A Gran Canaria Gay couples holiday review

s we enter April many of you will be thinking about Summer Holidays and maybe some like myself have already been away for a week or two trying to get some warm sunshine. My partner and I recently returned to the Gay Mecca Island that is Gran Canaria. Initially we had planned to go in March because it was my partners Birthday and BEAR week was going to be taking place at the same time. (Fun we thought lots of Bears to Play with from around the globe).

Sadly plans sometimes don’t go as planned and this holiday changed from the start because the Bear event was changed into April as another event called Carnival was going to be taking place on the island at the same time. This didn’t put us off and we both needed the break so put that aside and looked forward to the Easyjet Holiday package to the island.

On the lead up to the holiday we had noticed via social media that Spain mainland and the Canary Islands had been hit by unusual bad weather and severe flooding which to be frank wasn’t the best news just before we was due to fly but always the optimist I said it would be grand and to pack as light as we could so think Jocks, muscle vests and odd pair speedos not forgetting the shorts obviously.

Departure day arrived and Belfast International airport EasyJet check in was rammed with no separate queues for the individual flights and instead just a massive line for everyone going anywhere with the airline that morning. The Bright Orange airline is the Biggest airline at the airport and so we waited and eventually dropped are bags off having been in the queue for over an hour.

You might be in shock when I say this but

I have to congratulate Belfast International Airport on its massive improvement for passing through the security it was fast and efficient and you leave everything now in your bag and no silly little less than 100ml bags for any liquids.(Perfect).

So if you follow my travel writing you will know that I did venture back to Gran Canaria back in 2023 after a 20 year Gap and that visit went very well, This time around we are staying at the Servatur Don Miguel under a package with Easyjet Holidays on a Half Board basis costing around £1300 for both if us. Package included 7 nights , Flights, Bags 23kg hold and 10kg cabin, private Limo transfer and Half Board so breakfast and dinner in the hotels main restaurants.

The Don Miguel is a large 3 Star complex which has been a popular accommodation choice for many gay’s over the years and the property has had a few upgrades and facelifts over the years but on. Personal note the bedrooms do need a major refurb as they don’t match the quality and or standard of the rest of the hotels facilities.

You will find the hotel has a lovely modern outdoors pool and large terrace area which runs alongside the evening outdoor entertainment stage and seating area called Devine. During our stay the hotel offered evening light entertainment such as. Singers, live bands and a regular DJ which was always a good place to start after dinner and have a few drinks or chat with others in the property before heading across the street down into the Yumbo entertainment complex.

The Yumbo complex itself has not changed drastically over the 20-30 years since I first visited but its basically a 3 tiered squared complex which has shops, bars, restaurants, Cafes, themed bars like Drag, Bear, leather pup and obviously the Sex venues. The centre also has a large grass area which is often used as a stage area for larger events such as GAY Pride and Carnival as it allows for a central hub and large seated entertainment space for tourists to watch and enjoy stage events and or outdoor DJ sets. Those events tend to have limited space and can be charged for events but the usual complex bars and clubs surrounding the venue will be free entry as usual.

As a couple during this vacation we eat both breakfast and dinner in the hotel restaurant which we found offered a good choice from local to international dishes. The main issue I didn’t really like was being restricted to eat when they wanted you too but we just went down early enjoyed what we wanted and then left and headed out into the night. We did have two days where we decided to go out and try some restaurants in the the Yumbo one for my partners Birthday evening where we headed to El Torre Steak House on the centres Top floor. Food wise we ordered T Bone steaks which where huge and a Bottle of Red Wine. Overall the meal was nice, if pricy for what you got overall and I personally thought it was a bit of hassle to cut the steak up on the hot plate It came on which starts off as medium rare.

I think for Gay individuals, Groups, Friends and couples the island offers pretty much everything you could wish for. You will find a huge array of day trips from cultural visits to Las Palmas city, Wine Tasting, Fishing, Boat Trips both peaceful and Naked Gay day cruises. The island offers allot of attractions including Camal Trekking, Karting off road adventures as-well. We didn’t try any of these specific tours but noticed a good amount of tourists each day heading off to see more than just the Yumbo which for me it brilliant to see.

As a couple this holiday was about chilling out after a difficult year and so each day we headed from the hotel straight down to Las Dunas Maspalomas Beach for around 1030am . Now for all the drinkers your might be shouting WTF and I know its very early for some but I am not personally a huge drinker and actually enjoyed the walk to the Gay Beach the other half did struggle on a few days and they ended up coming down to the beach much later one day due to suffering from a bad hangover.

The Dunnes are lovely and you can venture to them in many ways some even get taxis to the Lighthouse in Meloneras rather than walking it through the sandy dunes like us. Once you make it to the beach which has a number of Breach Huts helping you see which part of the beach your at you can then settle yourself either on the sand itself which many do or we opted to pay for two sun-beds and umbrella right beside the Gay Beach hut which cost about 7euros per day from 11ish am onward. The beach is a hive of activity and you will see many people come and go. Anything pretty much goes here so you will see it all from the young to the old and bold living the best life which is amazing to see and how life should be. Nudity is often part of Gay Beach life and also they have a separate area for all Nudist along the miles of Beach so don’t be afraid to let it all hangout but do be careful in the sun as its even stronger than you think due to the often brisk on shore breeze.

As a couple we found a huge number of similar couples down at the beach each day often via the power of Gay Apps like Grinder and Scuff going off every few seconds. The beach is a very social spot even if your alone you will end up speaking to someone. (recommend you take plenty of sun-screen, water and a mobile power bank to keep you chatting).