Playa de Cofete

Playa de Cofete is the wild side of Fuerteventura. On the far side of the Jandía peninsula, away from the resorts, an immense sweep of golden sand runs for kilometres along the Atlantic with no promenade, no hotels and no town behind it, only the hamlet of Cofete and a few scattered buildings. What gives the beach its grandeur is the wall behind it: the jagged volcanic ridge of the Jandía massif rises almost straight from the plain, culminating in Pico de la Zarza, at 807 metres the highest point of the island. The contrast between the endless flat strand, the white surf and the dark, fluted mountainside is one of the most dramatic coastal views in the Canary Islands.

The whole landscape lies within the Jandía Natural Park, and it feels empty in the best sense. The light changes constantly as clouds catch on the ridge; the wind is a near-permanent presence, combing the sand into ripples and streaming spray off the breakers. Along the shore the eye is drawn to El Islote, a small rocky cape that breaks the long line of the beach, while in the other direction the sand continues as the beach of Barlovento. Walking here, even in high season, it is easy to be alone for long stretches.

Above the beach, on the slope of the mountain, stands Villa Winter, a solitary house built in the 1940s by the German engineer Gustav Winter. Its isolation and the lack of a clear explanation for why it was built in such a remote spot have fed persistent local rumours, none of them proven, about secret wartime uses. Whatever its history, the house adds a strange, slightly theatrical note to an otherwise elemental place. The sea here is open Atlantic: currents are strong, the beach has no lifeguards, and swimming calls for real caution.

Getting there

Cofete lies at the southwestern end of Fuerteventura, in the municipality of Pájara; the nearest sizeable town is Morro Jable on the other side of the peninsula. The nearest airport is Fuerteventura Airport (FUE), about 64 km away. From Morro Jable an unpaved, winding track crosses the mountains to Cofete; the island's tourism authority recommends a four-wheel-drive vehicle for its rough sections. There are no services along the beach beyond a small restaurant in the hamlet.