Lanzarote has a fairly well-developed and quality bus network that can take you to all the major villages. If you are only planning to move between resorts or towns in the central part of the island, buses will do the trick.
If you want to go to the volcanic areas of Timanfaya or Famara or the famous Charco de los Clicos bay, you can't do without a rental car.
Driving around Lanzarote
Travelling around the island by car will give you the greatest freedom, take you to all the interesting places and see the best of Lanzarote.
The main roads are of good quality and although some places in the mountains are only dirt roads, you'll get by just fine in a conventional car.
For detailed information on car rental prices, Lanzarote traffic, petrol prices and other practical things, read the article Car rental in Lanzarote.
Buses in Lanzarote
Public transport in Lanzarote is provided by Intercity Bus, a transport company with an official website at Arrecifebus.com.
A very frequent service runs between the major towns and resorts, which can be reached by bus several times an hour, especially along the Costa Teguise - Arrecife - Playa Honda - Puerto del Carmen axis, but frequent connections also run to the inland towns of Teguise, San Bartolomé, Tías or Tinajo, as well as the resort of Playa Blanca.
Generally speaking, at least several times a day you can reach all the villages of Lanzarote. There is also a frequent service to the airport, see detailed information.
Lines, timetables and maps
A list of all bus routes with timetables can be found on the arrecifebus.com website.
You can also find maps of each line on the official website, unfortunately there is no comprehensive map of all lines together.
Planning transport between destinations is also possible with the moovitapp.com app.
All stops are on signal, i.e. you have to press the "stop" button well before the stop (ideally check the current location on mobile maps, as there is no stop announcement), then you always have to wave at the bus while waiting.
There is no information at rural bus stops, often the stop is not marked in any way and you have to ask locals where exactly the bus stops. However, relatively relevant information on the location of bus stops is provided by maps.cz, for example.
Tickets: prices and where to buy them?
The cheapest way to travel around the island is by using the General Bono contactless recharge card, which will get you 10% cheaper fares than buying paper tickets.
The card itself is free, you just choose how much you want to top up (the minimum is 5 eur, but you can easily use that).
You can buy a General Bono card from the driver or at the main bus station in Arrecife. You can also top up the card with more money at the driver's desk.
The card is easy to use. When you board the bus (you always board through the front door), you tell the driver your destination and then put the card in the reader. When you get off the bus, you do not attach the card anywhere.
An alternative is to buy tickets without the card directly from the driver, but you can only pay with cash and without the 10% discount.
Price examples (first price in cash, second price when using the General Bono card):
- Airport - Puerto del Carmen, Arrecife: 1,40 eur, respectively. 1,26 eur
- Airport - Playa Blanca: 3,30 eur, respectively. 2,97 eur
- Arrecife - Costa Teguise: 1,40 eur, respectively. 1,26 eur
- Arrecife - Puerto del Carmen: 1,70 eur, respectively. 1,53 eur
- Arrecife - Playa Blanca: 3,60 eur, respectively. 3,24 eur
- Arrecife - Jameos del Agua: 3,30 eur, respectively. 2,97 eur
- Arrecife - Famara: 2,20 eur, respectively. 1,98 eur
- Puerto del Carmen - Playa Blanca: 2,75 eur, respectively. 2,47 eur
There are no discounts for children or pensioners.
