Puerto del Rosario and Arrecife Join Forces to Boost Cruise Tourism

They will work together so both capitals receive greater attention from the Port Authority for investments and improvements

Lanzarote and Fuerteventura have formed an alliance to strengthen cruise‑ship tourism. The mayors of Arrecife, Yonathan de León, and of Puerto del Rosario, David de Vera, have sealed a partnership to promote their cities—capitals of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, respectively—as premier cruise destinations.

De León and De Vera met during the International Tourism Fair held last week in Madrid to set up a close collaboration and a joint roadmap for their proposals to the Port Authority of Las Palmas (APLP), the state body of which both mayors sit on the governing board.

Key figures

• In 2025, cruise passengers disembarking at Arrecife and Puerto del Rosario accounted for 52 % of the total revenue generated by cruise tourism in the Port of Las Palmas’ financial results.
• The province of Las Palmas welcomed 2,089,042 cruise passengers last year.
  • 1,094,088 of them visited the islands of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura via the ports of Arrecife and Puerto del Rosario.
  • 994,954 arrived at La Luz and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

“The union between Puerto del Rosario and Arrecife is today a key factor for understanding the development and consolidation of cruise tourism in the province of Las Palmas. Through collaboration and joint work, both capitals are demonstrating that Fuerteventura and Lanzarote play a fundamentally strategic role within the provincial port system,” said David de Vera, mayor of Puerto del Rosario.

“Our island capitals in Fuerteventura and Lanzarote have an economic strength in cruise tourism and will continue to grow over the next five years, as forecast by the shipping lines. If we contribute more than 50 % of the income generated by these passengers to the Port of Las Palmas, we must be matched with investments and improvements in our port facilities of equal importance,” added Yonathan de León, mayor of Arrecife.

The Madrid meeting also included the respective tourism councilors: Rosa Rodríguez (Puerto del Rosario) and Eli Merino (Arrecife). Beyond promoting joint actions as cruise‑tourism destinations within the Canary circuit, the two municipalities agreed that their tourism departments will plan coordinated initiatives to benefit both capitals and islands, which hold a strong weight in the archipelago’s tourism sector.

De León and De Vera have scheduled a follow‑up meeting in Arrecife in the near future to develop new actions and strategies that will further strengthen both cities, leveraging the importance of their state ports for tourism, commerce, and the economies of the islands.