The High Cost of a Christmas Homecoming
Returning home for Christmas is one of the most anticipated moments of the year. For 2025, this homecoming begins this Friday, 19 December, with the end of the school term. However, the journey home is not within everyone’s budget, least of all for the many Canary Islanders who no longer live in the Archipelago. For a family of four travelling from Madrid to spend Christmas Eve in the Islands, the cost can reach up to €1,000—€250 per ticket. Despite this, the ports and airports of the Islands will enter a period of frenetic activity, significantly scaling up operations to bring everyone home.
Sky-High Prices for Non-Resident Travellers
Yet, not everyone who wants to fly can afford to. As happens every year, ticket prices linking the Archipelago with mainland Spain have skyrocketed for the Christmas period. This is especially true for those Islanders who reside outside the Canaries and therefore are not entitled to apply the resident discount. Consequently, a family of four would need to spend €1,000 on return tickets to travel from Madrid to Tenerife between 23 and 26 December. The cheapest fare for these dates costs nearly €250 return for those not registered as Canary Islands residents.
This amount increases further if the journey ends on a non-capital island, as often an additional inter-island flight must be added to the route from the mainland. Similarly, prices are comparable for flights from the Spanish capital to Gran Canaria, at €190 for a return trip. The price of tickets to come to the Archipelago at the peak of the Christmas season is more than double what one would pay travelling after the holidays. A return ticket between Madrid and Tenerife for Thursday, 15 January, returning Sunday the 18th, starts at a minimum of €106. In other words, prices increase by 135% during the festive period.
A Dream Out of Reach for Many Families
The situation is even worse for passengers departing from Barcelona. The cheapest ticket found on one of the most frequented booking portals exceeds €450. That translates to €1,800 for a family of four wanting to enjoy Christmas in the Canaries. This is a scenario denounced for several years by the campaign group Canarios sin Alas (Canarians Without Wings), which shares testimonies on social media from Islanders who cannot come to the Archipelago this Christmas due to high ticket prices.
Some state they have gone more than 30 years without being able to spend the holidays with their loved ones. Others express relief at having secured tickets, even if not on their preferred days or times, and despite having to drive for many hours to reach the airport. Therefore, buying a last-minute ticket to travel to the Canaries at this time is practically impossible for many household budgets; those who wish to travel know they must book many months in advance.
Air Travel: The Only Viable Option
Unlike connections within mainland Spain, where citizens have alternatives like trains or coaches to reunite with their families, for Canary Islanders living outside the Archipelago, the plane is almost their only available means of transport. The Islands’ airports will operate 1,708 more flights this Christmas season than in 2024, a 7% increase. It should be noted that, due to calendar effects, the departure operation begins a day earlier this year, making the campaign one day longer. In total, 24,827 aircraft will land or take off from Canary Islands airports, compared to 23,119 last year.
Saturday, 20 December will be the day of greatest movement in Canarian airports, with 1,539 routes operated that day alone. Over 1,500 flights will also operate on Saturday, 27 December, a day travellers will use to return home after spending Christmas with family, while many others will arrive to spend New Year’s Eve or travel to see in the new year elsewhere.
Ferry Ports Brace for Festive Frenzy
The Canary Islands’ ferry ports will also experience frantic days. In the case of Fred Olsen, the company expects to mobilise 200,000 passengers and around 55,000 vehicles throughout the entire Christmas period. The ferry operator will therefore increase its operations by 17% for passengers and 21% for vehicles compared to 2024.
The most in-demand routes will be those connecting Gran Canaria and Tenerife, Tenerife with La Gomera, and those linking Lanzarote with Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria with Fuerteventura. Some 70,000 people are expected to embark on the route connecting the two capital islands. Meanwhile, between Tenerife and La Gomera, the company forecasts over 45,500 passengers; over 35,000 between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura; and around 31,500 people will travel on the route between Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura.
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