Every year the same old story: taking the spotlight away from the south of Gran Canaria, where the economic capital of the Canary Islands is located, to expose a series of products that it does not have or has stolen from Maspalomas such as the drag queen gala, invented in Playa del Inglés in the mid-80s and which they have made their own, or the LGTB business. This 2025 at Fitur the chaotic city of Las Palmas, which continues with a historic ship donated by Mapfre burned in front of none other than the Elder Museum in Santa Catalina, the gateway for tourists who arrive to the island on cruises, wants to present carnival when it does not even have a place to celebrate the events with the highest concentration of public.
The city without a blue flag in Las Canteras and with urban sanitation problems with the presence of rodents in shops, which already has Airbnb homes in Las Rehoyas or Schaman, hopes to attract attention one more year along with other prominent municipalities such as Teror or Arucas, which do not even have accommodation units. Las Palmas has an average tourist stay of 3,5 days in 2023 with 57 accommodation establishments open, not counting the plethora of holiday homes without any control.
While Las Palmas is copying, and badly, the south of Gran Canaria is promoting more practical and multidisciplinary training, which allows professionals to quickly adapt to the new demands of the sector, such as customer experience management or the implementation of AI tools. In addition, continuous training programs are encouraged to keep professionals up to date and improve their competitiveness.
The south of Gran Canaria is in a privileged position to face the tourism challenges of the coming years, although it will have to adapt to a changing environment. With a solid infrastructure, a unique diversity of offerings and a first-class experience offer, the south of Gran Canaria, starting with Maspalomas, remains one of the most competitive tourist destinations in the world.
However, to attract a higher quality tourist and increase spending, it will be key to differentiate oneself with exclusive experiences that respond to the new demands of the most demanding travelers. Promoting the quality offer and betting on a tourism that values personalization, sustainability and innovation will be key to maximizing the profitability of the sector. The International Tourism Fair (FITUR), which celebrates its 45th anniversary in 2025, is a showcase for this commitment to higher quality, more sustainable and innovative tourism.
The tourism fair, one of the most important in the world along with the World Travel Market in London or the ITB in Berlin, will serve to demonstrate that tourism in the south of Gran Canaria is one of the main economic drivers of the Canary Islands and that in 2025 it will continue to show a strength similar to that of last year. However, maintaining this trend will depend on factors such as inflation, operating costs or seasonality, while digitalization and innovation will continue to be key, especially in areas such as data management or marketing. Among the challenges that Gran Canaria tourism will have to face this year are inflation and rising costs, which can influence travelers' decisions, especially in medium-distance tourism, which will nevertheless be offset by local tourism and more personalized or low-cost offers.
