More Brits than ever are booking holidays in Tenerife, despite locals saying that the Canary Islands “have a limit”.
The Canary Islands are expecting a 77% increase in UK tourists in the first nine months of 2025. This follows the 10% rise last year to over 2.5 million visitors.
New flights from Bournemouth with Jet2 and Cardiff with Ryanair have opened up 13% more seats to the Spanish islands this winter with bookings for the end of this year up 41% from last year.
Tenerife is the most popular of the Canary Islands, accounting for almost 45% of flights from the UK in the first nine months of this year.
Brits are continuing to visit despite the ongoing protests from locals about overtourism across Spain’s holiday hotspots.
In October, around 30,000 residents took to the streets across the islands under the banner “The Canary Islands have a limit”, arguing that while tourism provides crucial jobs, most of them are low-skilled and badly paid.
They also say that buying property on their home islands has become increasingly difficult due to foreigners buying them for second homes and holiday lets, driving up prices.
However, Dimple Melwani, CEO of the Tenerife Tourism Corporation denied the island was suffering from overtourism, insisting that protestors are not blaming tourists but “seeking a change in the tourism model”.
She told Travel Gossip: “We do not support the radical actions of some minority groups who reject visitors, as tourists are not the cause of the problems.
“The Canary Islands do not suffer from tourist overcrowding like other Mediterranean destinations.”
Ms Melwani said that in 2023, the Canary Islands received 16.2 million tourists compared to 15.1 million in 2019, with no month accounting for more than 10% of the annual total.
She added that Tenerife aims to become a “quality” destination, offering “first class” services to attract higher-spending visitors.
Ms Melwani said: “We are committed to improving our tourism offer, focusing on quality and optimising the destination’s tourism spaces.
“In this regard, we will continue with the rehabilitation of the hotel infrastructure to ensure that our services meet the highest standards of excellence,” she said.
“In addition, we will continue to develop our current initiatives, which will be decisive for the future.
“We will update the marketing plan, identifying and rejuvenating traveller profiles, so that they can enjoy the island as a destination for outdoor sporting activities, gastronomy or traditions: a destination in which to live an infinite number of unique experiences.”