In short
From the sixties onward, César Manrique imposed rules on the island that still hold: no billboards, no tall buildings, white houses with green or blue shutters. Lanzarote looks like no other Canary island.
Timanfaya park is a lava field from 1730 where the ground stays at several hundred degrees a few metres down. The geothermal demonstrations at the entrance are not a conjuring trick.
What it really costs
The island is dearer than the mainland for food — everything arrives by boat — but off-season accommodation stays reasonable, and the climate removes heating from the budget.
A car is necessary: buses exist but link the resorts to each other, not the inland sites. Count the hire in the budget.
What nobody tells you
Timanfaya requires an online booking for a date and a time. The queue of cars at the park entrance can run an hour in high season, and it serves no purpose without a ticket.
The wind blows almost constantly, which makes the island's reputation for windsurfing and kitesurfing but makes the beach less restful than elsewhere.
Temperatures barely move: twenty degrees in January, twenty-six in August. There is no climatic low season here, only a low season for crowds.