Tenerife Tourism: British visitor arrivals up by over 20 percent

TENERIFE, Spain – The latest figures from the Tenerife Tourism Corporation indicate that over 800,000 visitors from the UK travelled to Tenerife between January to May 2016, representing an increase of 20.8% on the previous year. These statistics are all the more remarkable considering that 2015 saw a total of 1,765,216 visitors from the UK market, which already represented an uplift of 4.8% on the previous year.

Despite already being the largest source market to the popular holiday isle, the UK has reinforced its top position with a 20% increase against an overall global increase of 10% over the same period, which saw a total of 2,266,116 international visitors to the island. This means that 34% of all visitors to Tenerife come from the United Kingdom, which is also has the highest levels of repeat visitors to the island.

Pia Louw, Travel Industry and Promotion Director at the Tenerife Tourism Corporation, comments on the figures: “We are very encouraged to see continued growth from the UK market year on year, with average growth of 3.5% for the last five years. The latest figures for the first months of 2016 are also very encouraging and demonstrate that our beloved British visitors recognise that we have so much to offer – from must-visit attractions such as the UNESCO-listed Teide National Park to the latest products including stargazing, sports and luxury tourism.”

The Irish market also saw very good results last year, helped by a 3.6% increase in scheduled flight capacity to the island. A total of 79,328 Irish travellers visited Tenerife in 2015, a 9% upsurge compared to 2014. In total, the largest of the Canary Islands welcomed 5,186,307 worldwide visitors in 2015, a 0.7% increase compared to 2014 and the highest figure since 2008. The South East of England and Scotland were the two geographical areas which attracted the most visitors to Tenerife, 13.7% and 8.3% respectively.

The majority of British travellers to Tenerife prefer to stay in four and five star hotels, especially in the beach resorts in the south of the island, which continues to be the most popular area for UK holidaymakers. Tenerife’s unbeatable climate, wide range of attractions and 70 beaches (15 of them awarded Blue Flag for 2016) add to the island’s appeal to the British visitor.