El Hierro surf is some of the top stuff on Fuerteventura, with an A-frame peak that offers a gnarly left hander for performance riders.
An introduction to El Hierro surf
The breaks of El Hierro are closely guarded by the Fuerteventura elite. There’s a left and a right. Both are sheer quality and the location is downright stunning – think an amphitheatre of a beach with pearly white sands and high cliffs shouldering above the Atlantic on both sides. Thankfully, Fuerta is the less local of the Canaries, so it’s possible to surf here without getting on the wrong end of the proverbial stick. Just be wary of who’s in the water and perhaps steer clear of the bigger line up days.
Most people who hit the El Hierro surf will stay in either Corralejo (the main tourist resort of the north shores of the island) or El Cotillo (a major hub for surf travelers on the west coast). Both are about 20-30 minutes’ drive away in the car. You’ll need to get to the uber-cute fishing town of Majanicho first and then veer off onto a dusty coast track around the headland for about three minutes.
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This guide is just one part of our complete guide to surfing in Fuerteventura
El Hierro at a glance
The good
- Two fantastic breaks
- One of the best spots in all of Fuerteventura for sure
- Clear water and pretty scenery
The bad
- Some localism
- You need to drive to get here
What’s in this guide to El Hierro?
- An introduction to El Hierro surf
- Where is El Hierro?
- The top El Hierro surf spots
- Surf hotels and surf camps in El Hierro
Where is El Hierro?
El Hierro is nothing but a small beach on the northern shore of Fuerteventura. To get there, you need to drive via the small fishing town of Majanicho past the urbanization at Origo Mare. You can do that by turning off the main FV-109 and heading north. When you reach the small fishing harbor, take the dusty coast road going west and you should arrive at the spot in about 3-4 minutes. Oh, and be sure not to confuse El Hierro surf with El Hierro the island, which is the smallest and one of the least traveled in the Canary Islands, although that’s worth a visit too!
A guide to the El Hierro surf spots
Here’s a look at the surf breaks in El Hierro itself, and some of the other places where you can paddle out in the surrounding region.
Corralejo
We’ve got a whole separate guide to surfing in Corralejo. The town is one of the main hubs of the west coast of Fuerteventura. It’s busy, it’s full of life, and it can sometimes feel a little more like a holiday spot rather than a surf destination. But a lot of the island’s schools are based here, and it’s the jump-off point for both the Playa Grandes beaches (great for beginners) and Isla Lobos (home to one of the Canaries’ most epic right hand reef breaks).
We’ve got a complete guide to surfing in Corralejo
Punta Gorda
You can follow the dusty coast road down all the way to Punta Gorda. It’s to the west of El Heirro by about 15-20 minutes and means driving past some of the more secret reef points (shh!) on the island. Punta itself is another low-lying volcanic shelf that gives a great summertime right-hander that really benefits from offshore winds (which are E here).
El Hierro left
El Hierro is an A-frame peak at heart. It builds up over a shallow volcanic reef on a shelf just off the north shore of the island. When it’s at its most shapely, you’ll see two very distinct sides to surf on. The left is a longer, more rippable shoulder that can be very slabby and hollow on the biggest winter swells. It’s a true shortboarder wave, with room for cutbacks and multiple bottom turns before a tubey section to finish. This is the best part of the El Hierro surf!
El Hierro right
There’s a smaller right on offer at El Hierro. It comes off the same A-frame peak as the left and tends to be fast with a steeper drop in, leading to a quick hollow section that likes to close out.
El Cotillo
The east-coast surf town of El Cotillo is also the main tourist hotspot on Fuerte. You can head here to hit the Grandes Playas beaches (great for kitesurfing in summer and beginner waves in winter) or cross to Isla Lobos for one of the best right handers in the whole archipelago.
Check out our complete guide to surfing in El Cotillo right here
Where to stay when surfing in El Hierro
Check out some of these places to stay in the area of El Hierro. There aren’t actually many hotels right by the break itself, because it’s on a remote beach. There are a few in the nearby fishing towns that we love though. They include:
Volcano House Origo Mare
We could stay a whole month or more at the Volcano House Origo Mare. It’s a lovely bungalow in the urbanization just above the north coast, with easy access to El Heirro. Inside, you get a comfy lounge, a modern kitchen, and a shaded garden. Contemporary and cool.
The Boat House
The Boat House is a proper surfer’s cabin on the side of the harbor at Majanicho, the nearest fishing town to El Heirro. It’s a compact little bolthole with a volcanic-stone terrace and a couple of bunk beds in the back. Just the place if you’re keen to surf the northern Fuerte beaches!
The Blue Torrent
The Blue Torrent is another real nice bungalow in the urbanization area just south of the El Heirro surf spot. Again, it’s got an open-plan lounge diner and a nice garden, but also the bonus of coming with access to a communal swimming pool.
When to surf in El Hierro
El Hierro gets way more action during the Fuerteventura winter months. That’s when the NW-W swell channel is really flowing, thanks to distant storms in the mid and upper Atlantic Ocean. Getting all the way down here takes them time and they’ll pick up real moxie as they go, turning into beefy groundswell waves with plenty of power and big periods to boot. All that starts to combine with offshore winds around about the end of September, and things don’t really get bad again until March time. Of course, there are occasional days in the summer, too, but it tends to be smaller and better suited to beginners and lower intermediates from May to August.
Be sure to check out our gear guides:
- 10 Best Surf Sunscreen Choices for 2022 – Keep the skin healthy and the ocean happy.
- 5 of The Best Surf Hats for 2022 – Surf hats that’ll keep the sun off.
- The Ultimate Guide to Eco Friendly Wetsuits [2021/22 Edition] – Consider the ocean when you buy.
- The Best Surf Booties for Men in 2022 – Protect yo’ feet. Keep the toes warm.
- 10 of The Best Gifts for Surfers – Gift ideas for surfers in 2021.
- The Best Wetsuits for Kids – Essential reading for any mom or pop with a young surfer
- The Best Winter Wetsuits For This Season – Cold-water surf ain’t fun without thick rubber
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
This article is just one part of our complete guide to surfing in Fuerteventura and the Canary Islands
