Tourism is one of the most important pillars of the Spanish economy. The arrival of foreign visitors has grown from 35 million people in 1995 to 50 million in 2001. This important influx of tourism has converted Spain into the second most visited country in the world. According to the National Institute of Statistics, in 1999 tourism generated 12% of the gross domestic product and furthermore created employment for more than 10% of the working Spanish population.

Following a stagnation in the number of tourists during the first six months of the year, the summer is having a worrying tendency of a drop in numbers. Mallorca, the Costa del Sol and the Canary Islands are witnessing a noticeable drop in bookings, in some cases this is in the region of 25% less than the previous year. The main causes are the important drop in German tourism and also British although this is not so apparent.

The main causes of this drop in the number of visitors are amongst others the following:

Due to the events of last September 11th in the United States, there was an evident fear of flying. Although there was an initial panic I personally I feel that fear is slowly beginning to disappear.

The traditional tendencies of a sun and beach type holiday are now beginning to change. Nowadays tourists want not only sun and beaches but seek other possible leisure pursuits (ecological, rural, sport, sports and health tourism etc.) which must be promoted.

The recession of the German economy, the German tourist being an important client in Spain, is very evident. The current floods in Germany and Europe and the consequences could possibly mean that people are not going to take holidays. This year the German tourist has either stayed at home or has preferred to go to cheaper destinations such as Croatia, Turkey, Yugoslavia etc.

Tourism has changed from 'quality ' to 'quantity', a tourism which buys and spends less in general. This causes problems because quality begins to deteriorate as less profits mean that business people involved in the tourist industry look to reduce their costs which logically results in a drop in quality. Many specialists advise the creation of golf courses as a solution and to diversify the leisure options available in order to attract the type of tourist who spends more money and stimulates economic activity.

The phenomenon of Internet has increased price and destination competitiveness. Tourist can now compare prices and destinations more clearly.

The international economic crisis and the instability of world stock exchanges mean that people think more carefully before deciding to book a holiday, resulting in a lesser trend towards tourism.

The Balearic Islands are applying what is known as the 'ecotasa' (an ecological tax), which is used to restore and improve natural environments that have been affected by the excessive land occupation (water, energy, etc).

Land in the Canary Islands is suffering the impact of a lack of planning, coordination and control of building. The Canarian Government has not really known how to plan the land destined for tourist development and in many cases the Town Halls have not controlled this land development in their respective municipalities. Therefore in many areas of the Canary Islands there is a tendency to follow the example of the Costa del Sol, Benidorm etc… where they are not taking much care of land planning. Furthermore, there are various constructions which spoil the coastline (in the South of Gran Canaria and Tenerife etc…) and which only prove to have a negative effect on attracting quality tourism. However in islands such as Lanzarote, where there is more of an environmental conscience inherited from Cesar Manrique, there is more control over this negative tendency.

The price war between the Tour Operators and tourism entrepreneurs is only going to result in less profits and worse quality and services.

To conclude, the current tourism model is behind the times and it is now necessary to reflect on how to deal with this. This is partly the responsibility of the Government as it is the Government who orders the land and creates laws. Town Halls should also coordinate measures with the Government and tourism entrepreneurs must invest money to modernise obsolete hotels and to give a better quality service. In the end it is the market which dictates and makes people take the necessary measures, however sometimes these measures can be taken too late.