Within the framework of the IMEX international fair in Frankfurt 2023, dedicated especially to MICE tourism, Travel2latam spoke with Leticia González, from the Department of Fairs and Events in Tourism of the Canary Islands, about the entire offer of Islands and destinations, connectivity, main markets and promotional goals.
What are the different attractions of the Islands?
The Canary Islands are one of the most exclusive and unique destinations in the world, because no other place will make you feel like you are on three continents at the same time. In the Canary Islands you will obviously be in Europe because we are part of Spain, so we maintain European standards in security, infrastructure, currency. But at the same time, geographically we are very close to the African continent, at the same latitude as the city of Tampa in Florida and thanks to that we enjoy sensational weather all year round. We have the trade winds that blow from the west and the temperatures drop in such a way that it is never very hot or cold, that is why the Canaries are known as the lucky Islands, because we enjoy the eternal spring and that makes us a tourist reference at the European level.
In addition, when you go to the Canary Islands you will feel like you are in Latin America, this is due to the strong migration that took place in the 19th century and in the 20th century to Cuba, Puerto Rico and Venezuela, and in fact the city of San Antonio, Texas, it was founded by Canary families. Many of these families returned to the islands and that return left a mark on our culture. This can be seen, for example, in the architecture of the old quarters of the city, and of course, in our personality, which is very warm, with a very strong sense of family; so we have much more to do on an emotional level with Latin Americans than with Europeans, even though we are 100% European of course. The gastronomy also has a lot of Latin American influence and thanks to the good climate we grow tropical fruits, the fish is also delicious.
What are the destinations offered by the Canary Islands? And what are your air connections?
We have eight islands in total and right now we have six international airports. The most touristic Islands are the largest, Tenerife in the first place, it has the Teide National Park with the great volcano in the center of the island, becoming the highest point in all of Spain with almost 4000m. Tenerife also has two airports, one to the north and one to the south, the latter is international.
It is very important to comment that we have recently opened a route with United for the summer season only Tenerife Sur to New York, and we hope to be able to maintain it. Last year we opened it in the summer and it worked very well, which is why we have maintained it this year and we are working to open more routes both with the Canary Islands and Tenerife, as well as with the rest of the Islands and other American airports.
The island of Gran Canaria is also known as "The Miniature Continent" because there are so many microclimates and the variety of landscapes is incredible, in addition, it also has an International Airport.
Another very complete island is Lanzarote, an island with the imprint of César Manrique, a multifaceted Canarian artist and defender of nature. Thanks to him, an identity was created in Lanzarote in the way that all the houses had to be white with the doors and windows in a specific green, which today is the “Verde Lanzarote”. Very close to there, we have the island of Fuerteventura, which is the paradisiacal coast of the Canary Islands and all of Europe. In Fuerteventura there are spectacular white sand beaches and turquoise waters with a very mild climate all year round. And towards the west, is the Island of La Palma, which also has an international airport and is called Isla Bonita, because it is very green; where there was recently an eruption in 2021, but tourism has already been restored and in fact more and more people come to visit this island, whose skies are some of the cleanest in the world along with those of Hawaii. La Palma is therefore the best island for stargazing, with very good incentives at night with expert astrophysicists who take you to have a glass of Canarian wine while you watch the stars.
Then we have the smaller islands, La Gomera and El Hierro, which are also very green, and despite the fact that they do not have international airports, it is easy to reach them both by ferry from Tenerife and by plane, since they have small airports with Canary Islands airlines. . Lastly, the smallest of all remains, La Graciosa, which is just above Lanzarote, where mainly fishermen live and the only way to get around it is by bicycle or walking, and it is an island that has incredible virgin beaches. So in summary, for each person there is an island, it just depends on what the tourist is looking for.
What is the largest source of passengers and tourists?
We have a large national market, Spain has always been one of the strongest markets for the Canary Islands, followed by the British and German, and Scandinavian in fourth place, with Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland together. What happens is that Scandinavians come mostly in winter but you can come to the Canary Islands at any time of the year, because it is not very cold or very hot. However, we do not have direct competitors in winter in Europe, so we are the alternative beyond the Caribbean, which is much closer to them. We are also trying to expand our market more and more and we want to be known not only in Europe, but also in America and that is where we are right now.