The president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Oswaldo Betancort, made it very clear this Wednesday on the island that Lanzarote and La Graciosa are developing their work these days at the Berlin International Tourism Fair ITB 2025 "with a clear message: we are a sustainable destination, committed and responsible with the protection of our environment," he commented. And he added: "This year, we must also celebrate a very important milestone such as the 30th anniversary of the Charter for Sustainable Tourism, signed in Jameos del Agua in 1995, a commitment that we not only maintain but also reinforce with concrete actions."
Oswaldo Betancort, also Minister of Tourism Lanzarote, clarified that "the German tourist aligns perfectly with our identity as a sustainable destination. Now, at the ITB we continue to close agreements with specific agencies and tour operators because the German market highly values destinations that prioritize nature; and Lanzarote is a pioneer in this aspect."
In addition, the president of the Cabildo commented on how Lanzarote and La Graciosa are highlighting these days "initiatives that we develop on our island such as the Climate Action Plan, the Ethical Tourism campaign carried out by SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, or the tasks of tourist information officers in unique places in our geography, among other projects. The German tourist is a tourist who at this time highly values the consumption of zero kilometer products, the circular economy and, above all, ecological awareness."
GTA international certification from Green Destinations
The round of work meetings led by the team of the Society for the Promotion of Foreign Affairs of Lanzarote (SPEL)-Turismo Lanzarote in the 2025 edition of the Berlin International Tourism Fair (ITB) began yesterday, Tuesday, with commercial meetings with leading entities such as TUI, Eurowings or Green Destinations, among others. This Wednesday, meetings are taking place with new actors in the sector such as Alltours, Turespaña, Condor or NecsTour, among others.
The CEO of SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, Héctor Fernández, revealed that "the meetings are demonstrating that there is a growing interest in Germany about Lanzarote and La Graciosa. And we can confirm that the forecasts for this year are positive, in order to continue with the work we do to diversify our tourism."
One of the highlights of the first working meetings was the reception by the Lanzarote delegation of the international accreditation granted by Green Destinations, the well-known non-profit organization of experts and ambassadors of destinations that promotes travel to the destinations most committed to the environment. Specifically, Lanzarote has been named as one of the twenty founding members of the Good Travel Alliance (GTA), the Green Destinations council composed of tourist destinations selected for their requirements in terms of responsibility, sustainability and attractiveness.
"This entry of the island into the Good Travel Alliance, of Green Destinations, grants Lanzarote and La Graciosa greater visibility in ecological matters, positioning itself as a world spearhead among sustainable destinations," Fernández clarified.
Likewise, it should be noted that SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote has held a working meeting with a German sustainability consultancy. With this, the Cabildo of Lanzarote seeks to promote its projects in this area, "helping to cement in the German country our positioning as a sustainable destination," Héctor Fernández remarked. In this meeting, the work plan that Turismo Lanzarote manages for the coming months was broken down, during which the consultant will facilitate the strategy of professional and specialization forums in communication of the tourism sector to reach those potential visitors that the Cabildo wants to reach.
The marathon days of the SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote team will extend until Thursday, March 6 in Berlin, adding more than thirty meetings with heads of agencies, tour operators, airlines, associations and consultants.
"Our tourism strategy seeks to balance economic development with the preservation of our territory and our identity," President Oswaldo Betancort finally recalled.
