With their eyes fixed on the clouds. This week, thousands of travellers planning to pass through Canary Islands airports will live like this. The storm that positioned itself over the Archipelago since yesterday threatens to affect air travel activity during the busiest Easter week in history. Indeed, the island airports expect to coordinate 14,860 flights in the next few days, 2,516 more than in the same period in 2019.
Adverse weather already caused delays yesterday at the airports in Tenerife Norte and Lanzarote due to poor visibility caused by fog on the runway. According to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) predictions, the worst is yet to come, as rain, wind, and electrical storms are expected today and tomorrow.
The busiest days at Canary Islands airports are expected to be both today and next Saturday. On each of these days, air traffic controllers will have the challenge of coordinating around 2,600 flights. That is, if the weather permits. Yesterday, the first day of operations, was intense at Gran Canaria Airport, with 428 flights – 264 domestic and 164 international flights. This was followed by Tenerife Sur, with 266 flights – 234 international and 34 domestic – and Tenerife Norte, with 245 flights – all domestic with a significant number of inter-island routes.
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While Canary Islands have been enjoying high occupancy for months thanks to international tourists filling their hotels during peak season, Easter typically sees the intense arrival of domestic visitors. However, with three working days still ahead – Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday – taking a full week off is not possible for many. That’s why flights arriving yesterday in the islands were filled more with teachers craving a break from work than with other professionals.
This was the case for Alberto Botta, a young resident of Madrid who looked out of the windows at Tenerife Norte Airport searching for the good weather promised to him: “If the clouds don’t allow the sun to show up, it’s not a big deal. I hope to leave for the Netherlands at the end of next week, and I don’t expect it to be warm there either,” he shared humorously.
At the boarding gate, the situation was similar. “I hope the weather in Seville is much better,” said Juan Manuel Simó minutes before taking his flight from Tenerife Norte Airport to the Andalusian city. This Secondary Education teacher based in the Islands managed to overcome the delays and depart on time to his homeland with a very clear wish: for the bad weather not to overshadow the traditions or dampen these key dates for the hospitality industry.
“I have my sights set on enjoying the Easter atmosphere – with the processions – and the family during the first days, and then for the last weekend, I will head off in search of sun and beach,” he confessed.
Wrapped up from head to toe – understandable with the cold in La Laguna – Victoria Rodríguez awaited her flight. This young woman from Tenerife, also a primary school teacher, was heading to Valencia with a friend to start a much-anticipated holiday: a cruise that will pass through France, Italy, and Palma de Mallorca. Despite the inflation affecting package holidays – which has been climbing since April 2021 – Rodríguez claims not to have noticed the price increase on her holiday: “We got a superb deal, so I would say that this year we will even spend less than in previous years,” she celebrated.
High Prices to Fly to the Canary Islands
Those who have noticed the price increase are Canarians living abroad who take advantage of these dates to return to the Islands and see their families. Tomás Hernández, President of Canaries Without Wings, points out that right now a family of four would have to pay 1,000 euros for plane tickets to return to their homeland. “And for those thinking of travelling to the Archipelago in the summer, I recommend checking prices now because they are becoming increasingly prohibitive for those of us living on the Peninsula.”
The Archipelago has become the favourite destination for Spaniards this Easter – just look at how the Islands have the highest occupancy rates, with hotels fully booked. All this has driven up flight prices, and a simple search reveals that flying from Madrid to any of the islands costs between 300 and 400 euros per trip.
Image of a hotel / AEHCOS
Hotel prices have also increased. Between May 2021 and last February, the average price of a room has risen by 39.5%, while the average price per available room, which is influenced by occupancy and is a variable that better approximates sector profitability, has grown by 155.7% – more than double.
The tourism boom not only benefits the Archipelago. In the rest of the country, hotel occupancy will reach around 85%, although it could be even higher with last-minute bookings. After the Canary Islands, the peninsular coasts, inland tourism capitals with a long tradition of Easter celebrations, and major cities like Madrid or Barcelona are the most sought after by travellers.
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Home for the Holidays
Heart-shaped balloons, signs with quirky messages like “your koala,” endless hugs, or passionate kisses. These are some of the scenes that were repeated yesterday in both the boarding queues and the arrival gates. There was time to sing Happy Birthday to Elma Davis, a British woman living in Tenerife who was surprised by the visit of her four children – she was only expecting one. There were also couples who love each other from a distance due to work reasons, like Isabel Jiménez and Samuel Hernández, reuniting this Easter. These are also dates to return home.
