Cofete - How To Get To The Best Beach in Fuerteventura

Cofete is the crown jewel of Fuerteventura, the most spectacular wild beach you will get to see in all the Canary Islands. In 2015, Cofete was included in the top 10 Best Beaches in Europe according to TripAdvisor users and in our opinion it is one of the best beaches in Spain by far.

Cofete is situated on the west coast, which has some of the most amazing and dangerous beaches in Fuerteventura. There are constant winds and waves, which make the ocean a dangerous place for swimming, yet incredibly beautiful.

Did you know that...?

A few years ago part of the movie Exodus: Gods and Kings was filmed on Playa de Cofete.

One of the main scenes was filmed on the beach and the crew had to make the journey from Morro Jable several times. Nowadays, the bus that was used by the crew remained on the island and is making daily trips taking tourists to the beach.

Road to Cofete – How to get to Cofete Beach

The road to Cofete begins from Morro Jable. You can follow the signs in the city, that will guide you in the right direction. The distance is around 20 kilometers, with most of it being a dirt road.

Hundreds of cars make this journey every day, both 4 x 4 and small cars. It is better if you have a Jeep or any other 4 x 4, but if you are patient and careful you can get there safely with a normal small car also.

Once you get on the dirt road you just drive until you get to a crossroad, where you have to turn right for Cofete.

You should also make the detour to your left and go to see Punta Jandia Lighthouse.

Continuing on the road to Cofete, you will begin the ascension and this is probably the worst part of the whole trip, in terms of bumps and bad terrain.

Just before you start descending towards the beach, you will have an observation platform on the left.

From here you get the most amazing view over Cofete. It is simply breathtaking.

No matter where you stay on the island while you are on holiday, you MUST make the trip to Cofete.

Warning for hire cars - can you legally drive to Cofete in a rental car?

When you hire a car, your insurance will only be valid on paved roads. This means that your insurance won't cover you if you decide to drive to Cofete on a rental car and also the car rental company may impose penalties on you if they find out that you used their car outside of asphalted roads.

The best thing to do would be to ask the car hire company directly what is their policy in this regard and see if they can offer you any options.

Other options

Besides driving there yourself, you can opt for an excursion with a tour company. This is usually a full day trip, especially if you are staying in Corralejo and you have to come all the way from the north of Fuerteventura.

Don't miss our list of best things to do and see in Fuerteventura

Or there is the option to take a bus from Morro Jable and you have all the necessary details below.

Bus from Morro Jable to Cofete

The bus makes the journey 2 times every day and leaves from Morro Jable Bus Station (Estacion de Guaguas) which is in the new town (not the old town).

Ticket price:

• 8,7 Euros - ordinary ticket
• 2,6 Euros - for residents who hold a Bono residente issued by the Cabildo

Schedule

• Time of departure from Morro Jable to Cofete: 10:00 and 14:00
• Time of departure from Faro to Puerto de la Cruz -> Cofete ->: 12:00 and 16:00
• Estimated time of departure from Cofete to Morro Jable: 12:45 and 16:45

Bus stops on the route to the beach: Bus station, Pier Morro Jable, Cemetery, Gran Valle, Cofete, Puertito de la Cruz and Faro de Jandia.

Bus stops on the route to Morro Jable: Faro de Jandia, Puertito de la Cruz, Cofete, Gran Valle, Cemetery, Bus station Morro Jable

For up to date info please refer to the Tiadhe website - the bus company in Fuerteventura.

The wild side of Fuerteventura

Although there are many tourists coming here every day, Cofete remains an unspoiled beach, a symbol of wilderness and freedom.

On most days you can’t swim in the ocean here, because the waves and currents are strong and it is very dangerous.

But you can take a long walk and enjoy the wonderful landscape, with the Jandia massif on one side. Pico de Zarza, the highest point in Fuerteventura is found on the Jandia Mount, overlooking the beach and is just over 800 m.

Due to the fact that the Jandia massif is so close to the beach, every day there are cloud formations that make the sky look beautiful and picture perfect.

No filters needed here.

Villa Winter

Villa Winter is also very close to Cofete village and visible from the beach. You could go there by car, but the road gets very bad, or you could make the climb by foot. Villa Winter was built by Gustav Winter and there is a great mystery surrounding it. Some say that the Winter family moved here only to escape the bad climate in Germany, while others say that the man was actually involved with the Nazis. Nothing is certain and the villa is now deserted.

El Islote

We recommend you to take a long walk on the beach, towards El Islote, the point from where you can see the ocean on both sides.

When you get to Cofete you have to head North on the beach, towards the large rock you can see in the horizon. The total distance is around 5 km and it will take around an hour or more if you stop to take pictures – which you will.

As a friendly advice, you should make this walk on a day when it’s not too hot outside, or maybe in the evening, because there is no place to hide from the sun on the way.

Also, we found it easier to walk at a moment of the day when the tide was low, because the sand was firm and it does not require so much effort to walk.

When you get to El Islote you will have a unique perspective over Cofete, the ocean and also the mountains.

Cofete Beach Turtles

Every year baby turtles are released on Cofete Beach, part of an undergoing project meant to increase their population.

The goal is to reintroduce Loggerhead sea turtles (Tortuga Caretta or Tortuga Boba) in the Canary Islands and the project is under development in Fuerteventura. Unfortunately, the population of this type of turtles has decreased dramatically in the past years, so the eggs are brought to Fuerteventura from the island of Boa Vista, in Cape Verde.

There are a total of 8 species of turtles in the world, and 4 of them can be found in the waters around Fuerteventura.

The species of turtles that you can encounter in Fuerteventura are:

• leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriácea)
• the loggerhead turtles or tortugas boba (Caretta caretta) – the most common species in the Canary Islands
• the green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas)
• hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata).

In Fuerteventura the eggs are buried in Cofete Beach and they hatch in the months of September and October.

The whole project is coordinated by the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and when after the eggs hatch, the turtles are taken to the nursery and breeding center in Morro Jable.

The chances of survival of the baby turtles are very small without human intervention, so they are taken care of by the nursing center in Morro Jable.

The first release in 2016 was organized in January and everyone interested could participate. The turtles were released in Cofete Beach, because when they reach sexual maturity, they always come back to the same beach where they hatched, in order to lay their own eggs.

The nursery and breeding center in Morro Jable is open for visitors.

Location: the harbor area, near the water sports center. Telephone: 630 250 381/653 429 941

Schedule: Monday – Friday 10:00 – 13:0. Admission is free of charge.

Enjoy the sunset at Cofete – the best sunset in Fuerteventura

One of the most romantic experiences in Fuerteventura, in my opinion, is to see the sunset at Cofete.

The west coast has many beautiful places where you can watch the sunset, but none as wild and seductive as Cofete.

Chances are there won’t be many more people on the beach at that hour, so you may as well have the place to yourselves.

This is one of those experiences that is hard to describe in words, an experience that will become unforgettable.

The only disadvantage of staying and seeing the sunset at Cofete is that you will have to drive at night on the dirt road towards Morro Jable. For me, it’s worth it, but it depends on the driver and the car that you have.