Almost empty pavement
cafés, like here on Tenerife's
south coast, reflect the decline
in tourist interest.
20 true beauty of the islands. Breathtak-
ingly beautiful panoramas and
rugged rocks compete for first place
in the beauty contest. On Tenerife the
3,718 metre high Teide mountain (also
Spain's biggest mountain) forms the
proud centrepiece. In the winter
months, when it's still some 25
degrees Celsius on the coast, the peak
of the Teide is capped with snow.
En masse
That pleasant temperature in the
winter months is in fact the main rea
son why the tourists come en masse to
the Canary Islands. When tempera
tures in the rest of Europe turn
uncomfortable, sunseekers can still
bask in the Canary Island sun which
shines the whole year round and can
enjoy the beaches and the crystal-
clear sea. The winter months are
therefore the peak visitor season for
the Canary Islands.
But for the past two years the
Canary Islands have forfeited some of
their popularity amongst North Euro
peans. In line with the decline in tour
ism in Spain, it seems that tourists
have also grown tired of Gran Canaria
and Tenerife. They prefer more dis
tant, exotic destinations.
Image
But there is yet another problem:
not only are tourists decreasing in
number but there is also a change in
the type of tourist. In the days when
tourism on the Canary Islands was
still in its infancy the islands were an
exclusive holiday destination. Only
the tourist with a well-filled wallet
could afford to spend a few weeks on
Gran Canaria or Tenerife. In recent
years the group of islands has lost
that image and air fares have dropped
considerably, which means that holi-
daymakers with a smaller budget
now visit the islands.
Authorities in the tourist sector
can pinpoint the causes of the dam
age: prices have climbed too much in
recent years, whilst the quality of the
product supplied has lagged behind
and service has fallen below the
required standard.
If the Canary Islands want to
regain their strong position then the
experts feel that much more emphasis
must be placed on tourist aspects
such as culture and scenic beauty. If
prices can also be kept at a European
level and if the standard of service
improves, there are hopes that tour
ism will develop further.
At least the islands have no short
age of scenic beauty. It is now a mat
ter of luring the tourists away from
the beaches and showing them the
many other possibilities that the
islands have to offer. An advertise
ment for the Canary Islands in a Span
ish magazine typifies this change of
approach: lots of photos of nature and
culture and not one picture of a beach!
Economy
The authorities are putting a great
THE WORLD OF H E I N E K E N
The result: hotels and apartment
owners complain bitterly about the
poor level of bookings. On Gran Cana
ria we were shown a hotel which had
140 staff and an occupancy level of
17%! This may be one of the extreme
examples, but it does typify the prob
lems now facing the Canary Islands.
Teide, Spain's highest moun
tain at more than 3,700
metres, towers over Tenerife.
