ROUTES AFRICA Tenerife
The majority of visitors to Tenerife are tourists
one part of a commercial strategy that also combines tax breaks. Airlines and tour operators based on the island pay 4% corporate tax under the Canary Islands Special Zone framework while export taxes are waived on goods being imported and exported into and from the island’s Free Trade Zone, if they are going straight back out and on to Africa. A deep-water port already exists on the north side of the island where 12,819 tons of cargo were transported in 2015. With another deep-water port being built in the south next to the airport and the island’s key industrial area, set for completion in 2018, Tenerife South Airport can expect significant growth on the 2,836 tons of cargo that passed through it in 2015. Wear says: “A lot of companies are
using Tenerife as a forward base.” Nor is it outside of her remit to
consider the business strategy of route development, despite her role being with the tourist board. Wear explains Turismo de Tenerife also has a department for economic development, meaning her role is as much about using aviation to boost commercial activity as leisure activity. This means she is more than used to working with staff from airport operator Aena, which counts both facilities among the 61 airports and two heliports it owns globally.
62 ISSUE 3 ROUTES NEWS 2016
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“The destination and the airport working together is going to make things a lot easier for everyone.” She also believes that the
Turismo de Tenerife has worked hard to attract premium carriers such as Lufthansa
The company operates eight in
total in the Canary Islands, which in 2015 recorded more than 35.8 million passengers, a record amount that accounted for 17.2% of all traffic in Aena’s total network.
During the year domestic traffic at the Canary airports grew 5.5% while international figures were up by 2.1%. With that level of competition, Wear believes it is vital that tourist boards step in and assist airports in getting out into the market and attracting the right kind of airlines.
She says: “What we have to look at is the increase in the tourist boards taking part in route development. “When an airline flies into the
airport they need to be reassured the correct infrastructure is there. “However, whether it is business
travel or leisure travel, customers don’t choose to fly to the airport, they choose the destination and the tourist board can help that.
constant identification and targeting of new markets can help the destination when it invariably loses other important markets, part of any destination’s natural ebb and flow. Since economic sanctions have been placed on Russia in the wake of its 2014 invasion of Ukraine, Wear estimates that the drop of all but the richest visitors coming from the country has created a “significant dent” in Russian tourist numbers. However, an increase in medical
tourism and shop-till-you drop breaks from Africa has helped plug the gap and is again being used in discussions with airlines to help secure more flights. This again takes the destination
full circle as it once again focuses on Africa as part of its ongoing strategy for success.“We are a hub and it is a hub that needs to grow,” Wear concludes. £
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