The Canary Islands are tailor-made for rooftop drinking — a subtropical climate that keeps evenings warm year-round, sunsets that go on forever over the Atlantic, and an island geography that puts ocean views within reach almost everywhere you look. From the hotel terraces of Las Palmas to the volcanic-panorama bars of Lanzarote, these are the spots where the sundowner earns its name.
Rooftop Bar — Hotel Santa Catalina
The Santa Catalina is a grand colonial hotel from 1890 in the Triana district of Las Palmas, and its rooftop terrace is consistently the best-positioned bar in the city — views across the Parque Doramas, the city skyline, and a sliver of ocean to the west. The cocktail list is properly done, with a range of local Canarian rum-based drinks alongside the classics. Dress up slightly — this crowd is largely Spanish businesspeople and well-heeled locals. The gin and tonic programme (botanicals paired to the gin) is worth engaging with.
Sky Bar — AC Hotel Las Palmas
On the 12th floor of the AC Hotel above the Playa de Las Canteras seafront, this rooftop pool-bar has the most direct ocean view of any bar in Las Palmas. At sunset the light turns the water gold and the north African coast occasionally appears on the horizon. Open to non-guests for drinks; the pool itself is hotel guests only. Cocktails lean tropical — pineapple mojitos, frozen daiquiris — and are made well enough. Book a table in advance for Friday and Saturday evenings; it fills quickly.
Mirador El Diablo Terrace Bar — Timanfaya, Lanzarote
Strictly speaking a restaurant rather than a bar, but the volcanic terrace at El Diablo within Timanfaya National Park earns a place on this list for the view alone — a 360-degree panorama of the lunar lava fields with the Atlantic glinting in every direction. The restaurant is famous for cooking over geothermal heat from the volcano below; the bar serves local Lanzarote wine and cold beer. Come for lunch after the park tour, order a glass of Malvasia from the El Grifo winery, and accept that the scenery is doing the heavy lifting here. The wine does not need to be outstanding for this to be an exceptional experience.
Bar Azotea Hidden Gem
A genuinely local rooftop bar in central Santa Cruz, with none of the hotel-terrace formula and all of the character. Azotea occupies the top floor of a converted apartment building in the Ifara neighbourhood — an area of the city that most tourists never reach. The crowd is young Tinerfeño, the music is good (indie, electronic, occasional live sets), and the drinks are priced for locals rather than visitors. The view is not the Atlantic horizon but the city's own rooftops and the mountains above — which, in its own way, is more interesting. Hard to find online; ask at your accommodation or follow their Instagram.
Sunset Terrace — Abama Hotel
The Abama resort on Tenerife's west coast is one of the finest hotels in the Canary Islands, and its clifftop terrace — positioned precisely to face the sunset over the Atlantic, with La Gomera silhouetted in the distance — is the best natural sunset view you can have while holding a drink in the archipelago. The cocktail prices reflect the setting (and the Michelin stars in the kitchen below), but the house Cava served with a plate of Canarian almonds at 6pm is a reasonable entry point. Non-guests are welcome at the bar.
Hard Rock Rooftop — Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife
It is a Hard Rock Hotel, which tells you what the crowd is, but the west-facing rooftop terrace genuinely delivers one of the best sunset views in the south of Tenerife — El Teide to the right, La Gomera ahead, the Atlantic below. The cocktails are consistent if unimaginative. What this delivers, for a relatively accessible price, is a proper terrace experience without hotel-guest restriction. Music gets louder as the evening progresses; if you want the sunset without the club atmosphere, arrive at 7pm and leave by 9pm.
Mirador de la Peña Bar — El Hierro Hidden Gem
César Manrique designed this clifftop restaurant and bar on El Hierro in 1994, and it follows the same logic as all his great works — the architecture disappears so the landscape can speak. The terrace hangs over a 1,000-metre drop into the El Golfo valley, with views that stretch, on a clear day, across to Tenerife. El Hierro local wine is grown in the valley below; a glass of the white Vijariego grape variety, drunk here, is one of the finer cheap pleasures available in the Canaries. The island itself requires effort to reach, which is exactly why this remains almost entirely off tourist maps.
La Tegala Restaurant Terrace
La Tegala occupies a hilltop position in the inland village of Mácher, with a terrace that looks out across Lanzarote's central volcanic landscape towards the south coast and the ocean. The kitchen is one of the most serious on the island — Canarian produce cooked with contemporary technique and a preference for local ingredients. Come for the food and stay for the view, or simply arrive at 6pm and order a glass of El Grifo Malvasia to watch the light change over the lava fields. Worth every detour from the coastal resort circuit.
Bar El Mirador — Puerto de la Cruz
A straightforward bar at the top of the old town in Puerto de la Cruz, with a small terrace that looks directly north over the Atlantic and the Lago Martianez pools below. This is the un-fussy option — cold beer, local wine, maybe a plate of olives — with a view that rivals anything the five-star hotels are charging €18 for a cocktail to access. The bar is busy in the evenings with a mix of locals and long-term visitors who know what they've found. Nothing fancy. That is the point.
Terrace Bar — Parador de Las Cañadas del Teide
At 2,150 metres above sea level inside Teide National Park, the Parador hotel sits in the base of the ancient caldera with the volcanic peak directly above. The terrace bar is the highest drinking spot in Spain, and on clear nights — which are most nights at this altitude — the stargazing is genuinely extraordinary. Tenerife's high-altitude, low-humidity atmosphere puts it in the same league as Hawaii and the Atacama for night-sky quality; the Parador terrace is the easiest way to access it without hiking. A hot chocolate with a splash of local rum at 9pm here is one of the more memorable things you can do in the Canaries.
Find hotels with rooftop pools and sea views across the Canary Islands on Booking.com — filter by "pool" or "sea view" for the best results.
What to Drink
Local wine: Canarian wines are underexported and underappreciated. Look for Tacoronte-Acentejo reds (Tenerife), Lanzarote Malvasia whites (crisp, volcanic mineral character), and El Hierro Vijariego for something genuinely unusual. All available at any of these bars.
Ron miel: Honey rum — a Canarian speciality made from local cane sugar rum blended with palm honey. Sweet and strong. Best served cold over ice as a digestif. Available everywhere; quality varies. Ask the bar which brand they use.
Mojito canario: The local variant uses ron miel instead of white rum and sometimes adds Canarian mint. Sweeter and more aromatic than the Cuban original. Most rooftop bars on this list make a good version.
See also: Best Restaurants in Tenerife and Best Restaurants in Gran Canaria.
