Lanzarote is a beautiful island that is of volcanic origin. The island was created about 35 million years ago. Alfred Wegener arrived in 1912 and studied the island with the continental drift. The island along with others was created after the breakup of the African and the American continental plates.

The elongated island has an area of 845,9 km², and a population of around 125,000. The dimensions of the island are 60 km from north to south and 25 km from west to east. Lanzarote has 213 km of coastline, of which 10 km are sand, 16.5 km are beach, and the remainder are rocky. Its dramatic landscape includes the mountain ranges of Famara (671 m) in the north and Ajaches (608 m) to the south. South of the Famara massif is the El Jable desert which separates Famara and Montañas del Fuego. Tourism has been the mainstay of the island's economy for the past 50 years. Other industries include agriculture.

The island has its own international airport, Arrecife Airport, which receives around 5.5 million passengers per year.

It is part of the province of Las Palmas, and is divided into seven municipalities

Climate

Lanzarote's climate ranges from mild to hot during the year. Temperatures in the summer are between 30°C and 35°C during the day and about 20°C at night. Its winter daytime temperature is between 20°C and 25°C and the nightime temperature is between 13°C and 16°C. Lanzarote is surrounded with trade winds. The water temperature at the Atlantic is at 22°C during the summer and 17°C during the winter months. Precipitation is between 135 and 250 mm. The heaviest is between December and January. Lanzarote is the driest island in the Canary Islands. Most of the precipitation occurs in the area around Famara Massif while the south is mainly dry. Every year sandstorms strike Lanzarote; these arrive from the Sahara desert. During such storms the temperature can rise to over 40°C and visibility can drop to only 100 m. The wind which brings these storms is called the Calima to the islanders.

Flora and Fauna

Plants on the island includes 500 different kinds of which 17 are endemic and 180 are lichen. Lichens survive in the suitable areas like the rock and introduce its own weathering. These plants have adapted ways to the water, the same as succulent and are mostly founded on the island. Plants includes date palms Phoenix canariensis which are founded in damper areas of the north, Pino canariensis, ferns, wild olive trees (Olea europaea). The laurisilva trees were covered on the highest parts of Risco de Famara which are rarely founded today. After the winter rainfalls, the vegetation comes to a colorful bloom between February and March. The fauna of Lanzarote is monotonously more than the plant world except for bats and other types of mammals which arrived with humans to the island including the dromedary which used for agriculture, since it fits its environmental conditions on the island. Today, these animals are a tourist attraction. Lanzarote also has 35 types of fauna including birds, falcons, reptiles such as the type of lizard, the Gallotia antica which is in endemic state and the Remipedia can be found in the Jameos del Agua lagoon, this crab is found in the depth of the water of several thousand metres. The lagoon was created from a volcanic eruption into the cave and probably survives today.

The vineyards of La Geria is a protected area especially with its traditional methods of cultivation. The small stones are designed to protect the plants from the winds. The vineyards are part of the World Heritage Site as well as other sites on the island.