Practical Tips for your Everyday Life on La Palma

Useful tips for daily life on the island. It is good to know what you will expect as regards “Daily Life” on La Palma, in order to feel as quickly as possible at home and do eventually, whatever you have come here for in the first place: to go hiking, to throw yourself into the waves or into the pool, to rejoice in the sun, to stroll along the plaza, to relax, …

Money: banks, opening times, cash dispensers, credit card	Offices: Post, Consulate, Town Hall
Shopping: supermarket, shops, markets, bio	Time: difference to MEZ…
Health: physicians, pharmacies, health centres	Various things: newspapers, important telephone numbers
Verkehr: road traffic regulations, petrol price, pe trol stations, penalties, street map…	Lifestyle:

MONEY

Banks & Opening Times

Banks “bancos” and savings banks “cajas” are spread across the whole island; in the West in Los Llanos, Tazacorte. The most renowned is the “Caja Canarias”. Postals savings banks are in any larger post office.
Opening times: 8.30 a.m. – 2 p.m., in the winter (October to June) in addition on Thursday from 5.30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Cash Dispensers

in Los Llanos, Santa Cruz de la Palma and respectively on the whole island. In all banks, savings banks and larger supermarkets, you can draw money with EC, Master, Visa, 4B, Maestro, etc. Fees for the withdrawal depend on the respective credit card and amount on average, 2%.

Credit Cards

are accepted in many supermarket chains, restaurants, big hotels and in petrol stations. American Express is not accepted. In the Finca Tropical, there is no system to pay by credit cards or any other cards. The rest of the payment for accommodation and rental car is only accepted in cash.

SHOPPING

Supermarkets and Food Shops

Supermarkets – Hiperdino, San Martín, Spar – are to be found on the island in all bigger and smaller towns, in the West e.g. Los Llanos or Tazacorte. They keep closed on one day during the week (on Sundays) and stay otherwise open daily from 8 a.m / 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. / 9 p.m. Exception: public holidays. The supermarkets are not allowed to close on 2 days in a row. If a public holiday is a Monday, on Sunday or on Monday the shops have to stay open at least until 1 p.m. Prices for food are similar to the prices in Central Europe.
Smaller food shops are in almost every village, however, the opening times are not really regulated here and the prices are slightly higher than the ones in the supermarket.
Bio products are available in some special bio shops or also in the “centro dietico” (resembles a health food shop, some fresh products), a.o. in Los Llanos or on bio markets. Note, not all the products are really biological – it pays off to inquire in more detail.

Markets

An overview on the most important markets for food, biological products, arts and crafts, etc. is to be found under: Markets on La Palma.

Shops in general – Opening Hours

The opening hours are a very special thing on La Palma. You cannot dispense with the impression that each shop owner opens and closes whenever it personally suits him or her. Basically, you can say that in the winter (from October to June) the shops open at 8 p.m., 9 p.m. or 10 p.m. and are closed at noon. Afterwards, there is the lunch break / Siesta. The first shops don’t open again before 3 p.m., some open even as late as 4 p.m., others at 4.30 p.m. or at 5 p.m. The closing hours are handled very differently as well, they are in the space between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. and around Christmas, they sometimes stay open even until midnight. In the summer season (from July to September), everything is closed from 2 p.m. with the exception of the supermarkets.

HEALTH

Physicians

There are – and this facilitates the communication in case of illness – some English physicians and specialists, who have settled in La Palma, while not everybody is working with health insurance. Bills have to be paid immediately and can be refunded, if there is a suitable insurance, in your home country. Non-private patients need a special form for this (holiday health service vouchers) and should obtain information before they start the journey at their health insurance.

List of Physicians under construction....

Medical Care

The hospital in La Palma is situated on the eastern side of the island near Santa Cruz and the airport. In Los Llanos you can attend, if you speak Spanish, the “Ambulancia” near the covered market. In most towns, there is a “Centro Medico” or “Centros de Salud”, which is used mainly by locals for less serious illnesses. In lighter cases, you can try your luck there, if you know Spanish.

Telephone numbers:
Emergency calls 112
Hospital La Palma (Hospital Insular) 922185000
Red Cross Los Llanos 922461000

Centros de Salud near the Finca Tropical:
Los Llanos 922403070
Tazacorte 922482004
Todoque 922460519

Pharmacies

Are in all the bigger cities / towns, but also in smaller villages like in La Laguna or Todoque. In each pharmacy, you can find an info leaflet with pharmacies that stay open all night. These addresses are also published in the newspapers.
Opening times: are usually from 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. List

TRAFFIC

Petrol Stations & Petrol Prices

The network of petrol stations is well developed. Petrol stations generally stay open from 6.30 a.m. until 10 p.m. (sometimes until midnight). Some bigger and more modern petrol stations (in the West at the roundabout north of El Paso and in La Manchas, in the North near…) are open around the clock. Petrol prices are 20-30% cheaper than in Central Europe (the Canary Islands are a dutyfree zone, the petrol taxes are low).

Road Traffic Regulations

It is compulsory to wear seatbelts (front and back) and there is a ban on mobile phones (generally with a running engine). The alcohol limit is at 0,5 (in the blood), and 0,3, if you have your driving licence for less than 2 years. Penalty tickets for speedy driving, incorrect parking and alcohol on the wheel are handed out by the controlling authorities as quickly as in Central Europe and are punished with considerable payments up to the withdawal of your driving licence. Incorrect parking can cost up to 100€ and driving without vehicle documents can be as expensive as 120€. If you pay directly at the municipality, you get in most cases 20% discount.

Parking

Parking is prohibited (only delivery services) in the zones marked in yellow and blue. Zones for short-time parking are sign-posted in blue, as well. If you park for a short time period only, you have to use a parking disc.

Executive Authorities

Guardia Civil Los Llanos 922 46 09 90
Police Los Llanos 922402041

Taxi

Los Lanos 922 40 35 40, 922 46 20 01 (daytime), 629 11 55 31 (at night)
Santa Cruz de La Palma 922 41 60 70 (central office)

Street Map

Los Llanos de Aridane Santa Cruz de La Palma

Various Things

Risk of tailbacks is on the often curved main routes leading upwards and downwards into the valleys, whenever an older, heavy transport vehicle is loaded with bananas or gas bottles and causes a long stream of traffic or else you have to grant right of way in the North to a herd of goats.

OFFICES – Information

Consulates

for UK in..
for Netherlands
for Belgium

Post Offices

In the West in Tazacorte (entrance at the left side of the town hall), and Los Llanos (at the back of the Plaza Espana).
Opening times:

Town Hall – Ayuntamiento

Tourist Information

At the airport
In Santa Cruz de la Palma: in the glass office on the Avenida Blas Pérez Gonzales
In Los Llanos: on the Avenida Doctor Fleming and in the Casa Mssieu on the Plaza Sotomayor in the town district of Argual
In Villa de Tazacorte: a few metres to the left behind the church with the beautiful Bougainviellea-Plaza.