The Councillor for Tourism and Urban Planning of the south of Gran Canaria, Alejandro Marichal, would attend the World Travel Market in London in November 2024 with the idea of explaining to tour operators and hotel chains with interests in the tourism business that the areas of Maspalomas, Playa del Inglés, San Agustín and Meloneras are accelerating public investments in improving the environment and the planned investment plans, although the Sea Side Hotels project depends on the things that are in the offices of Las Palmas, the traditional handbrake of the economic capital of the Canary Islands.
Over the last two years, the southern part of Gran Canaria, especially the tourist areas of Maspalomas and Meloneras, Marichal, has undergone significant urban improvements aimed at revitalising its appeal as a tourist destination. The World Travel Market is taking place just a few weeks before the CC convention, which is intended to bring together ideas to unify the idea of bringing together some of the Nueva Canarias and Coalición Canaria terminals on the island of Gran Canaria.
A major development is the granting of the licence for a new five-star hotel in Meloneras, a €61 million investment by Lopesan Touristik. This project will create a 533-room hotel including commercial spaces, reflecting the area’s commitment to improving facilities. The Meloneras 2A sector, which was long the subject of planning negotiations, is finally seeing construction progress after a decade, with the aim of improving the leisure and business tourism infrastructure. This development is part of a wider plan that includes the refurbishment of older establishments such as the Hotel Beach Club San Agustín and Los Dolores.
These projects are expected to create jobs and attract further investment, signalling renewed confidence in the region’s tourism industry. Furthermore, Gran Canaria’s efforts extend beyond tourism, with offshore wind energy initiatives positioning the island as a leader in renewable energy, adding to the future.
British tourism in Maspalomas, Gran Canaria, has been important for decades, with notable growth beginning in the 1980s. In the 1990s, British people became a dominant group of visitors to the area, and their numbers remained substantial over the following decades.
Between 1983 and 2019, there was a marked increase in British tourists visiting Maspalomas and other parts of Gran Canaria, peaking before the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, in the years leading up to 2020, British tourists consistently made up one of the largest visitor groups to the Canary Islands, with several million visitors annually. Following the pandemic-related tourism slump, recovery began in 2021 and by 2022 tourism was approaching pre-pandemic levels. Although full recovery took some time, UK tourists remain a vital part of the tourism sector.
