At a glance: why it is getting more expensive
- Jet fuel has doubled in price since the conflict began (+100 percent)
- Fuel accounts for around 27 percent of a Canary Islands package price
- Expected surcharge: 7.5 to 9 percent, likely from June
- Germany is the second-largest source market after the UK, at nearly 20 percent
- Source: situation report by the business alliance Excelcan, 19 May
Contents
What the Manchester family is paying now
The Canarian business alliance Excelcan, which brings together the big names of the sector – from the hotel group Lopesan to the island airline Binter and Loro Parque – presented its first-quarter 2026 report on Tuesday 19 May. The headline concerns anyone planning a package holiday to the islands: the war in the Middle East could make those packages 7.5 to 9 percent more expensive from June.
The reason sits in the fuel tank. Excelcan vice-president José Carlos Francisco set out that the price of jet fuel has already doubled – a rise of 100 percent. And on a medium-haul destination like the Canaries, jet fuel is no minor line item: it accounts for around 27 percent of the entire package price. Pass that jump along, and it lands as a noticeable surcharge on the final bill.
Why jet fuel and the Middle East war are behind it
For our Manchester family, eight percent on 2,400 euros would be almost 200 euros extra – the cost of a good day out for four.
The slightly more reassuring news: according to Francisco, this is a scale that "the value chain can absorb." Translated, that means the airline earns a little less, the tour operator does too, the hotelier takes a slightly smaller margin – and in the end the full surcharge does not all land on the guest. Excelcan is sticking to its forecast of a broadly solid tourism year in 2026, at the level of 2025 or with a slight decline.
What the value chain can absorb
Anyone who lives here rather than holidaying is affected differently. The British retiree in Maspalomas who flies the grandchildren over for a visit, the online entrepreneur in Las Palmas who shuttles between island and mainland – for them it is not the package that gets dearer, but the individual flight. And anyone letting out a holiday flat should keep the maths in mind: if getting here costs more, guests' spending money on the ground is either a little looser or a little tighter.
There is also a flip side that works in the islands' favour. Back in spring, tourism minister Jéssica de León pointed out that the instability is hitting precisely the Canaries' direct Mediterranean competitors – Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia. Some operators are redirecting capacity to the islands as a result; TUI has announced new connections from Germany to Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria. At the same time the low-cost carrier Volotea is thinning out frequencies because it cannot keep up on fuel prices. The result is a market reshuffling itself – with winners and losers on both sides of the ledger.
Risk scenario and booking tips
The real risk lies elsewhere anyway. Excelcan names a second scenario, unlikely but dangerous: a genuine jet-fuel shortage. Spain produces more aviation fuel than it consumes – but Germany and the UK run a deficit. If the planes from Frankfurt or Birmingham stay on the ground because there is no fuel, that would be a serious problem for an island destination that lives on air travel.
For your next booking, in practical terms: if you want to reach the islands in summer or autumn and you are flexible, book sooner rather than later – the surcharges kick in from June. Comparing a package against a separate booking, flight and accommodation apart, can pay off right now, because the fuel component feeds through differently in each. And looking at the total bill rather than just the flight price guards against surprises at the checkout.
- Why are Canary Islands holidays getting more expensive?
- The war in the Middle East has doubled the price of jet fuel. On a medium-haul destination like the Canaries, fuel accounts for around 27 percent of a package price. According to the business alliance Excelcan, that could raise packages by 7.5 to 9 percent from June.
- How much more will a specific booking cost?
- On a package of around 2,400 euros, an eight percent surcharge means almost 200 euros extra. How much of that actually reaches the customer depends on how much the airline, the operator and the hotel give up from their margins.
- Should I book now or wait?
- The increases are expected to take effect from June. If you are flexible and want to travel in summer or autumn, book sooner rather than later. Comparing a package against booking flight and accommodation separately can pay off right now.