The Canary Islands has received 35,400 teleworkers in the first half of the year, with an average expenditure of 3,171 euros per person per trip, almost three times higher than the expenditure made by the vacation tourist, which is 1,206 euros, according to data from the Nomad List portal and the public company Turismo de Islas Canarias.
“We are talking about a segment that represented 0.8% of total tourism in 2021 and that, however, generated 2.12% of the total tourist turnover of the islands, with 150 million euros last year”, explains the Minister of Tourism, Yaiza Castilla, who announces that the results will be better in 2022, as the volume of tourist income generated by these visitors has already exceeded 112 million euros in just six months.
In this way, the expectations that Turismo de Canarias set in November 2020 are clearly exceeded, when it included teleworkers for the first time in its strategy of diversification of segments, taking advantage of and amplifying the wave of communication generated around the pandemic.
At that time, the Ministry set a target of 30,000 teleworkers in a decade. However, Nomad List estimated at least 47,000 the remote workers who landed on the islands in 2021, so the target set for ten years was exceeded in just one.
“The arrival of more teleworkers is very positive for the destination, as we are facing a type of sustainable tourism, economically, environmentally and socially speaking, which reinforces the guarantee against situations of instability, as was the case with the pandemic or as is now the current economic situation caused by the war in Ukraine”, Castilla emphasized, who recalled the Ministry's strong commitment to attracting long-stay tourists. “With this strategy, we intend to reduce the dependence on segments exclusively linked to the sun and beach category and to traditional markets, shielding the main economic sector of the Canary Islands in an increasingly unpredictable environment.”
A collaboration program with Airbnb
To continue advancing in attracting these visitors, Turismo de Canarias has confirmed its participation in a collaboration program with Airbnb, the largest platform for renting vacation homes, to consolidate the islands as one of the 20 best prepared tourist destinations in the world for "remote workers", the only place in Spain and one of the six in Europe.
The Ministry collaborates with Airbnb in its international campaign ‘Live and Work Anywhere’, which it has launched with the aim of positioning itself as the world's leading platform for long-term rentals, through teleworking. The public company Turismo de Islas Canarias will be in charge of coordinating the contents of the communication that Airbnb will carry out to consolidate the archipelago as one of the best destinations in the world for teleworkers.
In the space that the platform will dedicate to the islands, which will be launched at the end of the year, the best local accommodations for long stays will be highlighted in order to illustrate and inspire travelers, and all relevant information on entry requirements and tax policies will be made available to ‘remote workers’, in addition to information on the wide variety of tourist activities to enrich the stay.
For Nacho Rodríguez, CEO and founder of Repeople and president of the Canary Islands Association of Collaborative Spaces, it is of great importance that the archipelago is part of this initiative. “The fact that the largest accommodation company in the world includes the Canary Islands as the only representative of Spain and among only six Europeans is a milestone that adds to all the efforts we are making from the archipelago to attract these teleworkers”, says Rodríguez, who is convinced that this action will generate “a lot of visibility for other segments of the destination.”
The Minister also highlighted the importance of this agreement, which will allow to continue attracting teleworkers to the islands, which in turn will mean the opening of new business opportunities for Canary Islands professionals. In fact, Castilla referred to a study carried out by the Harvard Business School, which shows “not only that ‘remote workers’ can be a great boost for any economy, but that they can also play an essential role in promoting entrepreneurship among the communities in which they stay, creating technological hubs around the world.”
An economic incentive to which is added a more responsible consumption of resources, as explained by the Minister, who recalled that attracting ‘remote workers’ reduces air dependence and diversifies spending at the destination. “Teleworkers generate a better redistribution of wealth and a better dispersion of the benefits of tourism throughout the territory and the economy, so that spending has an impact not only on all the actors that make up the sector, but also on the entire business and social fabric of the islands”, Castilla assured.
