Chaos At Airport Again…..
60 passengers booked on a Ryanair flight bound for Knock missed the flight due to delays in passport control at the airport this week. A complaint has been lodged as there was only one office on duty to handle the flight.
…..But A Historic High
A total of 796,872 people used Lanzarote airport in August, more than ever before in its history and 5.3% more than those who arrived the same month last year. Across the islands, a total of 34,655,263 passengers used the airports, 9.5% more than in the same period of 2023.
Electric Cars Quadruple
The number of full electric cars registered in The Canaries has quadrupled in the last four years, while Hybrid car numbers on the roads have tripled.
Lanzarote At Brooklyn SciFi Film Festival
“Kraken Mare”, a science fiction short film shot entirely in Lanzarote, will be shown at the prestigious Brooklyn SciFi Film Festival in the Best Live Action Short Film category. The low-budget short was self-produced by Paco García, through the local production company StellarBeat Films, and shot last year with the collaboration of students and alumni of the Pancho Lasso Art School in various locations on the island.
Inflation Falls To 2.3%
The National Institute of Statistics (INE) has revised the August consumer price index (CPI) by one tenth, to 2.3% year-on-year.
Big Waves Alert
The weather service has issued an alert for big waves and high tides from 07:00 on Thursday. Waves, particularly on north coasts could be up to 2 metres high.
Launch Of “Awareness” Strategy
As a first step in a bid to make tourists more aware of the island’s history and culture, and totem with a QR code has been erected at the airport. When tourist visitors scan the code, it will give them access to a ten point charter for ethical and responsible tourism. This marks the symbolic start of the campaign and reinforces the message that Lanzarote and La Graciosa require respectful treatment from those who visit.
3.8 Earthquake In Gran Canaria
An earthquake measuring 3.8 on the Richter scale was felt in Gran Canaria on Tuesday evening, the largest earthquake on the island for 60 years. The epicentre was 21 km deep and off the north coast of the island. It was felt across Gran Canaria, but mainly in the north, and no damage was caused.
500 Tourists Beds Taken Off Planning
The Cabildo has cancelled planning licences for 160 tourist beds in Tinajo and 346 in Playa Blanca. This is in addition to the 1348 beds cancelled in April this year.
Welcome Party For Most Regular Visitor
Eric Wilson, a retired estate agent from Romford in the UK was given a surprise welcome party by staff at Dreams in Playa Blanca this week. Eric has been visiting the island since 1989, and the party was to mark his 90th visit to his favourite hotel, where he always tries to stay in room 1256.
New British Ambassador For Spain
Sir Alex Ellis has taken over from Hugh Elliott as The British Ambassador to Spain. He will meet with King Felipe in the next few weeks to present his credentials. Alex spent time in the Madrid embassy in the early 2000’s. He said: “Our countries enjoy a close and enduring relationship across so many areas: between our citizens, our cultures, our armed forces and across the world of academia, science and commerce. I am looking forward to supporting this relationship to become even stronger.”
Police Locate Passengers & Driver From Viral Video
A video went viral last week showing three ladies in a hire car, hanging out of the car, taking selfies. After investigating, police located the ladies and the male driver of the car, in Nazaret. The driver has been reported to the courts for reckless driving, and the passengers for driving without seatbelts.
Tourism Growth Driven By Vacation Rentals
So far this year, tourist numbers in the islands have grown just over 14% compared to 2023. But people staying in hotels and apartment complexes has grown only 0.35%, with the bulk of the increase coming from the vacation rental sector – mostly privately owned properties being rented out by their owners. There are currently over 60,000 registered vacation rental properties on The Canaries, compared to just 38,000 two years ago, in 2022.
New Letting Law Will Reach Parliament At End Of This Month
The proposed new letting law, which has had some minor modifications since the citizen discussion period, will be presented to The Canarian Parliament at the end of September. Of the changes, the most interesting is a reduction in the minimum space for a rental apartment from 39 to 25 square metres.
Proposed Project For Los Hervideros
A project has been presented to The Cabildo to carry out repairs to the El Golfo road at Los Hervideros, which has been closed for three years due to erosion of support for the road. The project has identified three further sections of the road that are in danger of collapse, and the new proposal involves supporting the whole section with micropiles and steel beams. As part of it, the aim is to create a walkway of 2.1 km, to allow people to enjoy the area on foot.
Children Back To School
Children returned to school on the island this week, after their 12 week long summer holiday. In Lanzarote, there are just over 21,000 children enrolled in the schools.
British Share Of Tourism Market Has Increased
Over the first 7 months of the year, the percentage of tourist from the UK increased to 50.25%. Irish visitors were responsible for 10.8% of the market, with German visitors at 10.35%.
We’ll add more news here as it comes in this week…..
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