las palmas mice tourism spain

Las Palmas shines as key MICE tourism hub in Spain

Las Palmas cements its status in Spain’s booming MICE sector

Business tourism is proving to be fully compatible with leisure and beach tourism, according to industry leaders. The Canary Islands, and particularly Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, have established themselves as a benchmark destination for the MICE sector (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions), as well as for sun-and-sea holidays. The MICE tourism sector is vital to Spain’s economy. According to data from the 2025 report commissioned by the Spain Convention Bureau, more than 10 million people visited the country that year to attend events, conferences, and MICE activities. These visitors generated over €14 billion in revenue, with an average daily spend of nearly €400. As a result, MICE tourism is at the forefront of Spain’s tourist activity, and the country now ranks third in the global ranking of MICE destinations.

“Yes, things are going very well,” a spokesperson noted. “Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, for example, is increasingly chosen for this type of conference and MICE event. It is therefore one of the leading cities within the Spain Convention Bureau and, moreover, one of the cities actively working on legacy planning. In fact, it has produced a best-practice guide that has been shared with other municipalities in the network.”

Compatibility and the value of networks

“These activities can be perfectly compatible. Being a member of another association does not prevent a town council from also joining the networks of the FEMP (Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces). Through the Federation, we offer all Spanish town councils the chance to integrate into our networks, which work on areas such as climate change, biodiversity, the 2030 Agenda, and the Spain Convention Bureau. We believe that the networks supported by the FEMP’s material, personnel, and institutional backing function very well and provide added value to municipalities. Through them, councils can learn about new experiences, share best practices, and access useful tools to improve their management.”

In the case of the Spain Convention Bureau, for example, a sustainability and legacy plan has been drawn up, a tourism intelligence system has been developed, and a digital tool has been created to measure the impact of events. These instruments will allow municipalities to make progress in organising more sustainable events, reducing their negative impact on residents, and generating a positive effect on the city. “That is precisely the aim of the legacy: to promote lasting initiatives that benefit both the public and the destination itself.”

The financial strain on tourist municipalities

These councils bear significantly higher costs for cleaning, security, urban maintenance, and service provision, especially during peak tourist seasons when their population can double or triple due to the influx of visitors. The FEMP is calling for a comprehensive reform of the local financing system, which has been in force since 2002, and for it to be negotiated alongside regional funding. This has been a unanimous demand from Spanish municipalism for years. Furthermore, specifically in the case of tourist municipalities, the Federation is calling for the concept to be updated and for this classification to be linked to real economic benefits, so that the state compensates town councils for the expenses incurred in serving an ever-increasing floating population.

A call for a state pact on housing

“What we are demanding from the FEMP is a State Pact on housing, so that the central government, the autonomous communities, and, in their part, the town councils, establish a legislative and operational framework to solve the problem. It is a complex issue, caused by many factors, and it will not be solved in the short term. Building the number of homes we need in this country – according to the Bank of Spain, more than 700,000 – cannot be done in two years. But it is urgent to make progress on a pact so that each public administration exercises the responsibilities that fall to it.”

The FEMP has produced a guide of recommendations for speeding up housing procedures, including best practices to help councils issue construction licences more quickly – a municipal competence. However, beyond this, one of the essential problems is the lack of land in production, meaning the lack of developable land. “Carrying out the reform of a general urban plan in this country can take years, even 15 years. That is why it is essential that the autonomous communities, and also the central government through a reform of the Land Law, establish much more agile procedures for processing and approving urban planning. The aim is to increase the supply of developable land, which would help reduce land prices and, ultimately, the price of housing.”

New decree allows councils to use surpluses for public housing

Until now, those resources could only be used for financially sustainable investments with a one-year execution period, which made promoting public housing unfeasible, as its construction requires several financial years. The new royal decree-law addresses this demand by extending the execution period to the current year plus four more years. This will allow town councils to use billions of euros from budget surpluses to build housing on available municipal land. “This is an important measure with positive effects, although the housing problem is complex and requires further action.”

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