Readers report warm welcomes and unease over Canary tourism

Isolde Fink sent us this photograph. She writes: Otherwise, the Canary Islands are simply brilliant. Such stunning scenery, and public transport that's well to very well organised! It's a shame that foreign visitors don't make more use of it; at least in my view, there are far too many hire cars on the roads. Haven't they heard of sustainable tourism? Are they only worried about property prices? I'm well aware that tourism creates jobs. Click the "NEXT PHOTO >" button to go to the next review... Peter S. writes: We haven't had any bad experiences so far; we are a married couple. We've been holidaying in Tenerife on and off for eleven years. Last year, we were there for five weeks from February, and this year from 1 December to 15 March. It's been very peaceful for us. Kerstin Wahrmann writes: Last winter, at the Cosmo shopping centre in Morro Jable on Fuerteventura, we were called 'Nazis' when we were looking at small shoulder bags in front of a shop but didn't buy anything. I'd been looking for a new mobile phone case because mine was broken. We were really scared at how aggressively we were treated, just because we'd looked at some items on a display stand outside the shop and touched them very lightly, without buying anything in the end because the pouches were too small for my mobile. Martin Weiss writes: Tourist hotspots around the world are suffering from 'overtourism'. The Canary Islands are no exception. As the Canary Islands are a year-round destination, it is difficult to manage the flow of tourists over time in line with the principle of 'scattered tourism'. Raising prices would certainly lead to a reduction in visitor numbers, in keeping with the motto 'small but lovely'. The current value for money (all-inclusive) is considered very good, both in absolute terms and relatively speaking, as otherwise so many tourists would not visit the Canary Islands. The residents of some tourist hotspots are right to protest against mass tourism, even if they make a living from it, both directly and indirectly. Another important indicator is the ratio of the population to tourist beds. This needs to be adjusted in favour of the local residents. The fact that people who work regularly sometimes have to sleep in their cars is a disgrace for a country in the EU. I have been visiting the Canary Islands regularly for many years and am therefore familiar with the developments. Werner Winkler writes: I've been spending the winter months in Playa San Juan for the past six years. Here, the tourist scene still seems to be in good shape. The area is mainly made up of owner-occupied properties or rental flats. There's still a healthy mix of tourists and locals. There's no sign of hostility towards tourists here, even though rental flats are becoming increasingly expensive for locals. I can clearly see mafia-like structures at work. Wealthy Canarians prefer to let out properties on a large scale to tourists, as they can command far higher rents that way. This sometimes goes hand in hand with the local authorities in Guía de Isora. Another residential complex is currently being built here, with prices starting at 650,000 euros. Which Canarian can afford such a flat? No wonder the locals are fighting back. Unless they are born into families of heavily subsidised banana plantation owners, the jobs available to them are mainly in the service sector, such as cleaning crews and the like. Doreen Eckert writes: We can't say that the people in the places we've visited so far are unfriendly towards tourists. On the contrary: they're very friendly and welcoming. Whether in Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria or Lanzarote, we've always been given a warm welcome. Sometimes, though, we can understand why the locals there have such a low opinion of tourists. Many holidaymakers really do behave appallingly - they simply throw rubbish wherever they happen to be standing, harass locals and are very unfriendly towards the Canarians. These are truly beautiful islands where you can feel at home and have a wonderful holiday, provided you follow the rules, as we do, and don't come across as so uptight, as is often the case in Germany, for example. Adele Hinz writes: We've already spent three weeks on holiday in Puerto de la Cruz twice, visiting lots of places by public bus and going on organised excursions. We've never experienced any hostility. We've always behaved like guests, too. We've also spent a day on the Canary Islands with AIDA on two occasions: people were always nice to us - on every island. Peter Kupke writes: My wife and I have spent four months at a time in Puerto every winter for more than 20 years and have felt very much at home there. We haven't noticed any hostility towards tourists; quite the opposite, in fact: we've always been made to feel very welcome. Gabriela Fey writes: I can't say I've noticed any hostility towards tourists on Tenerife (in Adeje), for example, but I can certainly see that there are a great many tourists there at the moment. One wonders where this is all heading. The infrastructure is already stretched to its limits. Not to mention the sewage situation. We've been visiting the island every year since 2010 and are slowly starting to wonder what we're still doing here if we can no longer go for a swim in the sea. From our hotel, we could see the sewage being discharged straight into the sea. It's no laughing matter anymore. The island definitely needs a break from tourism. Traffic on the island has also increased so much that it's better to travel by public bus. I don't want to write only negative things about the island. We actually love being here, especially in winter, and enjoy the different climate zones. But next year we'll be taking a break from the island to see if perhaps something changes, or if we need to look for another place to spend the winter. Annelore Ehlers writes: I've been living in La Paz for 22 years and have never experienced any hostility towards me. However, I do have friends from the Canary Islands and speak a reasonable amount of Spanish. I'm a friendly person and am grateful to be able to live here. Some people can be very arrogant. Thomas Koch tells us: In a café in El Sauzal - with an incredibly beautiful view - we were treated unkindly right from the start: we tried to order four different dishes. Apparently, everything was out of stock. When we got to the fifth dish, the order was taken, but it never arrived. When the staff then go on to say audibly amongst themselves, "son solo alemanes estúpidos", I would describe that as xenophobic. Ralph H. reports: "We live here in Tenerife in a small house in Los Realejos. We get on well with our neighbours - Spaniards and people of other nationalities. There has never been a single unfriendly word or gesture. This week, however, there was an incident for which I have no explanation. Our hire car, which is regularly parked at the side of the road (in a cul-de-sac), was significantly damaged by repeated kicks. I've seen this sort of thing before where we live in Germany. There, it's usually vehicles in 'middle-class' residential areas that are targeted by vandals. It is therefore suspected that there is a social motive behind the vandalism." Jetzt mitmachen! Over to you: Where is there hostility towards tourists in the Canaries?