Club La Santa, Lanzarote: The Complete Guide for Serious Athletes

Club La Santa on Lanzarote is the property that every other sports resort in Europe gets compared to. Spread across 75,000 m2 on the island's west coast, it offers over 80 sports, three 50m swimming pools, a fleet of 600 Cannondale bikes, and more than 500 instructor-led activities per week. It is, by any reasonable measure, the largest and most comprehensive active holiday resort in Europe. But is it right for you? That depends entirely on what you're looking for.

What makes Club La Santa different

Most sports hotels are hotels that happen to have some sport facilities. Club La Santa is the opposite: it's a sports complex that happens to have accommodation. That distinction matters. The entire resort is designed around training, not room service and poolside cocktails. The pools aren't a leisure amenity with a couple of lanes roped off. They're three separate 50-metre pools built for swimming, with pace clocks, lane ropes and dedicated training hours. The bikes aren't a hire fleet of dusty hybrids. They're 600 Cannondale road and mountain bikes, maintained daily, available at no extra charge.

This approach extends to everything. The athletics track is a proper 400m track with starting blocks. The padel courts are professional-standard, including new 1x1 AFP-manufactured courts for singles practice. The gym has a dedicated outdoor HYROX zone at the stadium. There's a TrackMan golf studio for swing analysis. The football pitch was re-turfed in 2025 with professional-grade artificial turf. Nothing feels like an afterthought.

The sports facilities: a full breakdown

Swimming

The three 50m pools are the centrepiece for triathletes and competitive swimmers. They're heated year-round and available for lane swimming from early morning. Open-water swimming is accessible directly from the resort's coastline, which is ideal for race simulation and sighting practice. For a deeper look at swim training options across Europe, see our guide to the best swimming hotels for triathletes.

Cycling

The bike centre stocks 600 Cannondale road bikes, mountain bikes and city bikes. Road cycling on Lanzarote is excellent year-round: the volcanic landscape offers varied terrain from flat coastal roads to the steep climbs of Tabayesco and Femmes. The roads are generally quiet, well-surfaced and safe. Group rides are organised daily by the Green Team, graded by ability level. If you're bringing your own bike, there's secure storage and a workshop area.

Running

The 400m athletics track is available for speed work and intervals. Beyond the track, Lanzarote's coastal paths and inland trails offer everything from flat recovery runs to hilly tempo sessions. The terrain is volcanic and largely treeless, which means it can be windy and exposed, but also means there's almost always good visibility and dry footing. Trail running is possible but the surfaces are rocky, so proper trail shoes are essential.

Racket sports

Padel is a major focus. The resort has multiple standard courts plus new AFP-manufactured 1x1 singles courts (half the size of a standard padel court, designed for skill work). These courts use recycled aluminium construction and wind-resistant design built for Lanzarote's conditions. Tennis courts are available for booking, pickleball has been added recently, and there are squash courts on site too.

Everything else

The full list runs to 80+ sports: football, volleyball, beach volleyball, windsurfing, mountain biking, yoga, Pilates, functional training, archery, petanque, table tennis, and more. The resort's lagoon is used for kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding and windsurfing. Most activities are included in the room rate, and the Green Team instructors run structured classes at multiple ability levels throughout the day.

The Green Team

Around 40 qualified instructors make up the "Green Team," and they're a big part of what makes Club La Santa work. They run over 500 classes per week across every sport, from beginner cycling group rides to advanced swim technique sessions. Classes are free (included in your stay), and the quality is generally high. The Green Team also organise social tournaments, themed sport weeks, and events throughout the year.

The Green Team is what separates Club La Santa from a resort that just has facilities. Having a structured programme of coached sessions means you can genuinely improve during your stay, not just maintain fitness.

Accommodation: set your expectations

This is where some people get surprised, so let's be direct. Club La Santa is not a luxury hotel. It's not trying to be one. Accommodation is in apartments (391 units) and suites (96 units), ranging from studios to two-bedroom family apartments. The style is functional and clean, not boutique or design-led. Think Scandinavian sports camp rather than Mediterranean resort.

Apartments come with a kitchenette, which is useful if you want to self-cater or prepare your own sports nutrition. Half-board is available through the on-site restaurants, including Restaurant Atlantico (the main buffet) and El Lago (a la carte). The food is solid and plentiful, geared towards active guests who need proper fuel. There are four restaurants in total.

Five apartment towers (Towers 1, 3, 50, 51 and 52) are being renovated and upgraded to "Comfort" standard as part of the 2026-2027 construction programme. If you're booking in that period, ask which tower you'll be in.

Who Club La Santa is perfect for

The resort has a very specific sweet spot, and when it hits, it hits hard.

The resort is particularly popular with Scandinavian school groups and sports clubs, and with UK and northern European triathletes during the winter and spring months. If you're training for a spring or summer triathlon and want a January-March training block in warm weather, this is the go-to destination.

Who it's not for

Honesty matters here, so let's be blunt about the limitations.

If you're looking for a quiet, boutique hotel experience with spa treatments and fine dining, Club La Santa will disappoint you. If you want a golf-focused holiday, the TrackMan studio is excellent but there's no on-site course. And if you want nightlife, Lanzarote's west coast is about as far from it as you can get. The resort creates its own social atmosphere (the Green Team evening shows, social tournaments, themed nights), but it's activity-based socialising, not bars-and-clubs.

Lanzarote as a training destination

The island itself is a significant part of why Club La Santa works. Lanzarote sits in the Atlantic just off the coast of Africa, giving it a subtropical climate that delivers 20-25°C in winter and 25-30°C in summer. Rainfall is minimal year-round. The volcanic landscape is dramatic and largely undeveloped, with quiet roads and stunning scenery.

For cyclists, the terrain is varied: flat coastal loops for easy days, the climb to Tabayesco for threshold work, and the Fire Mountains for something genuinely dramatic. For runners, the mix of road, trail and track covers every session type. For swimmers, the ocean is accessible year-round (water temperatures around 18-22°C depending on season), and the three pools handle the rest.

How it compares to Playitas Resort

The most common comparison is with Playitas Resort on neighbouring Fuerteventura. Both are purpose-built sports resorts on the Canary Islands. Both have 50m pools, cycling infrastructure and triathlon focus. The key differences:

Club La Santa wins on sheer volume of facilities and the inclusive activity programme. Playitas wins on accommodation finish and a slightly more polished resort feel. Both are excellent. If you haven't been to either, Club La Santa is the one most people try first.

Other sports hotels on Lanzarote

If Club La Santa is fully booked or you want something different on the island, Lanzarote has several other sports-focused properties worth considering.

Barcelo Lanzarote Active Resort is a solid 4-star option with triathlon facilities and a lap pool. Vitalclass Lanzarote offers padel, tennis and swimming alongside cycling. Sands Beach Active Resort sits on the east coast near Costa Teguise and provides a more affordable base with a lap pool and tennis courts.

Practical tips for your first visit

Flights to Arrecife (ACE) run from most UK and northern European airports, with a flight time of around 4 hours. The resort is approximately 25 minutes from the airport by car. There's no public transport to the resort, so you'll need a transfer or hire car. A hire car is useful for exploring the island on rest days (Timanfaya National Park, the wine region of La Geria, and the beaches at Papagayo are all worth visiting), but not essential if you're spending most of your time at the resort.

For dining, the half-board option covers breakfast and dinner at Restaurant Atlantico. Self-catering in the apartment kitchenette is a practical option, especially for athletes managing specific nutrition plans. There's a supermarket on site (a new, larger one is being built as part of the renovation).