Alternatively, there are daily flights on Iberia (0845 601 2854; ) from Heathrow via Madrid, though you will have to pay £387 for a flight leaving on Friday and returning Sunday. A taxi into central Las Palmas will cost about €30 (£20), or take Bus No 60, which runs twice an hour for just €1.60 (£1).INSTANT BRIEFINGLas Palmas is the biggest city in the Canaries and, with its Spanish colonial architecture and long seafront promenade, it is reminiscent of the Cuban capital, Havana. The city stretches some 5km from Vegueta, the oldest part of town, to the beach. The symbolic centre of the city, and the focus of the carnival festivities, is Parque Santa Catalina, a large open square near the port district, which also acts as the central bus interchange.

Bus No 1 crosses the city from Vegueta to the port and runs 24 hours a day. The main tourist office is at Calle Le? Castillo 17 (00 34 928 219 600), close to the main bus station on Parque San Telmo. It is open Monday to Friday, 8am-3pm.REST ASSUREDAt Hotel Santa Catalina (00 34 928 243 040; ), past guests have included Winston Churchill, Agatha Christie, Prince Charles and the Spanish royal family. It was built in 1890 by the Grand Canary Island Company and remodelled in the 1930s in Canarian style, with dark wooden balconies and tropical gardens, by the local artist Miguel Mart?Fern?ez de la Torre. The veranda is a good spot for afternoon tea, and facilities include a spa and a casino The hotel is in the leafy Ciudad Jard?district of town Doubles cost from €183 (£125).

Alternatives include the Reina Isabel (00 34 928 260 100) on the seafront, with warm Mediterranean colours, sea views and doubles from €120 (£82), or the cheaper, more functional Parque (00 34 928 368 000) overlooking Parque San Telmo, with doubles from €84 (£57).MUST SEEThe main sights are in Vegueta, an area founded by the Spanish after they conquered Gran Canaria in 1478. Don’t miss the Museo Canario, which outlines the lives of the Guanches, the original pre-Hispanic inhabitants of the island. The museum has a wonderfully gruesome section dealing with death and mummification, a practice the Guanches may have learnt from ancient Egyptians. It is open from 10am-8pm, Monday to Friday and 10am-2pm at weekends; admission €3 (£2). Nearby is the Casa de Col?an old colonial mansion where Christopher Columbus is said to have stayed (open 9am-7pm, Monday to Friday and 9am-3pm at weekends; admission free). At the other end of town, take a break from carnival madness and stroll along Las Canteras beach, set in a sheltered bay with more than 3km of golden sand.MUST BUYFor the latest Spanish fashions, head to Avenida Mesa y L? where you will find big- name stores as well as two branches of the department store El Corte Ingl? Quirkier are the narrow streets around Calle Mayor de Triana, a Ramblas-style promenade with caf? juice bars and street musicians.