📏 How Large Is the La Corona Lava Tube?

Although it is difficult to appreciate from the surface, the La Corona Lava Tube is one of the largest and best-preserved lava tube systems in the world. Its main passage is approximately 7.6 kilometres (4.7 miles) long, with around 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) running beneath the land and a further 1.6 kilometres (1 mile) continuing beneath the floor of the Atlantic Ocean as the Túnel de la Atlántida. Including its side passages and upper levels, the total mapped length of the system is about 9.7 kilometres (6 miles).

The tube itself is equally impressive in size. It has an average width of around 14 metres (46 feet) and an average height of approximately 10 metres (33 feet). In some places, the passages widen to more than 25–28 metres (82–92 feet), forming vast chambers that resemble enormous underground halls.

Its location is just as remarkable. The roof of the lava tube usually lies only a few to a few dozen metres below the surface. In places where the ceiling collapsed, it created the characteristic openings known as jameos, which now serve as natural entrances to the underground system. Thanks to these openings, visitors can explore Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua.

💡 Did You Know...?

If the entire La Corona Lava Tube were open to visitors, walking through its main passage would take around 1½ to 2 hours. In reality, tourists can explore only a small section of the system—mainly Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua—while most of the lava tube remains inaccessible or lies beneath the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

🪨 What Is a Jameo?

A jameo is a natural depression formed where part of the roof of a lava tube has collapsed. It is not a separate cave, but an opening that leads directly into the underground passage.

Jameos vary greatly in size—from small openings to large sinkholes with steep rocky walls. They allow sunlight, fresh air and rainwater to reach the interior of the lava tube.

The alignment of jameos on the surface helps scientists trace the route of the lava tube hidden beneath the solidified lava. The best-known example is Jameos del Agua, which formed in the water-filled section of the La Corona Lava Tube.

💡 Did You Know...?

A series of jameos can act like a natural map, revealing the course of the underground lava tube hidden beneath the surface.

🌊 Túnel de la Atlántida – The World's Longest Underwater Lava Tube

Around 21,000 years ago, when the La Corona Lava Tube was formed, sea levels were much lower than they are today. This allowed the lava to flow about 2 kilometres (1.2 miles) beyond the present-day coastline, creating an additional section of the lava tube. It was only after the end of the last Ice Age that the Atlantic Ocean gradually rose, flooding its final stretch.

Today, this submerged section is known as the Túnel de la Atlántida. Measuring approximately 1.6 kilometres (1 mile) in length, it is recognised as the world's longest known underwater lava tube. At its deepest point, it lies around 64 metres (210 feet) below sea level.

Although it forms part of the same lava tube system as Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua, it is not open to visitors. Only specialist research teams and highly experienced cave divers are able to explore its submerged passages as part of scientific expeditions.

🦀 The Underground World of Animals

Although the La Corona Lava Tube may seem like a harsh and lifeless environment, it has been home to remarkable organisms adapted to permanent darkness for thousands of years. Many of these species are found nowhere else on Earth.

The best-known inhabitant of the system is the blind white crab (Munidopsis polymorpha), which lives in the underground lagoon at Jameos del Agua. It has no pigmentation and its eyes are no longer functional, as vision is unnecessary in complete darkness.

Scientists have also discovered dozens of other species of tiny crustaceans and invertebrates living within the lava tube, making the La Corona Lava Tube one of the most valuable natural habitats on Lanzarote.

🔬 Why Do Scientists Study the La Corona Lava Tube?

The La Corona Lava Tube is not only a popular tourist attraction but also one of the world's most important natural laboratories for the study of lava tubes. Scientists investigate its structure to better understand how these underground systems form and how lava flowed during volcanic eruptions.

The tube is equally valuable from a biological perspective. Researchers have discovered numerous rare species adapted to life in complete darkness, some of which are found only on Lanzarote.

The findings from these studies help scientists reconstruct the island's geological history and gain a deeper understanding of the volcanic processes that shaped Lanzarote's extraordinary landscape.

💡 Did You Know...?

The La Corona Lava Tube is often compared with the famous lava tubes of Hawaii and Iceland. Thanks to its impressive size, exceptional state of preservation and unique underground ecosystem, it is regarded as one of the best-studied lava tube systems in the world.

🚶 Can You Explore the Entire Lava Tube?

No. Although the La Corona Lava Tube is approximately 7.6 kilometres (4.7 miles) long, only two sections are open to visitors: Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua. There is no underground route connecting these attractions, and the remaining parts of the lava tube are closed to the public to protect both visitors and the fragile natural environment.

