Parasailing, paragliding or skydiving on Gran Canaria: what each costs and what you get
Updated October 7, 2026 · 8 min read
The short answer: for most people the Parasailing tour from Puerto Rico is the one to book. It costs €39.9 per person, takes one to three people up together, has 4.6 stars from 747 reviews, and it is the cheapest way to leave the ground. If you want the real thing and the budget allows it, the tandem skydive over the Maspalomas dunes is €299 per person and has 4.9 stars. In between sit the paragliding flights from Las Palmas, from €89 to €107.
Do not book on price alone: the pages differ most on weight, age and weather.
Time in the air is not the duration you see
Every one of these listings shows a duration that is longer than the flight. Read it as the time you will spend in total.
Parasailing is the shortest: the Puerto Rico tour is listed at 10 to 12 minutes, the Anfi Beach tour at 10 minutes flying. The operator’s review summary on the Puerto Rico page notes that some travellers report shorter airtime than advertised and ask for the full duration, so do not expect to be up there for the whole listed time.
The skydive is listed at 1.5 hours. The page itself breaks that down: a 15-minute safety briefing, a 15-minute van ride, then the airfield at El Berriel with the flight on the aircraft. The jump is from 3,000 metres with free fall of up to 30 seconds, followed by a canopy flight the page gives as 5 to 7 minutes in the description and 5 to 8 minutes in the list. It also says skydiving can be a half-day activity, because of weather and air traffic delays.
Paragliding is where the pages disagree with themselves. The Las Palmas tandem flight is listed at 30 minutes and described as roughly 30 minutes, but its list of inclusions says a 15- to 20-minute tandem flight. The hands-on flight is listed at 15 minutes in the booking summary and as one hour on its page. Ask the operator how long you will actually be flying.
The five compared
| Tour | Duration | From | Rating | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puerto Rico de Gran Canaria: Parasailing | 10 - 12 minutes | €39.9 per person | 4.6 (747) | first-timers, one to three people together |
| 1 to 3 Person Parasail over Anfi Beach | 10 minutes | €50 per person | 4.7 (156) | a private group, photographer on the page |
| Las Palmas: Paragliding Tandem Flight with Instructor | 30 minutes | €107 per person | 4.7 (74) | views of Las Palmas and Las Canteras beach |
| Paragliding hands-on experience with a pilot | 15 minutes | €89 per person | 5.0 (26) | trying the controls yourself |
| Skydiving over Maspalomas Dunes | 1h 30m | €299 per person | 4.9 (107) | free fall with no prior experience |
The skydive costs about 7.5 times as much as the cheapest parasail.
Parasailing: the easy one
The Puerto Rico tour is run from the harbour at Puerto Base. You are towed behind a boat under a parachute, and the page offers lines of 150 or 300 metres, which is the height limit it quotes (“fly up to 300 meters above the water”). The flight is for one, two or three people, and the group is limited to three. The page lists a life jacket, insurance, the harness system, the parachute and the boat. Its list also contains hotel pickup, tips and food and drinks, but the page merges what is included with what is not, so assume none of those three is included unless the operator says otherwise. The only exclusion it names is pregnant women. Luggage and large bags, alcohol and drugs, sports shoes and boots are not allowed on board.
The Anfi Beach tour is the alternative. It is a private group, you meet at the water-sports kiosk at the start of Anfi Beach, and the page gives one weight rule: each parasail can hold a combined weight of 200 kg. For two friends that is the number to add up before you book. Photographs and videos are listed as available for purchase, so they are an extra, not part of the €50.
A third operator, in Maspalomas, sells parasailing from €60 per person. Its page lists no children under five, no pregnant women, nobody over 159 kg, and no one with heart problems, altitude sickness or recent surgery. Wheelchair users are excluded as well. All parasailing offers are collected under jet ski and water sports.
Paragliding: more flying, more conditions
Both flights start in the mountains above Las Palmas, and in both the meeting point is set by the wind, not by you. The Las Palmas tandem flight tells you the time and place by WhatsApp 24 hours ahead, with the meeting point normally on the mountain of Los Giles. Exclusions: pregnant women, people with vertigo, people over 100 kg (220 lbs). Its highlights give a maximum weight of 99 kg, so the limit is 99 or 100 kg depending on which line you read. If you are near it, ask.
