Thousands of revellers are opting to travel between the Islands to enjoy the festivities. The Indianos in La Palma, the Piñata Saturday in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the Carneros in El Hierro or the gala Drag in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria are all major draws, prompting fervent carnival-goers to don wigs and juggle their schedules to not miss any events.
According to data provided by interisland transportation companies, there is a decreasing trend in the number of passengers travelling between Tenerife and Gran Canaria these days. Unlike in 2023, this time around the Gran Cabalgata of Carnival de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Piñata Saturday of Santa Cruz de Tenerife will coincide on the same day, causing this particular carnival exodus to be less pronounced than last year.
However, many revellers have packed their bags or even boarded the ship dressed in costume. In fact, the number of people opting to enjoy the Indianos continues to grow, so much so that carnival-goers from all the Islands have overflowed the narrow streets of the historic center of Santa Cruz de La Palma, especially this Monday, the central day of the celebration.
Over 36,000 Passengers
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Fred Olsen anticipates transporting over 36,000 passengers between the two capital islands from the 9th to the 18th of February. Just this past weekend, the company estimated about 12,000 travellers. The fact is, these are slightly more modest figures than last year. Back then, the shipping company transported around 41,000 people between Tenerife and Gran Canaria, a 35% increase from the last Carnival prior to the pandemic.
The number of people choosing to enjoy the Indianos continues to grow year after year
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Armas-Trasmediterránea also recorded high occupancy rates on the fast ferry service between the two Canary capitals. If they reached or surpassed 80% last year, from the past Thursday, trips have hovered around 75%, with some frequencies close to 100%. For the next few days, it is expected to stay above 70%, especially on Friday and Saturday leading up to the Piñata weekend.
Binter has also planned to move about 12,000 people between Tenerife and Gran Canaria by air during this Carnival holiday, a similar forecast as last year. Cristina Saavedra is one of the Gran Canarians who opted to fly to the neighbouring island last Friday. In her case, it is her first time attending the carnival in Santa Cruz, “I am having an incredible time, the atmosphere is really good, I would say even better than in Gran Canaria.”
During her studies in the Peninsula, she met several Tenerife girls, which is why she decided to cross over, “next Sunday I’m going to Thailand, so it was better to make the most of it now.” The group inaugurated the carnival on the streets of the capital city of Santa Cruz dressed as bumper cars, eliciting more than a few laughs, she acknowledges. For many Gran Canarians, that spirit of street carnival among revellers has been lost along the way in the capital of Gran Canaria.
The Indianos
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Raquel Zaldivar was also in Tenerife this Saturday, although in this case, as a tamer. “It’s my second year, there’s a great atmosphere and the people are fantastic,” she noted. This Monday, she was enjoying the streets during the Indianos celebration. She and her group had a two-for-one experience. “Our idea was to go to La Palma, but since we had to take a ferry, we decided to enjoy a day,” she emphasized.
[–>The influx of people for the Indianos is at record numbers. Between Los Cristianos, in the south of Tenerife, and La Palma, Fred Olsen transported around 16,800 passengers on both regular lines and reinforcements. Meanwhile, Armas has scheduled a third departure between the two islands on both Monday and Tuesday on the ‘Volcán Taburiente’, with a capacity of 1,500 passengers.
Binter, on the other hand, has increased the usual frequencies between La Palma and Gran Canaria, Tenerife and Lanzarote, by 90%, with up to 25,500 seats throughout the Carnival holiday. The return journey focuses on Tuesday with over 8,000 seats. However, despite these reinforcements, many are forced to travel by boat, “you have to book well in advance,” Zaldivar pointed out on Monday.
