The Gran Canaria Tourism Board has convened the sector’s top executives for a crucial technical seminar on January 14th at the Island Tourism Center in Playa del Inglés. With strictly limited capacity—a sign that the topics to be discussed are sensitive for the industry—the island institution will present its 2026 strategy for three markets that are both the island’s lifeline and its challenge: the domestic, Portuguese, and Italian markets. At a time when the traditional model is showing signs of fatigue, the message is clear: “alignment” or irrelevance.
The analysis will begin with the domestic market, the historical safety net that, nevertheless, is showing signs of strain in the face of rising prices and competition from the Spanish mainland. The government is seeking ways to ensure that Spanish tourists are not just last-minute bargain hunters, but high-value consumers. Next, the analysis will turn to the Portuguese market, the great hope of proximity, which has gone from being a marginal source of tourists to a strategic asset requiring targeted promotional efforts to attract Portuguese travelers fleeing the overcrowding of the Algarve.
The Italian market will close the analysis session with a key question: how to translate interest in the Canarian lifestyle into quality overnight stays. For Gran Canaria Tourism, Italy represents the perfect opportunity to diversify the visitor profile, targeting tourists who value gastronomy and heritage over simple “sun and sand.” The day will culminate in a roundtable discussion where local professionals are expected to demand concrete details on the planned investments to sustain this Mediterranean trio.
This meeting in the south of the island is not a routine gathering; it is the institutional response to the need to professionalize data-driven decision-making as opposed to improvisation. Looking ahead to 2026, Gran Canaria knows that simply opening hotels is not enough; it needs to know exactly who will fill them and how much they are willing to contribute to the local economy before emerging destinations end up stealing its market share.