Car rental in Gran Canaria

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Gran Canaria is the perfect destination for those who like to travel by car. You can take a quiet, meditative drive around the local dramatic mountain scenery, enjoy beautiful ocean views, and have a spectacular photo session with the fishing villages, port, and towns in the background that look like they are made of LEGO. It is not convenient to travel by bus because there are not so many bus services and routes on the island.

For a comfortable transfer from the airport to your vacation destination, you can book a rental car right to Gran Canaria Airport.

This way you will not have to spend money on taxis or take a long transfer bus ride to get all the tourists on your bus to their hotels. In 10-15 minutes of the paperwork, you will drive towards your great vacation.

Where is best to book a car on Gran Canaria

You can rent a car at the airport upon arrival but experienced travellers avoid doing so. Because early booking on aggregators offers substantial savings.

Localrent.com is an aggregator of reliable local car rentals. The benefits of booking with us: 

  • A good selection of cars at reasonable prices
  • Your order price will not increase while you are waiting for your vacation
  • The advance payment is only 15-20%, and you pay the remaining amount after you inspect the car
  • The deposit is much smaller than the market average
  • Good customer support is ready to help in any situation. 

Choose and book your car on our website well in advance so you can enjoy your vacation on the beautiful island of Gran Canaria.

For how long to rent a car

If you want to spend most of your vacation lying on the nearest beach, you should rent a car for a day or two to add a bit of sightseeing to your trip. This way you can easily visit the top sights, drive to the coast, meditate in the mountains, and walk around the local capital. 

And if you are planning an active recreation, you had better rent a car for the whole period of your stay so you don't feel tied down to one place. In addition to the beauties of nature, the island offers many good restaurants and cafes.

Which car is right for your trip

The roads on the island are excellent. The motorway along the entire coastline is perfectly paved. The roads are just as good in the mountains, including the one running to Roque Nublo (Rock in the Clouds). 

A compact car is good for driving on expressways. The engine capacity of less than 1.4 litres will not be enough for driving to the mountains because the car can stall when you drive uphill with four passengers and air conditioning on. Choose a more powerful car. A crossover would be a good option.

And, of course, nothing can beat a convertible when you take pictured with the blue volcanos in the background.

Picking up and dropping off a car on Gran Canaria

Make sure to arrive at the meeting point on time to pick up your booked car. If you happen to be late, call and inform the rental agent as soon as possible.

You’ll need the following documents:

  • Valid driving license with a copy in the Latin alphabet
  • ID or passport
  • Bank card or cash (all available payment methods are listed on each car's booking page)
  • Your car rental voucher (can be in electronic form).

Please inspect the car carefully, mark any damage on the acceptance diagram and take detailed photos of the car’s interior and exterior.

Make sure to read the rental agreement before signing it and ask the rental agent to explain any unclear parts of the document. Keep one copy for yourself.

It usually takes 10-15 minutes to pick up your car.

To drop off your car, drive it to the specified location. The rental agent will inspect it and sign your copy of the car handover certificate. Keep it for a while, just in case.

The drop off usually takes 5-10 minutes.

Traffic regulations on the island

There are many speed cameras on Gran Canaria, so it's not a good idea to break the speed limits.  The speed limits are 120 km/h on expressways, 90 km/h on highways, 50 km/h in towns. 

The driver must not use a mobile phone, even when the car is stopped at a traffic light. You can only use the phone when your car is parked at the curb. 

Seat belts must always be fastened and children must ride in child seats only. 

Do not overtake on the right on the local roads. 

At a roundabout, the car that enters the roundabout first has the right of way.

The legal limit of blood alcohol content is 0.5 ppm. From time to time, the police check drivers “as a preventative measure”, so please don't be surprised by this demand from law enforcement.

Parking on Gran Canaria

There are both paid and free parking spaces. There are only few free parking spaces in the centre of the capital, Las Palmas.

Paid parking spaces are marked with blue markings on the pavement. If the sign says that parking is paid from 11:00, it does not necessarily mean that it is free before 11:00. This can mean that no parking is allowed before 11:00. All information will be available in the panel below the sign in Spanish. You can install an app on your phone that translates text using the camera. The parking rate is around 1 €/hour.

Parking near supermarkets is expensive, 2-3 euros per hour for noncustomers. You pay at the exit.

There are free parking spaces near popular beaches. Such parking lots are usually packed full but you can wait for someone to leave. It does not take very long. Or you can use paid parking spaces that are also available near the beaches. 

DO NOT park near yellow markings or in a handicapped space.

Where to drive on Gran Canaria

The roads are toll-free and the fuel is cheaper than on the “mainland”. Besides, the island offers a huge variety of routes.

Driving around the “Island of Dreams” is fun in itself. The local nature changes every ten minutes from palm trees to pine trees to eucalyptus trees. 

One of the local natural wonders is Barranco Azuaje (Gorge of Azuaje) in the north of the island with a rare laurel and fir forest, a cable car, and mesmerising landscapes with a cascade of rocks and peacefully grazing sheep. 

The second one is Dunas de Maspalomas Nature Reserve, a mini-desert in the south of the island. The nature reserve consists of two parts: the rolling sand dunes and the beautiful La Charca Wildlife Lagoon. 

Those who love monumental landscapes will appreciate the viewpoint of Mirador de Unamuno that offers an epic view of the extinct volcano's caldera. 

And, of course, you can check out the most beautiful beaches. For example, Playa Anfi del Mar is a swimming beach backed by palm trees, with imported coral sand. The way into the water is comfortable for kids. Playa de Mogan is a golden sand beach in the west of the island. Worth visiting if you are into diving. Playa de Melenara is a remote beach near the town of Telde, popular not for its calm waters and dark sand, but for its seafood restaurants.

4 Comments
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Sandra
10.10.2023 15:09

Good afternoon! Do all rental cars have navigation?

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Iryna (Localrent)
10.10.2023 18:36

Hello! No, navigation is optional equipment. The rental company will only provide it if this equipment is included in your booking.

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Jerry
17.05.2023 15:04

What driving experience is required?

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Iryna (Localrent)
17.05.2023 18:12

Hello! The minimum renter’s age is 22 years, the minimum driving experience is 2 years.