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Villa
Rentals in Spain’s outpost of Gran Canaria
has been a popular holiday resort with Europeans for
well over a century. Prior to that the island relied
heavily on the passing shipping trade it made with other
countries and selling its goods. In the late 19th Century
a free port system was established which meant tax exemptions
were placed on certain goods entering and facilities
within the Canary Islands. This was a shrewd move to
encourage more economic growth on the island and led
to many more ships stopping at this location. Holidaylet
in Gran Canaria was to develop in the latter half of
the 20th century.
Villa Rentals in Spain’s
Gran Canaria for the Affluent Classes
 It
was the shipping companies who first recognised this location
as an ideal place for tourism and they certainly made
use of it as a tourist resort. They realised that the
well to do Europeans wanted a venue in which to relax
and enjoy the sun as well as experience the health benefits
and excitement of being on an island built on volcanic
rock. But this did not happen over night. These shipping
companies realised money could be had just as effectively
by wooing the well to do Europeans into making the journey
to the Canary Islands. The Beauty of the islands would
do the rest. In order to achieve their purpose, many ships
were refurbished; posh cabins were designed to suit the
tastes and comforts of the moneyed class; entertainment
and exemplary cuisine was added to the itinerary as well
as first class crew service catering to the needs of the
guests. In some ways these were the early luxury cruise
liners. A home away from home vacation on board a ship
and a far cry from self catering apartments in the Canary
Islands.
Certainly in the last half of the 19th century prosperous
holiday makers would not necessarily be seeking a holidaylet
in Gran Canaria neither would they require self-catering
apartments on any of the Canary Islands. Those affluent
Europeans would want to be waited on hand and foot in
an environment with the comforts of home in an exotic
climate which they could boast to being as close to
the very shores of Africa. Furthermore they would not
have to contend with the dreadful North European weather.
However the more private and perhaps discerning tourists
would book a short term holiday in villa rentals in
Spain’s more salubrious location within Gran Canaria,
just to see if they would enjoy their stay.
But for many of the affluent it is believe that the
shipping companies even got involved in the building
of hotels such the Santa Catalin which was erected in
1890 in Las Palmas de Canaria to cater for the needs
of this exclusive class. In actual fact this is the
only hotel still in existence today which dates back
to the 1890s and the inception of the early tourist
trade in the Canary Islands. Some tourists certainly
may have resided initially in the hotels which sprung
up for the affluent, but those who fell in love with
the island and wished to stay for a more permanent sojourn
and had their own staff may have booked long term villa
rentals in Spain’s Gran Canaria. This spectacular
growth was to make tourism the main industry in Gran
Canaria.
Holidaylet in Gran Canaria
– The Changing Tourist
Over the last fifty years, the clientele have changed
considerably. Tourists travel from all over the world
and the island has become the place for holiday villa
rentals in Spain's foremost province. Many owners are
successful in advertising and leasing their properties
for the holidaylet in Gran Canaria market because of
the location and climate. Owners know tourists will
enjoy spending quality time in this attractive venue.
Furthermore Gran Canaria has become more popular not
only due to the climate but because of the marvellous
mineral waters and algae contained in the waters. Some
tourists even hire on a regular basis
self catering apartments in the Canary Island of
Gran Canaria so that they can regularly take the waters
as these were believed to contain some medicinal qualities.
With tales of "miracle cures" tourists flocked
to book villa rentals in Spain in Gran Canaria to visit
a range of spas hoping to be healed of their various
maladies. Even doctors have prescribed the waters as
a form of treatment.
However nowadays a few vacationers book villa
rentals in Spain's Gran Canaria generally to attend
the spa and various therapy sessions not to be cured
or as a form of treatment, they come to be pampered
and, if a little miracle should happen, well that's
the icing on the cake!
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