Councillor Carlos Álamo describes the increase in revenue as “historic” and points out that “the island is growing more in turnover and customer spending than in arrival volume, so we are getting a greater return from each customer.”
The tourist destination of Gran Canaria surpassed its highest turnover in the 2024 financial year, rising above 6.000 million, according to ISTAC data. Specifically, tourist customer spending on the island closed at 6.034.819.572,20 euros, after a fourth quarter that was also historic, collecting 1.776.558.114,80 euros. This implies an increase of 10,5% compared to the 2023 financial year, which ended with 5.459.069.302,60 euros. Gran Canaria thus achieves the highest economic performance in history with the presence of 4.716.204 tourists, 8,65% more than in 2023.
The average expenditure per tourist and trip in Gran Canaria is 1.493,54 euros, when the previous year, the 2023 financial year, was 1.460,75 euros. Nordic and German clients are once again the ones who spend the most on their holiday stay, with an average of 1.767,23 euros for the former and 1.730,88 euros for the German client. In this way, the historically majority markets in Gran Canaria continue to be the most profitable. The British client, who has increased their presence on the island significantly in recent years, has an expenditure close to the average, with 1.415,94 euros.
In terms of total turnover, German customers are the ones who contribute the most to the total sum with 1.360.188.261,20 euros. They are followed by the Nordic countries with 1.292.605.417,10 euros, not far behind the UK customers, who contributed 1.239.498.215 euros. Spending on accommodation totals 70 euros. Meanwhile, spending on transport totals 2.622.417.420,20 euros.
The fourth quarter of the year has been the most productive in terms of turnover, as it corresponds to the start of the winter season of the island destination. In addition, the recovery of the German market is noteworthy, after several years of uncertainty. The presence of Germans has increased by 10% in the last year and turnover has gone from 917.796.750,29 euros in 2022 to 1.360.188.261,20 euros in 2024.
In terms of tourist arrivals, Gran Canaria has closed the 2024 financial year with the presence of 4,71 million clients on the island, with an approximate 8% increase over the previous year, according to Frontur statistics. With this data, the island destination reaches the highest figure in arrival volume in its history, exceeding the 4,5 million of 2017 (4.587.000 tourists), after a month of December that reached almost half a million tourists: 498.966, 6,8% more than in December 2023. It would be the busiest month in the history of the tourism industry in Gran Canaria.
As regards direct employment, the number of people affiliated to Social Security has increased by 5,61% in the last year, while the number of contracts rose by 11% in the year-on-year comparison.
“We are meeting our objectives, as established in the Strategic Plan for the period 2021 and 2025, in such a way that we are getting a greater return from each client who visits us. This has been Gran Canaria’s objective for the past four years. We have a historic turnover and we know that the economic volume received by non-tourist municipalities, which were previously on the fringes of the wealth generated by this sector, has also increased. In addition, we have gained in the process of diversifying customer markets and the seasonality of many of them has also decreased, so we gain strength by reducing dependence on the majority, and everything helps to ensure that the growth in volume is sustainable according to the capacities of our island, so we are on a growth path that we understand is correct.”
Carlos Álamo pointed out that in relation to the accommodation data for the year 2024, with an increase of 1,84%, with an occupancy of 71,14% of the places, total income has increased by 14,8%. Meanwhile, the number of overnight stays, with 27.934.940 stays, has grown by 5,67%.
On the other hand, the Minister of Tourism highlighted the influence of the sector in job creation. “We are also at a historic moment in this regard. Throughout the country we see how the tourism industry is driving employment to levels not seen for several decades and whose employment percentages lead us to an economic growth that is undeniable and the envy of Europe,” he said, before adding that “the sector has a positive influence on society through employment, as is also seen in trade.”
The Minister of Tourism explained that 2025 is showing a similar trend, “upwards” to that of 2024. “We are concluding the last year of the Strategic Plan 2021 and 2025 in which we are ahead of everyone else in the challenge of growing more in income than in visitors and we will continue to work on these premises through the complementary offer, attracting a customer with a higher spending and by putting the value of the local product, among other aspects of the strategy. We are aware that there are many things to improve so that the wealth generated by this industry reaches Gran Canaria families more clearly, but the leap in quality of the destination is evident and our path is the right one. Here you find reasons to spend that you didn't have before. Now everyone copies Gran Canaria's growth model,” concluded Álamo.
