-	All photographs of Cenobio de Valeron Caves

The Cenobio de Valeron or the 'Monastery of Caves' are located on the north coast of Gran Canaria. They date back to the Stone Age and are widely recognised as the most important and impressive pieces of architecture on the island.

In total there are 298 caves here and they considered an ancient sacred place of worship. But the question remains... who were the original inhabitants and why were they there?

Many people believe that it was a monastery or 'cenebio' where young girls went in preparation of marriage, in order to practice spiritual exercises and perform various rituals. Others say the caves were just used as granaries. Whatever they were used for, they are very impressive to view!

To get to the caves, take the C-810 road to Las Palmas heading east of Guia until you get to Cuesta de Silva. Then take the road up to the car park. You can walk up to the caves from there.