Canary Islands resident perks 2026: bus, flights, ferries

The Canaries lie more than a thousand kilometres from mainland Spain — and that island location is expressly written into law (the so-called REF) as a disadvantage the state is meant to offset. In practice that means a web of discounts and subsidies designed to ease both mobility and the price of goods. In 2026 this web is being extended and, in one place, even expanded. Let's run through the four most important building blocks.

1. The free bus stays

Free public local transport — on the Canaries you ride the "guagua", as the bus is called here — continues in 2026 too. The state is providing 120 million euros for it. The regional government calls the measure a success: it has noticeably taken private cars off the roads and made it easier to reach work, education and healthcare across all the islands. For you as a resident it simply means: town and inter-town buses remain free.

2. The 75 percent discount on flights and ferries

This is the classic — and for many the most valuable item. Anyone whose residence is on the Canaries gets a 75 percent discount on the regular flight and ferry fare: both between the islands and to and from mainland Spain. Important for our readers: this discount applies not only to Spanish nationals but expressly also to EU citizens (and EEA and Switzerland) resident on the islands. So a Briton or other foreigner registered as resident here has the same entitlement.

3. One card for all islands: the "bono residente canario"

This is the real novelty. Until now, each island has had its own bus-card system. In future a single card — the "bono residente canario" — is to be valid on all the islands, on town and inter-town buses, regardless of which island issued it. Behind it sits a technical system that recognises each card on each island and settles the costs between the island councils. The pilot phase is announced for the end of 2026, fully financed by the regional government. For commuters and anyone who travels a lot between the islands, that would be a real relief.

4. The freight subsidies — and their catch

Less visible, but decisive for prices in the supermarket: the state subsidises the transport of goods to and between the islands. This is meant to offset the surcharges that arise from the distance, and thus dampen the price level. There is, however, a point of criticism here: the national competition authority CNMC faults the calculation method. It isn't set in a fixed legal framework but developed each year by a state company, and it rests on weighted average costs rather than the costs of efficiently run operators. The CNMC's recommendations have mostly not been adopted so far. In short: the help arrives, but whether it's optimally calibrated is disputed.