down the coast route which was filled with hidden coves and beaches that tourists never venture. The lighthouse was an impressive sight and was home to a museum, which unfortunately was closed at this point. Nevertheless, we were able to read some information about the structure and its location, which apparently was of Geological significance. We walked around the rocks, seeing whether we could find an elusive fossil. It almost felt like we were back in the UK; there was a strong smell of seaweed and the salty wind battered us as we explored. I wanted to come back another day so that we could go into the museum and then into the lighthouse, however I sadly never had time.

Eating in Villaverde

With dusk moving in, we hopped back in the car and headed back to Villaverde. Date night wouldn’t be complete without some lovely food and so we parked up at Manduca, a little restaurant in the heart of the town. It used to be renowned for its bar-like cuisine, but now it had shifted to tapas, like many other places on the island. It did however still serve its iconic pizzas, which Jack and I gladly combined with some tapas sides. We went for the namesake pizza, the Manduca, and were treated to a crispy base loaded with cheese, salami, peppers and capers. We also ordered a side of crispy cheeses soaked in palm honey, calamari and potato croquettes, all washed down with the Canarian beer Tropical.

Despite only being out for four or so hours, we had an incredible, if not busy and unconventional, date night at El Cotillo Fuerteventura. We also need an early night to prepare us for our trip down south to Morro Jable, but that is a different story…

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