The final section, known as the Túnel de la Atlántida, lies beneath the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and can only be accessed by authorised research teams and highly experienced cave divers.

As a result, most of the lava tube has remained in its natural state, making it one of the best-preserved and most carefully protected lava tube systems in the world.

💡 Did You Know...?

During a visit to Cueva de los Verdes, you walk through about 1 kilometre (0.6 miles) of underground passages. This is only a small part of the entire La Corona Lava Tube system, most of which remains inaccessible to visitors.

🕳️ How Did a River of Lava Become an Empty Tunnel?

Surprising as it may seem, a lava tube is not formed because lava burns its way through solid rock. The process is quite different.

As highly fluid lava flowed from La Corona Volcano, its surface cooled rapidly when exposed to the cooler air. This created a hard crust that acted like a natural roof, trapping the intense heat inside. Beneath this solid shell, the molten lava remained liquid for a long time, continuing to flow towards the ocean.

When the eruption finally ended, the supply of fresh lava stopped. The remaining molten rock gradually drained away, leaving behind an empty passage with solid rock walls and a vaulted ceiling. In this way, what had once been a river of lava was transformed into a vast underground tunnel.

Not all of the tunnel's roof survived, however. In places where the rock was weaker or had been eroded over thousands of years, the ceiling collapsed, creating the characteristic openings known on Lanzarote as jameos. These natural skylights allow daylight to reach the tunnel, and some have become the entrances to its best-known sections—Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua.

Today, it is hard to imagine that this peaceful underground world was created by a powerful river of molten lava that surged through the area around 21,000 years ago. Its path has survived to the present day as one of the best-preserved lava tube systems in the world.

💡 Did You Know...?

The walls of the La Corona Lava Tube still preserve numerous traces of flowing lava. In many places, you can see distinctive ledges, flow marks and lines that reveal how the level of the molten lava changed during the eruption. They form a remarkable geological record of events that took place around 21,000 years ago.

La Corona Lava Tube – One of the World's Largest Lava Tubes

Most visitors to Lanzarote explore Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua without realizing that they are actually two sections of the same vast lava tube. Hidden beneath the island's northern landscape, the La Corona Lava Tube was formed around 20,000 years ago and remains one of the largest and best-preserved lava tube systems in the world. Its underground passages extend for more than 7 kilometres (4.3 miles), stretching from the slopes of La Corona Volcano all the way beneath the floor of the Atlantic Ocean.

📖 Find Out More...

In the guidebook "Lanzarote with César Manrique", you'll find practical information about visiting Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua, including opening hours, ticket prices, parking facilities, helpful tips for planning your visit, and an interactive map showing the most important attractions in northern Lanzarote. You'll also discover how to combine both sites into a single trip and explore the most fascinating places connected with La Corona Volcano.

🌋 How Was the La Corona Lava Tube Formed?

The story of the La Corona Lava Tube began around 21,000 years ago, when La Corona Volcano erupted in northern Lanzarote. Vast quantities of highly fluid lava poured from the crater and flowed towards the Atlantic Ocean.

As the lava moved downhill, its outer surface cooled rapidly in the open air, forming a hard crust. Beneath this solid shell, the molten lava continued to flow like a river hidden inside its own rocky channel. Over time, this process created a long natural tunnel through which the lava could travel ever farther from the volcano.

When the eruption eventually came to an end, the remaining molten lava drained away into the ocean, leaving behind an empty passage. This is how the La Corona Lava Tube was formed—one of the largest and best-preserved lava tube systems in the world. Its main passage extends for more than 7 kilometres (4.3 miles), reaching from the slopes of La Corona Volcano to beneath the floor of the Atlantic Ocean.

Over the following thousands of years, natural forces continued to shape the tunnel. In some places, sections of the roof collapsed, creating the characteristic openings known on Lanzarote as jameos. These natural skylights later became home to two of the island's most famous attractions: Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua, both of which form part of the same lava tube system.

Although most visitors think of them as two separate attractions, they are actually connected sections of the same remarkable geological formation—the La Corona Lava Tube. Its final stretch, known as the Túnel de la Atlántida, now lies beneath the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

💡 Did You Know...?

Geologists believe that the La Corona Lava Tube may have formed in just a few weeks or months of continuous lava flow. In geological terms, one of the world's largest lava tubes was created in the blink of an eye.