We chose to go to the island of La Palma, because of the great hiking possibilities and because it was possible to fly to the Netherlands directly from this island. We did not regret going here! The nature was beautiful and there was a lot of variation. Let me tell you about: La Palma!
La Palma: where to stay
In la Palma we wanted to have accomodation with a view of the ocean. We also looked for a place that was not too high. La Palma has some altitude, so staying in a low place means a warmer temperature. We chose this great appartment through AirBnB.
Sunset from the appartment
Just like in Tenerife, we chose an appartment, so we could relax if the baby sleeps. It was also ideal to do our own cooking. We could eat when our baby was already sleeping, so we had the time to make it a nice long meal. Since our child was not a very good sleeper at that time, we did not like taking her out in a restaurant later in the evening. We would be stressed about her not going to sleep. So we preferred staying in our appartment and enjoyed our meal, for us this was more relaxed.
La Palma: on the road again
We hired a car to transport ourselves. With a baby nothing can be strictly planned, at least, not with us. Sometimes she needs a new diaper, feeding, when you are on the road. My best advice is to accept that, and choose the best place to stop.
The best place to feed is a place with a view
Los Tilos subtropical rainforest
Los Tilos is declared a Unesco Biosphere Reserve. It is a laurisilva forest, a beautiful piece of subtropical rainforest in the north of La Palma. We did a hike to the ‘Mirador Espigón Atravesado’. It was a nice walk. From the visitor centre you have to walk back a little bit to go to the beginning of the route. This hike leads you through a tunnel, whichlooks kind op spooky, especially with Rob in the end.
After the tunnel you walk through laurislava forest and the hike goes up gently. The landscape was very nice, although a little bit the same during the hike. Is was nicely quiet on the way.
The road leads to a fantastic viewpoint, which I did not expect at all! It was very small path to a very small and high platform, overlooking the forest you just walked in. The platform was so small, it was only possible to stand on it with about 2 to 3 people. But the view was just stunning!
From the mirador it was the same way back. That’s a pity, because I like roundwalks more. But the way back we went down, which was a lot faster. We took a sidepath to see a beautiful waterfall.
Vulcano in La Palma, San Antonio
One of the great things about La Palma is that the island is very small and very diverse. So you can see a lot of different things in a short time. We drove to the south of the island to see the vulcano San Antonio and visited La Caldera de Taburiente in the middle of the island on the same day. Both landscapes are totally different, so it’s nice to combine it on one day.
Vulcano of San Antonio
The sea is so blue!
View over the sea from San Antonio
National park Caldera de Taburiente
Caldera de Taburiente is maybe the most popular place to visit in La Palma, for me it was also the most beautiful place. The nature was just stunning! La Caldera is a giant crater in the middle of the island of La Palma. We took a very relaxed walk which went to a viewpoint and continued through the Caldera.
Hiking through the caldera. Inside the jacket is a baby!
Forest of pine trees
The travel companions like it here!
La Caldera de Taburiente is famous for it’s low hanging clouds and fog hanging in the crater. The views are amazing!
During the walk we were just so lucky to see this beautiful rainbow!
Serendipity
We stopped at this viewpoint. Such a great place to feed Lily.
Such a beautiful view!
Sun is going under in La Caldera de Taburiente
The hiking in la Palma was great, and absolutely doable with a small baby in a carrier. If you like hiking, diversity, beautiful landscapes, tranquilty and nice weather, La Palma is totally recommended! Apart from hiking, there is more to do in La Palma. I will tell you about that in the next blog.
