The holiday home sector is rapidly expanding in the tourist municipalities of the Archipelago, surpassing hotels and apartments in terms of increased capacity. From 2022 to 2024, holiday homes accounted for 88% of the growth in available accommodation across the 15 island towns with the most beds. Of the 32,693 new additions during those two years, 28,766 were from holiday homes. This is detailed in the “Municipal Contribution Atlas of Tourism in Spain” published by Exceltur with 2024 data.
This type of lodging was the only one of the three analysed in the report that saw growth across all 29 Canary regions examined. In contrast, hotels and apartments—along with camping and rural tourism—saw increases in some areas, but faced declines in others.
In terms of sheer increase, hotels in the top 15 tourist towns added 3,084 beds, while apartments gained 843 spots. However, considering the reduction in numbers, the net result is 1,455 new hotel beds and a loss of 4,653 apartment spots by key count. Overall, in two years, the Canary Islands expanded their accommodation capacity by 25,568 spots—still lower than the rise observed in holiday homes.
Apartments are the most adversely affected, with a loss of 5,496 beds over two years. Hotels also suffered, losing 1,629 spots. Even the small gains seen are modest compared to the surge in holiday homes. The 3,084 beds added by hotels represent just 9% of the total industry growth. In fact, for 13 of the 29 towns in the report, hotel numbers remained unchanged since 2022.
Exceltur’s report surfaces amidst a political debate in the Canaries about holiday homes, as the Sustainable Management of Tourist Housing Use Bill is under parliamentary review. Announced by the regional government in early April 2024, the regulatory changes have seen a continued rise in such homes, which the opposition has dubbed a “call effect” prompting owners to quickly register their properties to comply with current rules before potential new restrictions are enacted. Data shows a 21% rise in holiday homes from April 2024 to February 2025.
Between 2022 and 2024, Barlovento in La Palma saw an 82.2% increase in holiday home capacity, with hotels and apartments unchanged. Similarly, San Miguel in Tenerife saw a 49.9% growth in this accommodation type, and Arrecife in Lanzarote reached a 47.5% increase.
Regarding apartments, San Miguel experienced the highest loss, with a 40.9% reduction in just two years, followed by Granadilla de Abona (Tenerife) with a 71.1% decrease, and Los Llanos de Aridane in La Palma losing 21.7% of its spots.
Of the 15 most tourist-heavy areas in the Canary Islands, Adeje (Tenerife) leads in holiday home availability with 20,337 spots, accounting for 28% of its total. Arona (Tenerife) follows with 18,003, equating to 29.9%, and La Oliva (Fuerteventura) hosts 17,309 beds, a significant 54.4% of its total capacity. In Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, holiday homes make up 55.3% of the offer, and in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 53.4%.
