canary islands tourism perception campaign

Canary Islands launch campaign to improve tourism perception

New campaign to improve tourism perception in the Canary Islands

A campaign called ‘Turismo que Suma’ (Tourism that Adds Up) is aiming to improve tourism perception among residents of the Canary Islands. It reminds visitors that holiday destinations are also places where communities and local people live. The regional government has joined forces with various local administrations to back the initiative, which is driven by the Alliance for Tourism Excellence (Exceltur). The goal is to promote a tourism model that generates more value for the regions, contributes to the wellbeing of the resident population, and strengthens the relationship between visitors, businesses, authorities, and local communities.

How do Canary Islands residents feel about tourism?

Overall, the impression locals have of tourism, the main economic driver of the islands, is largely positive, although this coexists with certain concerns about its impact on daily life. At the campaign launch, Exceltur vice president Óscar Perelli highlighted findings from a gauge used by Spain’s Ministry of Industry and Tourism to measure public perception of tourism’s effects. The data shows that residents view tourism favourably but also reveals worries about housing access and the consumption of resources. These indicators will serve as a benchmark for analysing how social perception of the sector evolves and for measuring the campaign’s impact, which aims to strengthen residents’ appreciation of tourism.

A majority of Canary Islands residents view tourism positively

When asked, “How do you think tourism affects your place of residence?”, 37.1 per cent of those surveyed said it has a positive influence, while 25.1 per cent said it has a very positive influence. Overall, more than six out of ten participants view the impact of tourism on their surroundings favourably. On the other hand, 15.6 per cent said tourism negatively affects their place of residence, and 5.4 per cent said it does so very negatively. A further 16.7 per cent of respondents were indifferent on the matter.

When looking at the direct impact of tourism on residents’ personal lives, the perception is slightly more moderate. Some 31.6 per cent think it affects them positively, and 18.9 per cent very positively. Meanwhile, negative and very negative opinions account for 14.3 per cent and 4.9 per cent respectively, while indifference rises significantly to 30.3 per cent of responses.

Housing and resources are top concerns

Among the main effects linked to tourism, housing stands out as one of the biggest worries. Some 63.4 per cent of Canary Islands residents surveyed strongly agree that tourism drives up rental and property prices. At the opposite extreme, only 3.8 per cent strongly disagree with this statement.

The use of natural resources is another issue that generates significant concern. Some 40.4 per cent of respondents strongly agree that tourism consumes resources such as water, energy, and land, affecting their availability for the resident population. In contrast, only 5.8 per cent strongly disagree.

Building on years of local initiatives

The Canary Islands joined this initiative after developing numerous campaigns, educational projects, and actions in recent years aimed at explaining the contribution the archipelago’s economic engine makes to wider society. These include preserving natural heritage, improving the quality of employment, supporting local suppliers, managing water and energy efficiently, reducing waste, regenerating destinations, modernising the tourism offering, combating illegal activity, and intelligently managing visitor flows.

The announcement was made by the Vice Minister for Tourism, José Manuel Sanabria; Exceltur vice president Óscar Perelli; and the vice president of the Association of Tourist Municipalities of the Canary Islands (AMTC), Onalia Bueno. The event was also backed by representatives from the island councils and business associations.

“At Turismo de Canarias we work intensively so that the public has a better understanding of the role tourism plays in our society,” said José Manuel Sanabria. He also noted that tourism has accounted for 47.6 per cent of the growth in economic activity in the islands since 2019, reaching a tourism GDP of €23.375 billion last year – equivalent to 37.7 per cent of the total regional economy – and representing 42.3 per cent of all employment in the Canary Islands.

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