There was a fairly recent thread on car hire

http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/forum/car-hire-lanzarote-march-2014-t159528.html

If you only want to hire for a couple of days locally just avoid Goldcar and pick a local company like autoreisen or Cabrera medina rather than someone like Avis or Hertz who can be more expensive .
If you hire a car you can do your own day trips , it's very easy to drive around , Timanfaya is worth a visit , and you could easily take in viewing a lot of attractions by planning a route , whilst visiting there you could see El Golfo , playa Blanca , Yaiza ( lovely village ) and puerto Calero , stopping off for a break or something to eat/ drink , then back to PDC , another day you could visit the attractions the other side of PDC like Jameos Del Agua , Manrique house and museum , cueva de Los verdes , mirador del rIo , cactus garden, there's so much to choose from .

Autoreisen can only hired from the airport. They don't have any resort offices. Cabrera Medina, who I've used for over 20 year, Plus Car and others have offices in PDC. Do not use Goldcar or Orlando.

Timanfaya National Park is a must visit with a trip around the volcanoes. You could also visit El Golfo for lunch, Los Hervideros, Playa Blanca and Yaiza at the same time.
La Santa village, Famara, Haria, Arrieta are all worth visiting. I also like Playa Honda. Coffee and cake in the Star Lounge on the 17th floor of the Arrecife Gran Hotel for some great views, and a walk round Charco San Gines while you're in Arrecife.
There is so much to see on the island.

Were do you start: Well try these...

Places to Visit
Cesar Manrique House; Fantastic house built around a lava flow. Has wide bright rooms full of art work and a beautiful garden. Well worth seeing.

Jameos del Agua; (Caves) - well worth the visit. Created by Cesar Manrique and so easy to explore using the subterranean walkways. Once you have paid the entrance fee you are then left to spend as long or short a time as you require and browse the cave in your leisure.

The pathway down leads you to a nightclub area that is open three nights a week, and then onto a large underground lake that holds albino crabs, after this you go through a narrow walkway along the right hand side of the lake that leads you to another small bar area and then up into the open air section. Here is the swimming pool that only the King of Spain is allowed to swim in. Steps then lead up to a terraced area with a small cafe and a Volcanic Museum.

There are plenty of opportunities for photographs and areas to sit and just take in the surroundings.


Las Cuevas de los Verdes; (Caves) - they are part of the same system as Jameos del Agua and again a must see. These are natural lava caves that you go through with a guide and this takes about 45 - 60 mins, depending on the group size. Our group was about 20 strong and this was a good size because all the explanations are done in Spanish and English and if there were any more in the group it would be more difficult to see and hear. Because these are volcanic caves you can see how the lava flowed on the side walls and they have also used lighting to emphasis the main areas. The main feature of these caves is a secret area that will be shown to you by the guide so I will not enlighten you any more on that. Again, plenty of opportunities for photos and just a small warning in places you will need to mind your head and duck to go through some of the areas. No Health and Safety here.

With both of the above they are busy and because the Las Cuervas caves have a guided tour I suggest that if you are pushed for time you do these first.

The caves are about a mile apart.

Timanfaya; (Volcano) - If you decided to include this can I suggest you try and sit on the right hand side (starboard for all you cruisers) of the coach, better views. At the end of the coach tour you can then visit the displays of heat. After which a visit to the restaurant for a drink or some food, hot food after 12 noon (cooked by the Volcano’s own heat) and then a visitors shop.

Guinate Tropical Park; – a little further afield and there is lots to see here, especially for the children. Parrots, Toucan, Ostriches, Tortoise, Monkeys to name but a few. There is a Parrots show also, three times a day. Worth a visit About 1 hour from Arrecife.

Mirador Del Rio; (viewing point) – a little further along from Guinate Tropical Park with spectacular views over La Graciosa island and the entrance fee also allows you a free drink. About 1 hour from Arrecife.

Los Hervideros; The rugged coast line just along the coast from Playa Blanca. Large caves formed by the crashing of the sea. Walkways along the top and partly inside with viewing platforms.

El Golfo; (green lake) – Large lake cut off from the sea many years ago. Now turned a bright green. If you do visit and want lunch can I suggest the La Lopa restaurant, first restaurant on the right as you approach the main village. Excellent service and very reasonably priced. Can I recommend the Canerian stew and filleted catch of the day, served with Canerian Potatoes and Mojo sauce.

Hope they help with your planning.

Great info there Peter we've visited most of the places you've mentioned

If you drive past Guinate park a few hundred metres there's a car park where you can see the same view as you would from Mirador Del Rio for free.