Gran Canaria is a popular holiday island, one of the sun-baked Spanish Canary Islands located just off the west coast of Africa. Its location means the cluster of islands offer a temperate year-round climate, which sizzles during the summertime with temperatures regularly reaching the late 20s and 30s. The spring and winter months are generally milder - offering pleasant t-shirt weather that's often better suited to families or older travellers.

If you've got a holiday to Gran Canaria on the cards, you can find out more about any of these resorts through the major tour operators like Thomas Cook - take a look at their Gran Canaria pages. In the meantime, check out our take on the top three holiday resorts here:

Maspalomas
Maspalomas is a large, popular resort based on the south coast. It's packed with great restaurants, cafes, shops and bars, and it offers plenty of buzz with stacks of local amenities. There's a nearby water park - Aqua Land - and it's also home to the famous sand dunes, a vast desert-style landscape and protected nature reserve. It also has a gorgeous and well-equipped Blue Flag beach with sunbeds, parasols and showers.

Puerto Mogan
If you want a laid-back holiday to Gran Canaria, Puerto Mogan is a great spot. Located on the west coast, it's a small pretty town with steep rocky cliffs that tumble down to a sheltered bay, a lovely marina and plenty of charm in the form of quaint whitewashed buildings and beautiful floral displays simply bursting with colour. It's a small resort with bags of character and it's perfect for laid-back escapes in typical Canarian surroundings.

Playa del Ingles
There's no two ways about it. Playa del Ingles is party mad - and it's not afraid to show it. If your holiday to Gran Canaria is all about clubbing 'til the early hours, this is the place to be. Bring your dancing shoes and prepare for a blistering night out in its bars, pubs, karaoke joints and nightclubs. This is prime 18-30s territory so if you like your nights out large and full of life, Playa del Ingles is happy to oblige!