La Graciosa by ferry or by catamaran: which trip actually puts you on the island?
Updated October 3, 2026 · 9 min read
The short answer: if you want to walk on La Graciosa, book the express ferry from Órzola — €29 return, 4.7 out of 5 from 1,106 reviews, and you choose your own times. If you want a day on the water with lunch and an open bar and don’t mind seeing the beaches from the deck, book the island cruise with lunch at €66, the most-reviewed trip of the group. If you want both, take the ferry and add a jeep tour on the island for €55. What almost nobody realises before booking: the catamaran day trip does not land on the beaches.
See times and prices for the ferry to La Graciosa
| Trip | Duration | from | Rating | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferry to La Graciosa with Wi-Fi and free parking | flexible, valid 1 day | €29 | 4.7 from 1,106 reviews | anyone who wants to set foot on the island and plan their own day |
| La Graciosa island cruise with lunch and water activities | 6 hours | €66 | 4.5 from 2,045 reviews | anyone who wants a catered day at sea and hotel pickup |
| Sailing day trip around La Graciosa | 6 hours | €72 | 4.3 from 1,169 reviews | anyone who wants the same day out on a different boat |
| Return ferry with bus pickup from your resort | 6 hours | €40 | 4.5 from 367 reviews | anyone without a car who still wants a free day on the island |
| Complete jeep tour of La Graciosa with beach time | 2.5 hours | €55 | 4.4 from 176 reviews | anyone already on the island who wants to reach the far beaches |
The sentence that decides it: “beach access not permitted”
The island cruise is the most-reviewed La Graciosa product on GetYourGuide, and its booking page is honest about this — but you have to read the exclusions. Under what is not included, the page lists one line: beach access not permitted. The operator repeats it in a reply to a guest who had missed it, writing that the excursion description states there is no disembarkation at the beaches and that the swimming stop takes place from the catamaran.
So the day looks like this, and the itinerary on the booking page spells it out: 30 minutes on the ferry, 45 minutes in Caleta de Sebo, then 3 hours 45 minutes of sailing, swimming, snorkelling, kayaking and lunch off the coast, then 30 minutes back. You see Playa de la Francesa. You swim next to the boat. You do not stand on the sand.
That is not a flaw. It is a different product: a catered six-hour boat day with Lanzarote hotel pickup, a welcome mojito, paella and fresh fruit, unlimited draft beer, sangría, soft drinks and water, kayaks and snorkel gear, and a 4.5 rating from more than two thousand people. If that is the day you want, it is a good one.
See availability and prices for the island cruise with lunch
The ferry is the cheap option and the flexible one
The crossing from Órzola is short — the operator describes it as a half-hour crossing, and guests report around 25 minutes. The ticket costs €29 and is the single most useful thing in this comparison, because of what it does not fix.
You pick your outbound time at checkout. You come back any time on the same day or the following day, with no further booking, at 8:00 AM, 8:40 AM, 10:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 12:30 PM, 3:00 PM, 4:00 PM or 5:00 PM. Boarding closes ten minutes before departure, there is free parking at the operator’s car park in Órzola, and you need your passport or ID card. The page notes the ferry is not suitable for wheelchair users.
That free car park is the catch for anyone without a vehicle: Órzola is the far northern tip of Lanzarote, and getting there from the southern resorts under your own steam means a hire car or a long bus day. If you were going to price a car for a day or two anyway, this is one of the days it pays for itself — and if not, the ferry-with-bus option below exists for exactly this reason.
Six hours ashore instead of 45 minutes, for less than half the price. The trade is that you organise the day — and there is one thing to organise.
See departure times and prices for the ferry
There are no asphalt roads, and your hire car stays in Órzola
La Graciosa has no paved roads and no ordinary motor traffic; you move on foot, by bicycle or in an authorised off-road vehicle. The island sits inside the Chinijo Archipelago Natural Park, which holds the largest marine reserve in Europe. That is the whole appeal, and it is also the practical problem: the famous beaches are not next to the harbour.
Three ways to close that gap once you are ashore:
The jeep tour, €55, 2.5 hours. It meets in front of the church in Caleta de Sebo — so you need your own ferry ticket on top — and runs the northern and southern highlights: Pedro Barba, the basalt arches, Playa de las Conchas, Playa de la Francesa, Montaña Amarilla. You can be dropped at a beach and collected later. Two things the page states plainly: the driver speaks Spanish, and the tour is not suitable for pregnant women, people with back problems or wheelchair users. Meals, drinks and hotel pickup are not included.
A bike. Rental from €20 for the day with a route map, or an e-bike from €35. Cycling is only allowed on authorised tracks, and the island is flat but exposed — the trade wind here is not a rumour.
Your feet. Playa de las Conchas is about 45 minutes’ walk from Caleta de Sebo, or 20 minutes by bike, according to the Canary Islands tourist board.
See availability and prices for the jeep tour on the island
Playa de las Conchas is the postcard — and not a swimming beach
This matters more than any price in this article. The official Canary Islands tourism board lists Playa de las Conchas with “oleaje fuerte” — strong surf — the note “precaución en el baño”, the designation “playa peligrosa”, and no lifeguard service. The 610 metres of blonde sand with Montaña Clara on the horizon are exactly as good as the photographs. The water is not a paddling pool, and nobody is watching.
If you are travelling with children who want to swim, Playa de la Francesa on the sheltered side is the beach the boats anchor off, and it is the one the jeep tours use for beach time.
Which one for whom
For most people: the ferry. €29, 4.7 out of 5 from 1,106 reviews, your own return time, and a whole day on the island instead of 45 minutes. Add the jeep or a bike if you want the far beaches, and you are still under the price of the catered boat day with more island in it.
Book your crossing times for the ferry to La Graciosa
If you have no car: the return ferry with bus pickup, €40, 4.5 from 367 reviews. It collects you from your resort, puts you on the same boat and leaves you free on the island — the gap between Órzola and the southern resorts is otherwise an hour or more each way, and the bus service to the north is thin. Our guide to whether you need a hire car has the bus detail.
If what you want is a day at sea: the island cruise, €66, 4.5 from 2,045 reviews — more than any other La Graciosa trip, with pickup, lunch and the open bar. Book it knowing you will not be standing on those beaches.
Not for you if you get seasick: the crossing is short but the stretch between Órzola and the island is open water, and the catamaran then anchors for nearly four hours. And not for you on a windy day in either direction — sailings here are weather-dependent, and that is the one thing no booking page can promise.
If you are building a day around the north coast anyway, the drive from Teguise to Órzola ends at the ferry port, and more island crossings are listed under La Graciosa day trips.
Inclusions, exclusions, itineraries and departure times are as published on the GetYourGuide booking pages of the operators named; the beach description and walking times for Playa de las Conchas are from the official Canary Islands tourist board. Ratings and review counts are from GetYourGuide. Subject to change.
