A record number of airline tickets to Tenerife and the Canary Islands comes just as the situation reaches a boiling point.
“Canarias tiene un límite” – “The Canary Islands have a limit” is the slogan with which the local population denounces the outdated tourism model. The excesses of tourism, overpopulation, pressure on the housing market, and the perception that nothing has changed are highlighted through protests and demonstrations.
18 Million Tourists
The announcement that airlines are offering over thirty million tickets for the Canary Islands winter season seems almost ironic at this moment. Airlines have scheduled 30 million seats at Canary airports for the winter season, a 4.2% increase from last year. This season runs from October 27, 2024, to March 29, 2025. Of the total seats, 18.5 million are for international flights and 11.3 million for domestic flights. For these airlines, the Canary Islands have “no limit.” This year is expected to close with a record of nearly 18 million tourists visiting the Canary Islands.
Gran Canaria
Due to the geopolitical situation in the Middle East and neighboring countries, the demand for tourism in the Canary Islands has increased again, despite rising costs and inflation in Europe. The Canary Islands remain attractive to British and German tourists, despite the crisis and reports of supposed “tourism phobia” in certain British tabloids following protests on April 20 and October 20, calling for a “new tourism model.”
Gran Canaria Airport has scheduled more than 9.1 million seats across 256 routes, with 3.9 million for domestic flights, 5 million for Europe, and around 130,000 for Africa, with a total of 63,800 operations planned. After Spain, Germany offers the highest number of seats, followed by the United Kingdom.
Airports
Tenerife South Airport has nearly 8 million seats scheduled for this winter, with 42,200 flights, 202 routes, and 7.9 million seats—7.2 million for European flights, almost 600,000 for national flights, 53,400 for Africa, and 23,200 for North America. The routes to London, Manchester, and Germany are particularly popular.
César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport has scheduled 31,600 operations, 145 routes, and 4.8 million seats, of which 3.2 million are for European destinations, 1.5 million for domestic flights, and about 20,000 for Africa. This airport primarily serves the British and domestic markets.
Tenerife North-Ciudad de La Laguna Airport offers 3.6 million seats, mostly for domestic flights, and about 14,000 for European connections. For the winter season, 32,200 flights and 38 routes are planned, with connections to Madrid and Gran Canaria being well represented.
Fuerteventura Airport has also scheduled 3.6 million seats across 23,600 operations and 134 routes, of which 2.7 million are for Europe and 924,400 for domestic flights. Key markets here include Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
La Palma Airport offers 861,400 seats for the winter season, with 678,400 for national and 183,000 for international flights. A total of 9,644 flights and 23 routes are planned, with Tenerife leading in domestic connections, followed by Germany.
El Hierro and La Gomera: Airlines are offering 166,600 seats on El Hierro in 2,314 operations and 88,704 seats on La Gomera with 1,232 flights, all to Tenerife and Gran Canaria.
Record Number of Passengers This Year
Airline capacity planning for the 2024 winter season is prepared months in advance and can still be adjusted by the airlines. These are scheduled seats and flights, not actual traffic data, as this information becomes available only once flights are operated and occupancy rates are confirmed.
The number of international air passengers arriving in Spain last September was 10.6 million, a 10.1% increase compared to the same month last year. For the Canary Islands, this increase was 8.6%—the lowest among the autonomous regions—and over half of these passengers came from the European Union, according to Turespaña data.
In the summer of 2024, 1,248,828 flights were operated in Spain, a 7.4% increase compared to the summer of 2023, when 1,163,123 flights were operated. Passenger numbers in the summer of 2024, estimated to reach over 177 million by the end of August, also showed an increase compared to 163 million during the same period in 2023.
Flightradar24.com © Photography
Record number of airline tickets to Tenerife ©
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