The Arrecife City Council celebrated the Arrecife Tourism Awards 2024 on Wednesday night, an event presided over by the city's mayor, Yonathan de León, accompanied by the Councilor for Tourism, Elizabeth Merino.
"All the award winners have done a commendable job in promoting tourism in our municipality, always highlighting our idiosyncrasies and traditions of the city that commemorates its 225th anniversary this year," said the mayor, Yonathan de León, who personally congratulated Toñín Corujo, José Carlos Hernández, Sam Parfums, Arrecife Gran Hotel, and the organization of the Candlelight Concert.
"We must feel proud that Tourism has been the engine of growth in our archipelago, and if we asked our parents, they would tell you that Lanzarote had its exponential growth hand in hand with the tourism sector, without forgetting our fishing past that led to the creation of our municipality," said the mayor, who made special emphasis "on the effort of all sectors that add value in our municipality."
"Arrecife, which was a port before a city, continues to grow, and more and more people and companies are interested in settling in our municipality. This fact is, to a large extent, thanks to the rise of Tourism, and we see it with the thousands of tourists who walk daily through the streets of the capital," added the mayor.
The Councilor for Tourism, Elizabeth Merino, stated, "Not so long ago, some tourism agents did not recommend our city as a destination." "But today, thanks to everyone's efforts, we have achieved a significant change. Arrecife has gone from being an option that few mentioned to becoming an essential place to visit for those who come to our island," added the councilor.
"I cannot fail to mention the magnificent Tourism and Commerce team, whose tireless work has been key to positioning Arrecife as a tourist destination of excellence. Their daily effort, their management capacity, and their strategic vision have allowed us to take important steps towards the success we are celebrating today," added Elizabeth Merino.
The distinguished ones at the Arrecife Tourism Awards 2024
The magnificent location of the Municipal Recova was the stage where the five award winners collected the awards, presented by the Councilor for Tourism, except for the Award for Cultural and Artistic trajectory, which was presented by the Deputy Mayor, Echedey Eugenio; and the Arrecife Tourism Award, the main award of the event, which went to the company Arrecife Gran Hotel and Spa and presented by the Mayor, Yonathan de León.
"This hotel was the bet, 20 years ago, of Miguel Morales and Francisco González to recover an abandoned space and transform it into a five-star hotel, thus putting the capital at the top of the pyramid of tourism in our city," said the mayor, who conveyed to the company his best wishes "to continue growing and being a reference in the capital."
Regarding the recognition of the Cultural and Artistic trajectory, the award was given to the musician Toñín Corujo, who has contributed for decades his talent and dedication to the promotion of traditional music in Lanzarote. "Toñín has been one of those responsible for the fact that today we can enjoy a large number of music professionals, because with his vocation he has taught music classes for years in the capital," said the councilor of the area.
The Olympic marathon runner from Arrecife, José Carlos Hernández, received recognition for his sports career. Hernández put the name of Lanzarote at the top of the sport after his participation in the 2012 Olympic Games in the marathon category, after years of effort and dedication in national, European, and international championships. In addition, he is the architect of one of the tests with the highest influx of participants in the capital: the Disco Night Urban Race.
The business trajectory was another of the awards given on Thursday night, and which in this edition was given to the company Sam Parfums. "Not only has it been one of the references in terms of commerce in our city, with the well-known stores of the brand, but it has also opted for a new boutique hotel in the bay of our capital," said the mayor, who pointed out that this company "reflects the objective and the path towards which Arrecife must walk."
Finally, in the events category, the award has been granted to the Candlelight Concert, a cultural and tourist initiative promoted by the Classical Orchestra of Lanzarote with the support of the Arrecife City Council. "This event is not only an event that we wanted to recover in our city, but it is also one of the most demanded by the citizens of the island, a concert that is intertwined between the culture and the magical setting of the Charco de San Ginés," added the mayor.
The event ended with the performance of Daní Martínez, Oscar Sánchez, and Rafa Rodríguez who performed five songs to put the finishing touch to the act.
