Travelling to Lanzarote with kids comes with an advantage few destinations can offer: the distances. Almost everything is under an hour from any resort area, and most of it under half an hour. You can do a morning excursion, be back at the hotel for nap time and head down to the beach in the afternoon. With small children, that’s not a detail — it’s the difference between a holiday and an endurance event.
These are the five family days out that work best, with what you need to know to plan them well.
1. Rancho Texas Lanzarote Park: the full day out
If you’re only doing one “park day” on the whole trip, make it this one. Rancho Texas, in Puerto del Carmen, combines a Wild West-themed zoo, daily shows with birds of prey, parrots and sea lions, and a water area with pools and slides where the little ones set the pace.
Practical tips: arrive at opening time to catch the morning shows before the crowds, have swimwear on under their clothes from the start (the water zone is where everyone ends up), and set aside the whole day — half a day is never enough.
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2. Calm-water beaches: the south of the island (and it’s free)
Not every beach in Lanzarote is equal when you’re with children. The ones that work are the calm-water beaches in the south, at Playa Blanca.
Playa Dorada is the most convenient: fine sand, calm water thanks to the breakwaters that shelter it, a lifeguard, sunbeds, and restaurants right on the promenade to solve lunch without drama. Playa Flamingo, at the western end of town, sits between two breakwaters that leave it almost as still as a natural swimming pool: it’s the favourite of families with children who are learning to swim, and a good spot for a first go at snorkelling.
At either one, the routine that works best in summer is beach from 10 am to 1 pm, lunch and shade, then back in the water from 5 pm. The Lanzarote sun shows no mercy in the middle of the day — even less so with kids.
3. The underground world: the trip that blows their minds
When you need a break from the sun, the island’s best surprise is underground. The lava tube that runs from the La Corona volcano formed the Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua — two visits children often rate above any beach: a kilometres-long lava tunnel with dramatic lighting (and a secret at the end we won’t spoil), and a grotto with an inner lake that’s home to the jameítos, tiny blind white crabs found nowhere else on Earth.
The two sites are five minutes apart, so they combine easily into a single morning. Two notes for visiting with children: entry is organised into time slots and it’s worth booking online in advance in high season, and pushchairs aren’t allowed inside the Cueva de los Verdes — with babies, it’s a carrier job.
4. Timanfaya: watching a volcano “live”
You can explain to a child what a volcano is — or you can take them somewhere the ground actually burns. At the Fire Mountains, the geothermal demonstrations — water shot skywards as a jet of steam, dry brush bursting into flames from the heat of the earth — achieve what no book can: they understand that the island under their feet is still alive inside. The Volcano Route is done by coach, included in the ticket, and comfortable even with the smallest ones.
The usual trick applies: it’s the island’s most popular visit, so go early or book ahead to skip the mid-morning queue of cars.
5. A family boat day: the one they still talk about years later
When we ask families which day out they’d repeat, the most common answer isn’t a park or a beach — it’s the boat day. Sailing to the Papagayo coves, anchoring where almost nobody arrives on foot, jumping off the deck into clear water… for a child, that’s a complete adventure.
A private boat to Papagayo from Playa Blanca has one extra advantage built in for families: the boat moves at your pace. If the kids want one more hour swimming in a cove, you stay. If someone’s had enough, you head back.
Getting around the island with kids
Lanzarote is best enjoyed by car. The local buses connect the resort areas well enough, but the plans in this guide need flexible timings — especially when you’re travelling around naps and snack stops.
With Jaira Rent a Car you get 10% off with the code VISITLANZAROTE, with offices in Playa Blanca, Puerto del Carmen and Costa Teguise. Request the child seat when you book so it’s ready and fitted for you:
Hire your car with a discount →
Would you rather we planned it all for you?
If you’d like a family itinerary built around you — which day to do each plan depending on your children’s ages, where to eat with kids, and what to book in advance — our team will put it together with you. Fill in the Plan My Trip form with your dates, your children’s ages and what you all enjoy, and a member of our team will get back to you within 24-48 hours with a proposal:
