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Flying

Las Palmas airport is located in the middle of the east coast of Gran Canaria, about 20 minutes up the motorway from the city of Las Palmas and 35 minutes down the motorway from Puerto Rico (30 minutes from Playa del Ingles and Maspalomas).

Need to phone Las Palmas airport for general information? Call the multi-lingual staff at airport information on (+34) 928 579130

As an independent traveller here is a top tip to buying flights:

The main "UK" day in the airport is Mondays so if you're looking for a better choice or price on flights, that's the day of the week to book. There are also good flight times all through the day. Saturday is the next main day though flights are mainly evening and late at night (or silly hours in the morning during the summer). The third day is Thursday, again there are good afternoon flights. The odd airline does fly in on other days, notably British Airways scheduled service (http://www.ba.com often as cheap if not cheaper than the charter services).

Good place on the Internet to look for flight only seats/sales is www.skyscanner.net

Cheap flights to Gran Canaria are available from a range of carriers…recommended are:

www.gbairways.com , www.ba.com ,www.flybmi.comwww.flyglobespan.com, www.condor.de , www.lufthansa.de, www.hlf.de, www.ltu.com, www.islasairways.com, www.iberia.es www.spanair.com www.air-europa.com, www.iberworld.com: www.futura-aer.com www.airfrance.com

FROM LAS PALMAS AIRPORT

By Bus
Heading north to Las Palmas or to Playa del Ingles, te main bus stop to Las Palmas is used in the main by residents of Gran Canaria who, in the main, live in Las Palmas so the stop north is just outside the arrivals hall on the right and the service is every 20 minutes during the day, once an hour after 10pm. Playa del Ingles buses (no 66 service) leave from there at quarter past the hour from 07:15 to 22:15. You can even sit in the arrivals hall and see it arrive.

If you are heading further north to Playa del Ingles to Puerto Ricothe service for Puerto Rico is once an hour from 06:30 and then each '30 until 20:45. To get to the stop you leave the arrivals hall and turn right and follow that pathway for a ten minute walk, passing under the motorway and coming up on the far side of it. Then, to the left you'll see the bus stop. The one good thing is it's an express service stopping only at Playa del Ingles so the journey time is around 45 minutes once you're on.

Taxi Fare
If you are booking our apartments we can arrange an airport transfer which will collect you ate the airport and take you directly to the complex. This is Euros 30 for a car for 3 persons. This is a little cheaper than the standard taxi rate.

In some cases we might ask you to book an airport transfer as the complex does not have a 24 hour reception staff and our driver will have keys and check in instructions for you.

There's a rank of licensed taxi cabs just outside the main arrivals hall of Las Palmas airport, as you leave the building, it's to your right. Depending on how many people have landed without transportation, you may find the wait in the queue to be anything from 5 minutes to 30 or more minutes. All the cabs there are metered but expect the fare to Puerto Rico to be from €40 to €45 and to Playa del Ingles or Maspalomas, from €30 to €35. Make sure the driver knows the apartments that you're going to before you set off, otherwise catch the cab behind. Taking a note of the cab number as you get in is always a good idea in case your drop/leave anything inside the cab after the journey which can be the case when first getting here. Tipping is around €5 for the journey but depends on how efficient you found the driver to be.

Medical Care
The CLINICA IGUAZU is close the to Yumbo Centre and most personnel speak good English. They are open 24 hours a day and also offer a dental clinic. The address of the clinic is:

Edificio Iguazu
Avenida Tirajana 26
35100 Playa del Inglés
Tel: 928 764 894
Take your holiday insurance documents, flight tickets, passport and quite a few euros with you.

There is an HIV/ AIDS organisation in Gran Canaria called ASOCIACION AMIGOS CONTRA EL SIDA. To contact them phone 928 23 00 85 or 928 14 99 69 (from the island), or email: amigos@idecnet.com

Getting Around
SALCAI/GLOBAL
Official web site for the public bus service with all their timetables etc...

Most people either walk or use the local bus stops outside the complexes, or taxis. Each Hotel and complex has lots of information on how to travel around. Scooter and Car hire are also available for any longer trips.

Be Careful… like any tourist destination Gran Canaria does have a share of pickpockets. Make an effort to keep your bag zipped up and close to you, and beware of teams of pickpockets trying to get your attention while their fellow thief steals your wallet!

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