Papagayo by catamaran: four boats, three harbours, and you swim from the deck, not the sand
Updated October 3, 2026 · 9 min read
The short answer: for most people the Papagayo catamaran with lunch and drinks from Puerto Calero is the best of these — €85, four hours, 4.8 out of 5 from 413 reviews, pickup included and everything on board paid for. The day trip from Puerto del Carmen at €66 is the most-reviewed and the cheaper full-day version with the same formula. If you only want a swim and a sail, the mini cruise from Playa Blanca is €35. And if what you actually want is to lie on the sand at Papagayo, the boats will not put you there — drive instead.
See times and prices for the Papagayo catamaran with lunch and drinks
| Trip | Departs from | Duration | from | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Papagayo catamaran with lunch and drinks | Puerto Calero | 4 hours | €85 | 4.8 from 413 reviews |
| Day trip to the Papagayo beaches by catamaran | Puerto del Carmen | valid 1 day | €66 | 4.4 from 1,081 reviews |
| Mini cruise to Papagayo with a swimming stop | Playa Blanca | 1.5–3 hours | €35 | 4.7 from 374 reviews |
| Shared catamaran to Papagayo, 12 people maximum | Lanzarote south coast | 4 hours | €89 | 4.7 from 53 reviews |
| Self-drive boat rental at Playa Papagayo | Playa Blanca | 2–8 hours | €140 per group up to 5 | 4.8 from 167 reviews |
The thing the photographs don’t say
Every one of these trips is sold with a picture of an empty golden cove. You will see that cove. On the two best-documented trips here you will not walk on it, and on the others the day is built the same way: anchor, swim, sail home.
Two of the booking pages say so outright in their exclusions. The day trip from Puerto del Carmen lists beach disembarkment among the things that are not included. The mini cruise from Playa Blanca lists beach landing in the same place. The boats anchor in the sheltered bay, you swim and snorkel off the back, and then you sail home. The other pages do not promise a landing either — if standing on the sand matters to you, check that one line on the page before you pay.
This is not a trick: anchoring off and swimming is exactly what a four-hour catamaran day is. But if the picture in your head is a towel on the sand at Playa Papagayo, the boat is the wrong purchase. The coves are reached by road through a barrier that charges €3 per car, or on foot from Playa Blanca — our guide to getting to the Papagayo coves has the access detail, and you can price a hire car for the day against the boat fare.
Catlanza from Puerto Calero, €85: what the extra €19 buys
Against the €66 day trip, this one is four hours instead of a full day, and it is the better-rated boat by a clear margin — 4.8 against 4.4. The booking page breaks the day into an hour’s sail out, two hours anchored at Playa del Papagayo and an hour back.
What is on board: swimming, snorkelling, kayaks, paddleboards, optional yoga on deck, and what the operator calls the only catamaran sea slide in Lanzarote. Lunch is hot pasta with a vegetarian tomato and vegetable sauce, salad, Canarian potatoes with mojo and fresh fruit, with local cheese and bread served during the sailing. Beer, wine, cava, soft drinks, juices and water are included throughout. Parking at Puerto Calero is free and pickup from bus stops is available if you need it; you are asked to be there 30 minutes early for boarding cards.
The sea slide is the reason families pick this one. It is also the reason to look at the price per head again if your group is four adults who would rather read a book.
See availability and prices for the Catlanza catamaran
Líneas Romero from Puerto del Carmen, €66: the most-reviewed one
More than a thousand people have rated this trip, which makes it the best-documented catamaran day on the island, and 4.4 out of 5 is a solid rather than a glowing score.
The shape of the day: an hour out from Puerto del Carmen, two hours anchored off the Costa de Papagayo, an hour back, returning to port at around 3:00 PM. You are met with a mojito and a tapa of papas arrugadas con mojo. Lunch is paella or pasta with fresh fruit; draft beer, sangría, soft drinks and water are unlimited; kayaks and snorkelling gear are there to use. Return transfers from Playa Blanca, Puerto del Carmen and Costa Teguise are part of the price.
Three details from the booking page that change plans. Pickup from Puerto Calero runs on Thursdays only, and there is no pickup from Playa Blanca on Sundays, Mondays or Wednesdays — which is awkward, since Playa Blanca is the resort closest to Papagayo. The meeting point, if you make your own way, is the last pier at the far end of Puerto del Carmen harbour, past the petrol station. And the page lists the trip as not suitable for wheelchair users, people with mobility impairments or anyone prone to motion sickness.
See availability and prices for the Puerto del Carmen day trip
The €35 mini cruise is the honest budget answer
From Playa Blanca, 4.7 out of 5 from 374 reviews, and the itinerary on the booking page is refreshingly specific: about 50 minutes of sailing out including a short stop, an hour anchored and swimming, then half an hour back.
What is not included is equally specific: food and drinks, the beach landing, and any bus transfer. Snorkelling gear is provided; snacks, beer, sangría and soft drinks are sold on board. You make your own way to Marina Rubicón — and if you go on a Wednesday or a Saturday, the marina market is on, which turns a two-hour boat trip into a morning out.
Half the price of the day trips, and you give up lunch, the open bar and the hotel pickup. For a family of four that is a difference of over a hundred euros for the same bay.
See availability and prices for the mini cruise
When a smaller boat or your own boat makes sense
The shared catamaran limited to twelve passengers is €89 for four hours with tapas, drinks, paddleboards, kayaks and snorkelling gear — four euros more than the big Catlanza boat and a completely different day. Twelve people means no queue for the kayaks and no music you did not choose. With 53 reviews it is a small operation rather than a known quantity, but 4.7 out of 5 is 4.7 out of 5.
The self-drive boat is the other end of the same thought: €140 for up to five people, two to eight hours. Divided by five that is €28 a head, and you choose when to leave. Some rentals on this stretch are advertised as needing no boating licence and others are not, so check which version you are booking. You are also responsible for everything, there is no crew and no lunch, and the wind on this coast is not decorative.
See availability and prices for the small-group catamaran
Our recommendation
For most people: the Catlanza catamaran from Puerto Calero, €85, four hours, 4.8 out of 5 from 413 reviews. It is the best-rated of the crewed catamarans here, the inclusions are complete, the day does not swallow the whole day, and the slide settles most arguments with children on board.
Book a date for the Papagayo catamaran with lunch and drinks
On a budget, or with half a day: the mini cruise at €35. You get the same bay and the same water. More boats along this coast are listed under catamaran trips to Papagayo.
If you are staying in Puerto del Carmen and want the long version: the €66 day trip — but check the pickup days before you book, because the Playa Blanca gap is real.
Not for you if you are prone to seasickness: two of these pages warn about it explicitly, and an anchored catamaran in a swell is worse than a moving one. Not for you either if the beach itself is the point. Three or four hours looking at Papagayo from the water is a lovely day, and it is not a day at Papagayo.
Departure harbours, itineraries, inclusions, exclusions and pickup days are as published on the GetYourGuide booking pages of Líneas Romero, Catlanza and the operators named. Ratings and review counts are from GetYourGuide. Subject to change.
