In response to a new question posed by the mayor of Yaiza, Óscar Noda, at the meeting of the Advisory Council of Canary Islands Ports held this Friday, the top management of the public business entity confirmed to the southern leader that up to six shipping companies have formally conveyed their interest to Canary Islands Ports in docking their ships at the port of Playa Blanca, a "encouraging" piece of news for the Yaiza City Council, "which, however, must soon become a genuine reality." In fact, the mayor states that "the interest is positive, but we will not cease in our efforts until we see small and medium-sized luxury cruises dock in our port, smaller vessels aimed at people with high purchasing power."
It is worth remembering that, at the request of Yaiza, Canary Islands Ports commissioned an analysis of the competitiveness of the port of Playa Blanca in relation to the luxury cruise market and its socio-economic impact on the tourist destination. The study concluded that twenty calls from medium-sized or boutique cruises in Playa Blanca represent one million euros for the local economy.
However, considering the request for cruise ship berths in Playa Blanca, Canary Islands Ports requested additional information from the City Council this May regarding the tourist offerings and services available in Playa Blanca and the port's surroundings, such as places of interest for cruise ship visitors, restaurants, cafes, car rental companies, and excursions, among others, as well as services near the port such as pharmacies, souvenir shops, and a tourist information office, information that the mayor pledged to provide promptly.
The meeting of the Advisory Council of Ports was chaired by Pablo Rodríguez, Minister of Public Works, Housing, and Mobility of the Government of the Canary Islands, with whom the mayor held a meeting last February. There, Rodríguez assured Noda that Promotur Turismo Canarias had been tasked with channeling the marketing strategy of the port of Playa Blanca for cruise tourism, an issue on which the mayor also insisted.
Of course, José Gilberto Moreno, managing director of Canary Islands Ports, participated in this Advisory Council, in which the mayor of Yaiza participated virtually due to a scheduling conflict with a plenary session of the Municipal Corporation where councilor Lorena Martín Cabrera (PP) took office, replacing councilor Alejandro Rodríguez (R.I.P.)
Pending Services
The mayor of Yaiza again requested the opening of the cafeteria in the new terminal. Canary Islands Ports assures that it is preparing the file to put it out to concession. Óscar Noda also demanded an increase in the number of security guards in the entity's staff, which according to Canary Islands Ports will be three; the placement of the missing horizontal and vertical signage on the internal roads of the port; and reiterated the neighborhood complaints due to the noise and smoke from the Naviera Armas ship that connects Lanzarote and Fuerteventura. Canary Islands Ports will enable a generator to prevent the ship's engines from being running all night, a measure consistent with the high standards of sustainability that the port boasts.
