A delegation from the Lanzarote Foreign Promotion Society (SPEL), headed by its CEO, Héctor Fernández, recently held meetings with representatives from the airlines Ryanair and Vueling, two of the airlines with which Turismo Lanzarote claims to maintain "a fluid dialogue and a close collaboration framework", in which, among other issues, the possibility of opening new connections from Lanzarote Airport "with quality tourist markets, attractive to the island" was discussed.
In this sense, at the meeting held with the Director of Route Development of Ryanair, held on Tuesday, February 6 in Dublin and which was attended by other directors of the aforementioned department, the possibility of this company opening new routes of these characteristics with Germany and France for the winter of 2018/2019 or the summer of 2019 was analyzed.
It was also considered "the possible increase of the company's operating base on the island in the medium and long term, once Ryanair proceeds to increase its fleet and the optimal socioeconomic conditions exist for it", says Héctor Fernández, who emphasizes that "Ryanair's base in Lanzarote has brought many advantages for the island, not only in terms of routes, but also in terms of job creation".
The meeting also valued the collaboration framework undertaken by both parties, which has resulted in Ryanair currently having around 30 routes open with the island, with a passenger share of more than 20% per year of the traffic maintained by Lanzarote Airport. In this context, the strengthening and extension of the marketing agreement between Turismo Lanzarote and Ryanair was discussed "and which has offered such good results to both parties", Fernández points out.
Meeting with Vueling
In the meeting held by the CEO of the Island Promotion Agency with two directors belonging to the Route Development and Institutional Relations of Vueling, held in early February, the possibility of adding new routes to those currently maintained by this company "with countries very attractive to Lanzarote such as Austria or Germany, as well as increasing frequencies with Barcelona or Paris, in the same line of continuity that the company has opted for this year with an increase of 5% of seats" was considered.
Likewise, the meeting also valued the fruits of the collaboration agreements carried out between Turismo Lanzarote and this airline, which currently maintains eight routes with the island, five of them national (Barcelona, Bilbao, Asturias, Seville and Malaga) and three international (Paris, Rome and Zurich), as well as the marketing agreements "which, as has happened with those signed with Ryanair, have been very beneficial for both parties".
In this context, the meeting advanced the possibility of establishing collaboration agreements in terms of sponsorship by Vueling for important events to be held in Lanzarote, such as the Teguise Enogastronomic Festival, Arrecife en Vivo, Sonidos Líquidos or Lanzarote Fashion Weekend.
The Minister of Tourism, Echedey Eugenio, has positively valued the results of both meetings, which are part of "one of the main objectives set by SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, which is to diversify markets and seek a better tourist qualification for the destination".
