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ARCHIVED - Lanzarote closes the door on bargain-loving Brits
The Canary Island has become the latest region to consider reducing tourist numbers
The Spanish Island of Lanzarote, a long-time favourite with UK holidaymakers, has become the latest region to pursue a policy of deliberate tourist decline. The local government believes the resort has become “saturated” with bargain-hunting British visitors and wants to change its marketing strategy to attract fewer, higher-spending holidaymakers.
Last year the Balearic Islands announced that it was also cracking down on its tourist population, and the authorities are actively seeking ways to prevent foreigners from buying property there.
The Canary Islands is facing a similar dilemma, as last year foreign buyers snapped up more than half of the properties available for sale. And Lanzarote, with a permanent population of just 151,000 inhabitants, was inundated with 2.5 million tourists in the first 11 months of 2022, 17 times the number of inhabitants.
With its year-round sun and relatively cheap prices, the Spanish Island is a popular choice for Brits, who make up more than half the total tourist number.
Lanzarote's president Dolores Corujo said that the plan is to start a conscious tourist decrease to encourage fewer visitors “with greater spending in the destination so that they generate greater wealth in the economy as a whole.”
“This year, we went to the travel trade fair, FITUR to present the change in the tourism model that we want for Lanzarote, on which we have been working throughout this mandate, despite setbacks and limitations derived from the pandemic,” she explained.
“There we certified the return to full tourist normality and once again highlighted our firm commitment to sustainability and excellence.”
To increase potential tourist spending, marketing will be focused on French, Italian and Dutch visitors rather than UK holidaymakers: “a diversification strategy to reduce dependence on the British market,” Ms Corujo added.
However, with tourism overall playing such a huge part in Lanzarote’s economy, it’s unclear how the government plans to subsidise the lost revenue if it tries to reduce the number of vacationers.
“If the decision is not to grow tourism and at the same time there is no industrial land planning and other models are rejected, all the parties will have to ask themselves what future model they want to develop,” one local businessman observed.
Image: Wikimedia
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