Canary Island airport chaos forces urgent meeting as Brits stuck in horror queues

at César Manrique-Lanzarote airport has promoted coordinated efforts to upgrade the travel hub. British tourists arriving at Lanzarote have faced an “uncomfortable and chaotic experience” which has elicited a response from the President of the Island Council in Lanzarote.

President Oswaldo Betancort has requested a meeting with Spain’s airport authority to discuss the future of César Manrique Airport (also known as Arrecife Airport). According to Betancort, there are insufficient police on duty at the airport, which is the tenth-largest in the country by volume of passengers and third in the

The airport authority AENA already has plans to in 2026 with a budget of €140 million (£118.5 million). AENA’s construction plan will include the extension and renovation of the Terminal 1 check-in, boarding and security zones. The renovation will also effectively join both of Lanzarote Airport’s two terminals.

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Separate from the AENA renovation, the Island Council is also planning work on the airport zone and the LZ-2 main road. Because of this confluence, Betancort has proposed a meeting with AENA to coordinate efforts.

Speaking of the Island Council project, Betancort shared: “We want the remodelling of the airport terminal area to be inspired by the Lanzarote landscape and the spirit of , with an architectural proposal that engages with the surroundings.”

While the meeting is meant to help coordinate both construction efforts, Betancourt also reportedly plans to raise the subject of the long queues that have resulted from a shortage of border officers. “It is unacceptable that residents and visitors have to endure long waits due to insufficient staff at security checkpoints. More human and material resources are needed to guarantee efficient operation,” says the Island Council President.

The reputation of Lanzarote airport has suffered in recent years due to multiple complaints about the time it takes to retrieve luggage and get through passport control. British tourists have shared that getting through these checkpoints can take about an hour and is usually followed by long waits for a taxi.

Lanzarote residents agree there is a "significant mismatch" between supply and demand of taxis at the airport. The local authorities say creating a digitalised service is the way forward and is thus beginning talks with the taxi association.

The Mirror's Victoria Chessumand experienced some of the chaos. She wrote: "I visited Lanzarote out of peak-season, and therefore ignorantly expected the airport to at least be manageable in terms of queues.

“While checking-in was super easy, along with bag-drop, navigating the small and disproportionate terminal building was not. Armed with a sleepy toddler, a pram, and a few hand luggage bags, the whole experience quickly escalated into something of a nightmare."

Recent figures suggest César Manrique-Lanzarote airport was designed to accomodate nine million passengers, a figure that was nearly reached in 2024 with 8.7million recorded visitors. According to Canarian Weekly, this demonstrated a 6.1% increase from 2023.

Reportedly, tourism figures have already seen an uptick in February 2025, with big arrivals expected for the approaching summer. The implementation of the European Commission’s is also expected to add to the queuing times at high-traffic borders.

Non-EU travellers will be required to register their biometric data with passport control officers—including facial and fingerprint recognition—the first time they enter the EU after the new system is in place in October.