Tenerife Airport Delays Threaten British Tourism

For the past week, ongoing passport control delays at Tenerife South Airport have been causing increasing worry for the island's tourism industry, particularly because of how they affect British visitors. While Spain's Ministry of Interior has blamed "temporary IT system issues," the situation at Tenerife South, the island's main airport, is far from what the government describes as normal.

For several days, passengers arriving on the island, especially those from outside the Schengen area like the UK, have faced waits of over an hour and a half to get through passport control. The British market has been vital for Tenerife since Brexit began on January 1, 2020. These long waits have even caused the control area to become so crowded that it has affected how people can get from the runway into the terminal, according to travelers.

The Spanish government, however, has denied there's "repeated overcrowding," only admitting to "isolated delays." But passengers' complaints on social media paint a different picture, describing disorganization, queues stretching outside the building, and waits of up to two hours. These complaints highlight poor operations, noting that only five of the 36 biometric recognition machines, installed to speed up passport control, have been working recently. This technology is part of the European Entry/Exit System (EES), which started being used at Tenerife South in November to meet European rules.

On top of the tech issues, there's also a lack of police staff at the control booths, particularly on Fridays and weekends, which are usually the busiest days for tourists. José Fernando Cabrera, president of the Forum of Friends of South Tenerife (FAST), has warned that this ongoing problem is harming the island's most important tourist market. He called it a "deep-rooted issue" that Aena, the airport operator, has not managed to fix.

Delays at Canary Islands airports are not a new problem. In the past, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska has blamed airlines for these delays, calling them a "temporary mismatch." Last July, his ministry announced that 32 more National Police officers would be assigned to the airport. There have also been talks with Aena to find solutions. In fact, in June 2025, the central government, the Island Council, Aena, and the National Police agreed to hold regular meetings to check on the solutions being put in place. This shows that the problem is still ongoing and a priority for the authorities involved.