Laguna de Janubio & Salinas de Janubio

Going north from Playa Blanca, we reach after about 8 km (5 miles) the Laguna de Janubio, a large, emerald green saltwater lagoon, location of the Salinas de Janubio, the only still operating commercial salt works on the island. At its high time the Salinas produced around 10,000 tons of sea salt per year, with the water originally being pumped into the lagoon by wind power, which has been replaced by electrically driven pumps.

The main part of the salt production was used in the fish industry for preservation and processing but with the invention of the refrigerator, the production decreased considerably and reaches around 2,000 tons per annum today. A small part of the production is still sold as high quality table salt and each year, during the Corpus Christi festival in June, tons of dyed salt are traditionally used in the creation of magnificent decorations in the streets and squares of Arrecife, the capital.

Laid out in a geometric pattern, with each of the saltpans showing a different colour, depending on the amount of water in it, the Salinas strike you as an intentionally created, enormous piece of art – despite their obvious functional purpose.

Classified historic monument and predominantly serving as a tourist attraction today, there is a project of transforming the complete Salinas area into a museum to document how sea salt was extracted over centuries through the traditional method of evaporation.

South of the Salinas lies a wonderful long beach with black sand, where you can find some nice specimens of olivine in the rocks. Unfortunately swimming is not recommended here, as there are many strong sea currents. The Salinas area is also known as an ideal place for the observation of all kinds of birds’ species, especially in spring and autumn!