This weekend on Gran Canaria: the Fundacionales, Luck Ra and the club night

The highlight of the weekend: the Fundacionales before San Juan

Saturday carries the weekend. In the middle of the Fiestas Fundacionales — Las Palmas marking its 548th birthday — Plaza de Santa Ana becomes an open-air stage: at 7.30pm the Elepegecé Festival has its premiere, with Morgan, Los Vinagres, Good Franco, Baldosa and a DJ set by Dara Ortega. The new festival wants to become the home of contemporary rock in the city, entry is free, and the stage stands where the old town is at its best — in front of the cathedral, under the laurel trees.

But Saturday reaches far beyond the plaza. At the Gran Canaria Arena the Argentine star Luck Ra brings his cuarteto and urban cumbia to the island; at the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus the Mexican Silvana Estrada sings her quiet folk; and in the south Holiday World Maspalomas turns into a tribute night with Back to Rock. Friday had already set the sanjuanero tone with Mestisay.

Over all of it sits June: dry and mild around 22 to 23 degrees, the grey «panza de burro» blanket over the city in the mornings, breaking up in the afternoon while the south stays sunny. The Fundacionales run until 26 June and peak with the Noche de San Juan next Tuesday — this weekend is the run-up. And when the concerts end, the night in the south is still long: the drag stages of the Yumbo and the venues of the CC Cita carry on.

Friday 19 June

La costa de los cantares. Olga Cerpa and Mestisay bring their sanjuanero concert to Plaza de Santa Ana at 9pm — one of the defining voices of Canarian music, joined on the programme by the singer Eneida Marta from Guinea-Bissau, who builds bridges between the Canaries and West Africa. Free entry, part of the Fundacionales.

With the evening the club night begins. In Vegueta and Triana the bars around Plaza de Santa Ana fill up, and in the south the terraces of the Yumbo Centre open. The addresses are further down.

Saturday 20 June

Elepegecé Festival — Plaza de Santa Ana, from 7.30pm, free entry. The highlight of the weekend (see above), with Morgan, Los Vinagres, Good Franco, Baldosa and Dara Ortega on the decks.

Luck Ra and Valentino Merlo. The Argentine cuarteto star who carried cumbia into the global charts plays the Gran Canaria Arena at 7pm, alongside Valentino Merlo, Ilan Amores and Amigo de Artistas. Tickets from 34.90 euros via tomaticket.es.

Silvana Estrada. The Mexican songwriter performs at 8.30pm in the Sala Jerónimo Saavedra of the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus with her show «Vendrán suaves lluvias» — intimate folk and canción de autor. Tickets via auditorioalfredokraus.es.

Back to Rock — Maspalomas. To start the evening in the south, head to Holiday World Maspalomas: tributes to System of a Down, Green Day and Foo Fighters, doors at 5.30pm, tickets from 24 euros via tomaticket.es.

Add the free day of the Fundacionales: the opera «Turandot» for everyone at 8pm on Plaza de Stagno behind the Teatro Pérez Galdós, a chess simultaneous display on Plaza de Santa Ana in the morning, and in Parque Doramas the family concert La Banda Mocosa and a circus show. And Saturday carries the strongest club night of the week — in Las Palmas and in the south. Where, is further down.

Sunday 21 June

Sunday is the quiet day, and the longest of the year. In Parque Doramas the family show «La canción de Adji» runs at noon in the Auditorio José Antonio Ramos, free of charge — the easy wind-down before the big San Juan week begins.

Otherwise Sunday on Gran Canaria traditionally belongs to the seafront promenade and the chiringuitos rather than the big stage. In the south, though, the Yumbo Centre runs on Sunday evening too — the drag shows take no weekly break.

Las Palmas: the clubs

Las Palmas weekend nightlife spreads across three districts. In Vegueta and Triana, the old town, the bars around Calle Mendizábal, Plaza de Santa Ana and the Monopol terraces fill up from late evening. The best-known venue in the quarter is Alboroto at Calle Remedios 10 — the former Paper Club, a 400-capacity hall with a terrace and a programme between indie gigs, tribute bands and DJ nights. Alongside it sit La Biblioteca Vegueta, a club set in a library on Calle Pelota, the Rampage, and for the quieter cocktail the rooftop La Azotea de Benito on the CC Monopol.

