Although the stretch of water that separates La Gomera from Tenerife spans less than 30km, its cloud forests and terraced hillsides are a world away from its boisterous neighbour. The island’s tiny airport receives just 32,000 passengers per year, with the majority of visitors arriving by ferry. If you are looking for lively nightlife, there isn’t any – most visitors are either here for the hiking or a low key seaside escape.
La Gomera was Christopher Columbus’ final stop to provision his ships with food and water before his transatlantic voyage of discovery in 1492. Columbus stopped here again on his later voyages in 1493 and 1498.
The island is home to the Garajonay National Park – a mist shrouded relic of ancient laurasilva cloud forest. This type of forest was widespread in the Mediterranean millions of years ago, with just small isolated fragments left today. A walk through the ferns and verdant moss-encrusted laurel trees is a must for any visitor to the island.
La Gomera is also home to El Silbo – a unique whistling language that allows the Gomeros (as the locals are known) to communicate across wide ravines and valleys (the island is criss-crossed by large barrancos). Those steep Valley walls have been back-breakingly converted into terraces where bananas, tomatoes and vines are cultivated, creating a landscape rivalling the terraced paddy fields of South-east Asia.
The tourist industry here caters very much to local tourists from the other Canary Islands. Restaurants serve food geared to local tastes: you won’t find McDonalds, loads of Chinese restaurants, places serving English breakfasts or even German beer. You will find Dorada Beer, Almogrote, Potaje de Berros and just about anything served with Palm Honey. The lack of international flights make La Gomera perhaps the most ‘Canarian’ island – so if you are looking for an authentic experience with great scenery and hiking, then this is the island.
Leave a Reply