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A leading US travel guide has put several Canary Islands on its "No Go" list for 2026, citing overcrowding and stretched resources, but the local tourism minister is urging people not to overreact.

 

Fodor's Travel placed Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, and Fuerteventura second among eight destinations to reconsider, pointing to 7.8 million visitors in the first half of 2025 alone, up 5% from the year before. The magazine highlights local protests under the banner "Canary Islands have a limit," along with housing shortages, damaged natural areas, water shortages, creaking infrastructure, and tourism's failure to spread wealth evenly.

 

Tourism makes up over a third of the islands' GDP and supports around 40% of jobs, but the sheer volume is straining roads, services, and daily life for residents. This shift from "must-visit" paradise to "overwhelmed spot" feels like a wake-up call for a model that's grown too fast.

 

Canary Islands Tourism Minister Jéssica de León, speaking to the press on Monday January 12, downplayed the alert. "Appearing on these types of lists is obviously always bad news for the Canary Islands and for the sector, but I want to emphasise that the situation that one or two islands in the archipelago may be experiencing cannot be generalized to the entirety," she said. She noted that quieter islands like La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro escape the crowds and deserve equal billing in the region's image.

 

De León advised caution with such lists, saying they are not "a guide or beacon on which to reorient policy."

 

Recent stats show winter air links down 2.6%, but tourists up around 4% through November 2025, with daily spending per visitor 8.9% higher than in 2024.

 

It's a balancing act, but the message is clear: not all islands are bursting at the seams.

 

 

 

 

Image: Jose Antonio Jiménez Macías/Unsplash