Balance positivo en la promoción turística del primer trimestre en Fuerteventura
Marlene Figueroa: «the political stability of the Island is allowing us to be more competitive, gain connectivity, and improve future prospects»
The administrations note the good performance of demand in the main tourist emitting markets, the forecasts of air seats for summer 2025/26, and the increase in spending at the destination
Positive balance of the promotion of the Tourism Board and participation in international fairs during the first quarter of the year, with major events such as FITUR, Madrid Fusión, and ITB Berlin. This has resulted in forecasts of over 90% occupancy for Easter week and the growth of regular air seats connecting Fuerteventura with its main tourist emitting markets for summer 2025 and winter 2025/26.
The Tourism Councilor of the Insular Council, Marlene Figueroa, met this week with representatives of all the municipalities of the Island in Tourism and Primary Sector areas to evaluate the results of the actions carried out in this first quarter and propose improvement actions for future calls, emphasizing the competitiveness and good positioning of the destination.
Marlene Figueroa stated that «the political stability in the Island’s institutions is allowing us to work as a team and in a coordinated manner, with a medium and long-term vision, and thanks to this, we are becoming more competitive, gaining air connectivity, meeting demand, improving the destination, and above all, focusing on promoting those tourist segments and products that have the greatest impact on the local economy.
In short, as Marlene Figueroa explained, «it is about improving the future prospects of Fuerteventura and we are heading in the right direction, generating stability and confidence, making commitments with the sector in the medium and long term, and enhancing tourist spending at the destination.» It would be advisable, as the Tourism Councilor wanted to emphasize, to also improve labor conditions in the sector to retain and attract talent, and give dignity to those who, with their effort, make Fuerteventura a quality destination.»
Among the issues addressed, the participants have praised the decision to invest in regular air connectivity, considered it very interesting to explore products for the development of Blue Tourism, and agreed to deepen the Tourism Board’s strategy to develop the gastronomic tourism product in Fuerteventura in a coordinated manner, recognizing that it adds great value and quality to the destination and that this segment significantly increases spending on the Island by tourists.
The representatives of the different municipalities have committed to working on the preparation of a Municipal Inventory that includes local producers, restaurants, experiences linked to gastronomy, the consumption of local products, and a better understanding of the primary sector.
Marlene Figueroa has shared the data from the Tourism Board on the evolution of the different markets, highlighting the behavior of the German market, which strengthens its position and consolidates as the second main market emitter of tourists choosing Fuerteventura as their holiday destination, with a total of 801,502 in 2024, in a positive recovery trend without yet reaching the numbers of 2018.
There is a 9.4% growth in regular air connectivity with Germany planned for summer 2025, with a total of 433,746 seats available from virtually all cities in this important market.
The British market is also performing very positively, with a forecast of 15% of air seats available for summer 2025, followed by the mainland with a forecast of a 6.6% increase in seats. The demand and forecasts of other markets such as the Netherlands, Italy, Czech Republic, Switzerland, and Austria are also positive.
It is worth noting the inclusion of some countries from the Scandinavian markets, such as Finland, whose air connectivity recovery has been worked on by the Tourism Board for over a year, and also the Polish market, which tends to become less seasonal.
The Tourism Councilor of the Fuerteventura Council, Marlene Figueroa, reported on the content and commitments made in the meeting with the Spanish Ambassador in Berlin, Pascual Navarro, and the Secretary of State for Tourism, Rosario Sánchez Grau, where good data on the demand from the German market towards Fuerteventura were contrasted, as well as the hiring forecasts for 2025 and 2026 and guarantees for the increase in regular air connectivity.
Marlene Figueroa pointed out that Fuerteventura is waiting for the Government of the Canary Islands to publish the Call for the Flight Development Fund to consolidate regular air connectivity in the short term, thus providing guarantees to the sector and the destination as a whole.
The meetings held at ITB Berlin at the beginning of this month with tour operators and airlines highlight the strong demand from Central Europe and also warn that the profiles of tourists from Germany are changing. The Blue Tourism promotional strategy has been very well received both at FITUR and at ITB Berlin, responding to these new segments emerging in the tourism industry.
With just a little time left to conclude the first quarter of tourism promotion of the year, one of the most important, as Marlene Figueroa emphasized, «because it is when alliances are established and agreed upon for the next year,» and she wanted to especially thank the work of all professionals, companies, and public administrations that contribute to making Fuerteventura a quality destination.
