The Canary Islands have noticed a new holiday trend with potentially concerning effects on the local economy. Throughout 2023, holiday establishments on the archipelago earned 25.3 percent more when compared to data from 2019, according to the Accommodation Survey Tourism of the Canarian Institute of Statistics (Istac).
Figures considering both hotels and non-hotels welcoming visitors show that 13.8 million travellers stayed in one of the islands of the archipelago last year, 3.1 percent more than the number recorded before the coronavirus pandemic.
While these data suggest that the Canary Islands remain a destination extremely beloved by tourists, their analysis carried out by the Observatory of Tourism Competitiveness and Sustainability of Ashotel noted there has been a 2.3 percent drop in overnight stay – from 97.9 million in 2019 to 95.7 million in 2023.
Ashotel manager Juan Pablo González celebrated the “incontestable” numbers recorded last year by the tourism sectors in the Canary Islands, but noted they also highlighted a fall in the average stay.
He said: “[2023] has closed with incontestable figures from the tourism point of view, and although the data is growing in terms of stayed travellers and income, overnight stays have not yet reached 2019, given that the average stays have fallen.”
The expert added that “there is a trend that is being consolidated and that has to do with the fact that vacations are now usually divided into shorter periods, which has an impact on the average stays”.
The Ashotel manager also noted inflation must be taken into account when comparing revenues, “so the percentage increases are not so high”.
The economy of the Canary Islands is heavily reliant on tourism. In 2022, the sector accounted for 33 percent of total GDP and 36 percent of employment, according to the OECD.
Moreover, the islands are constantly working to remain competitive and to defend their tourism sector.
Earlier this week, the Canary Island Federation pledged to oppose the decision taken by the central government in Spain to approve a 4.09 percent airport tax hike, amid fears it could have a ripple effect on tourism.
At the same time, the efforts to accommodate the huge influx of holidaymakers – including millions of Britons – are having a costly impact on the Spanish territory, according to urban planning specialists.
Eugenio Reyes, spokesman at the organisation Ben Magec-Ecologists in Action, fears the territory is on the brink of collapse.
He said: “The Canary Islands territory was more than overexploited. We had exceeded the carrying capacity of the territory by seven times, resulting in a scenario of systemic collapse due to the urban development structure.”
Experts desiring to safeguard the Canary Islands argued in favour of sustainable tourism and placing locals at the heart of planning rather than tourists.
