“We continue to grow in billing and days of stay, and we are above last year's economic performance,” said the Minister of Tourism, Carlos Álamo.
The tourism sector of the island of Gran Canaria invoiced a total of 1.019.124.482,30 euros in the second quarter of 2024. This represents an accounting increase of 4,6% compared to the same period in 2023. Meanwhile, the accommodation income of the The month of July totals 118.247.665 euros, with an increase of 12,57% compared to July 2023, when the number of passengers received increased by 5,8%, according to AENA data, compared to the same month of the previous year.
The Minister of Tourism of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria valued this dynamic as positive, since it adjusts to the strategy of the island administration "in which we give absolute priority to billing over the number of tourist arrivals, in such a way that we can achieve greater performance without having to raise the number of clients above the historical records of the destination. "We want to make their presence profitable without this posing a burden on the island's capabilities."
The counselor also explained that a percentage of this statistical increase is found in the increase in rates, with an 8,56% increase in the year-on-year comparison. The occupancy rate for the month of July 2024 was around 75%, with an average daily rate of 113,76 euros, and income per room grew by 9,53%, going from 78,20 euros per room to 85,66 euros on average.
Meanwhile, the average stay of the tourist client grew in the month of July to an average of 7,05 days and overnight stays rose by 6,6%.
The statistics for the month of July linked to vacation rentals moved in similar values. The turnover of this section was 24.232.000,74 euros in July 2024, 10,55% more than the previous year. The average stay was also around 7 days and the average daily rate was 127,31 euros.
Meanwhile, total spending compared to the second quarter of 2023 increased by 4,6% compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching a turnover of 1.019.124.482,30 euros. Meanwhile, spending per tourist fell, for the first time in a long time, with a slight -1,1%, with nationals, Dutch and Nordics being the ones who contracted their expenditure, while Germans and especially English were the ones who maintained the average of the destination.
The British client is the most profitable with a turnover valued at 295.958.968,45 euros, which implies an increase of 29,53%. It is followed by the German market, with 215.965.620,71, and the sum of countries whose markets are not the majority, with 253.376.416,67 euros. Customers from the Netherlands continue with their island idyll, with a turnover of 86.203.433,06, 10% higher than in the second quarter of 2023. They are followed by the Nordics, with 86.037.664,03 euros and national customers, with 81.582.379,35 euros invoiced.
“In general terms it is a good summer, for the moment, since we continue to grow in billing and days of stay, and we are above the economic performance of last year, in which we surpassed many records of this period that is increasingly less low season for us,” said the Minister of Tourism, Carlos Álamo.
But despite the positive trend of the destination, the head of the Tourism area of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria regretted that the growth of average spending per customer has slowed down. “The economic situation of some of our main markets is not ideal and we are seeing how, despite the fact that they remain faithful to their week of rest on the island, we even grow in the arrivals section, they do so with less spending power once they are at the destination. This is a consequence of the different inflation and contraction processes of economies such as those of Germany and the Nordics. For us, billing is the absolute priority and we trust that the next report will reflect important progress in the line and priorities that we have maintained in recent years. We have been growing in turnover for years, thanks to the appreciation of the local product, and we are sure that we will continue in this line that is beneficial for the economy of the people of Gran Canaria."