Along Playa de las Canteras the nightlife runs by the beach. The Moma Club on the Paseo de las Canteras is the address for electronic music and techno with an alternative crowd, open until 6am on Fridays and Saturdays. Add the Tao Club & Garden near the marina and, for the gig-goers, the Mojo Club on Ctra. del Rincón next to the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus, which mixes club and live stage. For blues, head to La Guarida del Blues on the promenade.

The third hub is Santa Catalina and the port area — a dense run of bars and discotecas that go until dawn. The club Fortuni draws the younger, going-out crowd, with Chester right next door. The evening starts up high: on the Alis Rooftop Bar above the Hotel Santa Catalina or on the El Tendedero de Catalina terrace. Few venues charge entry — you pay for the drinks.

The south: Yumbo, CC Cita and the lifestyle scene

In the south, the Yumbo Centre in Playa del Inglés is the island’s best-known going-out hub after sunset, in large part LGBTQ+ but open to everyone. Its signature is the drag shows, every night, weekend included: Ricky’s Cabaret at 10.30pm, the Sparkles Show Bar with karaoke from 9pm and the show at 11pm, plus Chez Funny Boy’s, Buddies, Centre Stage and Terry’s. The evening starts on the terraces — Spartacus, Eiffel, Voulez Vous, Gran Café Latino or Adonis. After midnight the dance venues take over: Mykonos, the campier Tubos, Coco Loco and finally Mantrix, the biggest club, open until 6am. For commercial charts rather than a drag show, the Kasbah Centre in San Agustín is a short hop away.

The CC Cita sits in the heart of Playa del Inglés, just a few steps from the Yumbo, and is the centre of the south’s lifestyle and swinger scene. The largest venue is the Swingers Club Secret in the basement, holding more than 500 guests to reggaeton and Spanish house; things are more relaxed at Fun4all, with several playrooms and a dedicated BDSM room. Around them a run of bars and meeting points — HOTSPOT Gran Canaria, the Comeback Bar, Plan B, Tantra and Majestic GC with Mario’s Bar. The neighbouring CC Sandia is home to the 2x2 Swingers Club. These venues are for an adult crowd, and proof of age is required.

Closely tied to it is the cruise and fetish scene around the Yumbo, a fixture of the gay nightlife of the south. The Cruise Bar has been going since 1994, alongside Tom’s Cruising Bar, Strong Construction on the ground floor of the Yumbo, NOXON on the first floor with its fetish and cruising programme, The Factory and the Zoo Men’s Cruising Bar. For something quieter there is the Sauna Enjoy Maspalomas on Avenida de Tirajana.

For live music rather than a DJ, the bars outside the centres are worth the walk. The Tipsy Hammock Bar on Paseo Costa Canarias plays until 2am, the Cafe Mozart 2 and Al’s Bar in the Gran Chaparral Centre go for hand-played music, the Irish Dunes & Tunes sits on the Maspalomas promenade, and the Cafe del Mar on Plaza del Faro in Meloneras pairs the sunset with a live stage.

FAQ

Where do I get concert tickets?

The Fundacionales concerts on Plaza de Santa Ana are free, as are the opera «Turandot» and the family shows in Parque Doramas. Luck Ra at the Gran Canaria Arena and Back to Rock in Maspalomas run via tomaticket.es, Silvana Estrada at the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus via auditorioalfredokraus.es.

What is free this weekend?

Plenty: Mestisay on Friday, the Elepegecé Festival and the opera «Turandot» on Saturday, plus a chess simultaneous and family concerts in Parque Doramas — all part of the Fundacionales with free entry. Most bars and clubs charge no entry either; you pay for the drinks.

When is the Noche de San Juan?

On the night into Wednesday, that is on Tuesday 23 June. In Las Palmas Álvaro de Luna plays Plaza de la Música at 10pm, with fireworks over Los Muellitos at midnight. In Playa del Inglés the traditional batucada moves along the beach, with fireworks and a DJ into the small hours.

How late are the clubs open?

In Las Palmas clubs such as Moma and Fortuni run until around 6am, while the bars in Vegueta fill up from late evening. At the Yumbo Centre the drag shows run all evening and the dance venues until dawn, with Mantrix open until 6.

What works with family?

Parque Doramas is the family hub of the Fundacionales this weekend: the La Banda Mocosa concert and a circus show on Saturday, the show «La canción de Adji» on Sunday, plus the chess simultaneous display on Plaza de Santa Ana — all free.