The age rule is also soft: the page says the recommended minimum is 14 years and that minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian for consent. It says you do not need experience, but also that the flight is for anyone with no movement limitations and in good health. If you are unsure whether that is you, ask your doctor before booking rather than the operator.
See availability and prices for the Las Palmas tandem paragliding flight
The hands-on flight costs less (€89) and lets you take the controls under the pilot’s supervision. It lists a weight limit of 118 kg (260 lbs) and excludes pregnant women, people afraid of heights and people with vertigo. Wear closed-toe shoes and long trousers; sandals and bare feet are not allowed. The page lists professional instructor, wing, harness, helmet, a theory session and insurance, but then merges pictures, videos and transfers into the same list, so whether they are included needs confirming. Its page states no minimum age. Its 5.0 rests on only 26 reviews.
Two four-hour paragliding packages (with a banana plantation visit at €170, with tapas and pickup at €185) have only a handful of reviews and are not compared here. More activities are under things to do in Gran Canaria.
Skydiving: the one with the weight rules
The skydive is run by a company at Playa del Inglés, with the jump landing next to the Maspalomas dunes. It is a tandem jump, so you do not need previous experience. The page lists equipment, instruction, goggles and a certificate after the jump.
The conditions are the strictest of the five:
- The booking page lists as not suitable: children under 9, pregnant women, people under 30 kg, people over 100 kg, or anyone who dived in the last 24 hours.
- Above 90 kg, a €50 surcharge applies.
- If you declare a weight over 90 kg and your actual weight at check-in is more than 3 kg higher, the operator reserves the right to refuse the jump, and the booking counts as your cancellation.
- Bring a passport or ID card and wear comfortable shoes. Bare feet are not allowed.
A video and photo package is mentioned separately (“if you purchased a video and photos package”), so treat it as an extra and ask the price. Cancellation is free up to two days in advance, a longer window than the 24 hours on the parasail and paragliding pages.
See availability and prices for the skydive over the Maspalomas dunes
Weather: plan for a cancelled day
Wind decides all three, and each page treats it differently.
- Parasailing, Puerto Rico: the page says schedules may change with weather and sea conditions and that the activity may be cancelled for bad weather. It does not say what you get back; the standard free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead is all it states. Ask the operator. The Anfi Beach page and the Maspalomas page give no weather rule at all, so ask them as well.
- Paragliding, Las Palmas: this is the only page with numbers. Flights cannot go ahead if the wind is below 15 or above 30 km, as the page puts it. If a flight is suspended you choose between another day and a refund. For the hands-on flight, the page only says the launch site is chosen daily for weather.
- Skydiving: delays from weather and air traffic can happen, and the page tells you to check with the crew for an estimated landing time. One reviewer reports waiting about three hours after a reschedule.
The practical rule: do not put any of these on your last day, and book early in the trip so there is a spare day to move it to.
When none of these is right
If you are afraid of heights or have vertigo, the hands-on flight excludes people afraid of heights and vertigo, and the Las Palmas flight excludes people with vertigo. Pregnant women are excluded on the Puerto Rico parasailing, both paragliding and the skydive pages; the Anfi Beach page names no exclusions, so ask. If you want something on the water but do not want to leave it, a jet ski is the grounded alternative, and the jet ski guide covers age and prices. If anyone has a heart condition, a bad back or any health issue, ask your doctor before booking. None of these pages can answer that for you.
Our recommendation
For most people: the Puerto Rico parasailing tour at €39.9. It is the cheapest, the most reviewed by a wide margin, and it takes up to three people together. Accept that the real airtime is shorter than the listing.
If you want to fly with a pilot and see the coast: the Las Palmas tandem paragliding flight at €107 for the views of the capital and Las Canteras beach, or the hands-on flight at €89 if you want to steer. Both depend on wind, so allow a spare day, and ask how long the flight really is.
For the one big thing on the trip: the skydive over the Maspalomas dunes at €299. It is 7.5 times the price of the parasail, and it has the strictest weight and age rules, so read them before anyone gets their hopes up. If you are over 90 kg, add €50.
For the smallest budget: parasailing again; if two of you are flying, check the 200 kg combined limit on the Anfi Beach tour first.
