Lanzarote’s finest showcase wine tourism offering at prestigious Spanish fair

A select group of Lanzarote’s most celebrated wineries has been flying the flag for the island’s unique viticulture at a major international wine tourism fair in mainland Spain.

The wineries formed part of a delegation from the Canary Islands Wine Tourism Cluster, supported by the Canary Islands Government, at the seventh edition of FINE. The exclusive wine tourism fair took place on 3 and 4 March in the heart of Spain’s renowned Ribera del Duero country, Valladolid.

Representing Lanzarote at the event were four distinguished bodegas: Bodega El Grifo, Bodega La Geria, Bodega Olivina, and Bodega Rubicón.

The fair served as a global meeting point for wine tourism professionals, bringing together more than 140 exhibitors and one hundred international buyers. The primary objective was to promote leading wine tourism destinations, forge new alliances, and unlock business opportunities within the wine sector.

With over 2,200 business meetings scheduled during the event, FINE’s internationally acclaimed format focuses on high-level networking. Professionals from across Europe, Asia, and America attended, allowing participants to concentrate their efforts on generating qualified contacts and securing collaboration agreements with specialist travel agencies, tour operators, and other sector agents from more than 20 countries.

The exhibition space, which the Canary Islands has participated in for four consecutive years, showcased a cutting-edge offering. It featured wineries, hotels, wine routes, and regions from Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Slovenia. As a new addition this year, the fair also included promotional activities for the olive oil tourism sector, highlighting it as an emerging complementary product.

Luis Arráez Guadalupe, the director of the ICCA, highlighted the unique potential of the region. “The Canary Islands have enormous potential for growth in the field of wine tourism because they combine a unique wine production, differentiated and rooted in our history and identity, linked to the territory and giving rise to spectacular landscapes,” he pointed out.

Mr Arráez Guadalupe noted that all the islands in the archipelago boast a significant “first-class” wine tourism offering. He added: “The recent recognition of wine tourism as a regulated tourist activity in the Canary Islands by the Executive is further proof of the firm commitment to this sector, which boosts the local economy, generates employment, and contributes to the conservation of our agricultural landscapes and stabilises the population in rural municipalities.”

Hernán Tejera, the manager of the Canary Islands Wine Tourism Cluster, emphasised the collective ambition of the group. “All the members of our association share the goal of positioning the Canary Islands as a leading wine tourism destination, and to this end it is essential that we participate in events such as this fair, which we are attending alongside the ICCA, in order to seek synergies between the tourism and primary sectors,” he stressed.

Mr Tejera further explained the strategic importance of such events for the islands’ economy. “Wine tourism can translate into significant additional income for wineries through an offering that sets the Canary Islands apart as a tourist destination, especially for high-end visitors from markets such as the United States, who have a significant presence at this edition of FINE.”