Lanzarote has put responsible travel back at the centre of its tourism strategy after recognising people and projects that are helping visitors understand, respect and enjoy the island in a more conscious way.
The Cabildo of Lanzarote, through SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, has held the latest edition of the Ethical and Responsible Tourism Awards at Marina Hub, framing the event around the destination campaign Conoce, respeta, disfruta, or Know, Respect, Enjoy. The awards highlight work connected to territorial knowledge, care for the environment, responsible visitor behaviour and the protection of the landscapes shared by Lanzarote and La Graciosa.
For travellers planning a Canary Islands holiday, this is more than a ceremonial tourism-sector announcement. Lanzarote is one of the archipelago's most distinctive destinations precisely because its appeal depends on a fragile balance: volcanic scenery, protected coastlines, wine landscapes, small villages, beaches, marine life, local food, cultural memory and a strong sense of island identity. The new awards make that balance more visible at a time when visitors are increasingly asking how to enjoy popular destinations without weakening the very places they came to experience.
The recognition also gives Lanzarote a useful editorial signal for the summer season. The island is not simply telling visitors to behave better in abstract terms. It is identifying guides, community figures, accommodation projects and conservation work that show what responsible tourism can look like on the ground, from guided interpretation and landscape maintenance to lower-impact hospitality and social inclusion.
What Lanzarote Has Announced
The awards were presented as part of the Conoce, respeta, disfruta campaign, a tourism-awareness initiative designed for both residents and visitors. Its purpose is to encourage a way of travelling that is better aligned with Lanzarote's natural and cultural identity, especially in areas where visitor pressure, casual behaviour or lack of local knowledge can affect the experience for everyone.
The event recognised three main categories inspired by the campaign's core verbs: Know, Respect and Enjoy. The Know award went to Maria Condo, a tourism guide linked to Ecolandlovers, for work that helps people gain a deeper, more responsible understanding of Lanzarote and La Graciosa. The Respect award was granted posthumously to Domingo Concepcion Garcia, recognising a life and legacy connected to care for the environment, transmission of values and commitment to the territory. The Enjoy award distinguished the project led by Raul Garcia and Antonio Zamora at Bungalows Villas Blancas, highlighting a way of experiencing Lanzarote with sensitivity, balance and respect for local identity.
A special mention was also given to Guardianes del territorio, a project that brings together environmental conservation, landscape care and social inclusion. Its work has contributed to the recovery of more than 190 hectares and the maintenance of close to 50 kilometres of trails, margins and agrarian spaces. That detail matters because it links tourism directly with the physical care of the landscape rather than leaving sustainability as a marketing phrase.
| Recognition | Who Or What Was Recognised | Why It Matters For Tourism |
|---|---|---|
| Know | Maria Condo, tourism guide associated with Ecolandlovers | Supports visitor understanding of Lanzarote and La Graciosa through interpretation and local knowledge. |
| Respect | Domingo Concepcion Garcia, posthumous recognition | Highlights the long-term value of environmental respect, island values and commitment to the territory. |
| Enjoy | Raul Garcia and Antonio Zamora, Bungalows Villas Blancas | Shows how accommodation and hospitality can be part of a more sensitive, identity-led visitor experience. |
| Special mention | Guardianes del territorio | Connects tourism with landscape recovery, trail maintenance, low-impact intervention and social inclusion. |
Why Responsible Tourism Is A Real Travel Issue In Lanzarote
Lanzarote is a destination where small choices by visitors can have visible consequences. Many of its most memorable landscapes are open, arid and exposed. The island's volcanic areas do not absorb careless foot traffic in the same way as a city pavement. A vehicle parked off a marked track, a shortcut across delicate ground, litter left after a viewpoint stop or a casual climb on a protected formation can leave a mark that lasts far longer than the holiday itself.
The same is true in coastal and marine areas. Lanzarote's beaches, natural pools, surf spots and boat excursions are central to the island's holiday appeal, but they also depend on safety, respect for signs, responsible use of access points and awareness of local conditions. Visitors who understand beach flags, wind exposure, currents, protected spaces and operator instructions are not only safer; they also help keep the destination functioning smoothly for others.
That is why the Know, Respect, Enjoy structure is useful. It does not frame responsible tourism as a restriction first. It starts with knowledge. A visitor who understands why a trail is marked, why a landscape is protected, why a vineyard grows in volcanic ash or why a village celebration matters is more likely to behave well without feeling lectured. The destination becomes richer, not smaller.
For Lanzarote and La Graciosa, this approach also helps separate quality tourism from simple volume. The islands can attract people who want to do more than pass through a viewpoint, take a photo and move on. They can encourage visitors to book guides, learn from local businesses, use official trails, buy from producers, choose responsible accommodation and spend time in places where tourism income supports maintenance, interpretation and local livelihoods.
What Visitors Should Take From The Campaign
For holidaymakers, the practical message is simple: Lanzarote wants visitors to enjoy the island fully, but with more attention to context. That can mean choosing a guided experience in Timanfaya-area volcanic landscapes, learning about La Geria's wine-growing system before visiting the vineyards, checking access rules before walking in sensitive areas, or understanding why La Graciosa requires a gentler travel rhythm than a large resort zone.
It can also mean approaching the island's accommodation choices with more curiosity. A responsible stay is not only about whether a hotel or bungalow has a sustainability label. It is about how the business fits into the destination: whether it encourages respectful use of water and energy, whether it communicates local values clearly, whether it supports local products, whether it helps guests discover places responsibly, and whether it avoids treating Lanzarote as a blank backdrop.
Visitors can also use the awards as a reminder to look for experiences that interpret the island rather than simply consume it. Guided walks, food experiences, craft visits, wine tourism, responsible surf schools, marine activities with proper briefings and cultural routes can all add depth to a holiday. They also reduce the risk of the common visitor mistake in the Canary Islands: seeing the landscape as dramatic scenery without understanding the living systems, work and heritage behind it.
The campaign does not suggest that tourists should avoid Lanzarote's classic pleasures. Beaches, pools, resorts, restaurants, sunsets, boat trips and family holidays remain central to the island's offer. The point is that enjoyment improves when it is informed. A visitor who understands local fragility is more likely to choose better routes, ask better questions, support better businesses and leave with a more memorable trip.
Why This Matters For Tourism Businesses
For tourism businesses in Lanzarote, the awards reinforce a direction that has been building for years. The island's strongest competitive advantage is not simply sun or convenience. Those are important, but many destinations offer them. Lanzarote's deeper advantage is the coherence of its identity: volcanic landforms, design heritage, low-rise sensibility, agriculture under difficult conditions, Atlantic light, protected spaces and a powerful relationship between landscape and culture.
Businesses that understand that identity can create stronger products. A guide can turn a walk into an interpretation of geology, water, farming and settlement. An accommodation provider can make the guest experience more distinctive by connecting visitors with local products and careful destination advice. A restaurant can tell a more convincing story by working with island produce. An activity company can build trust by explaining safety, environmental limits and local customs before the visitor asks.
The awards also help responsible projects become more visible. In tourism, visibility often goes to the biggest operators, the loudest marketing budgets or the easiest-to-book products. Recognition from the destination authority can help smaller, values-led initiatives stand out, especially for visitors searching for sustainable tourism in Lanzarote, ethical travel in the Canary Islands, local experiences in La Graciosa or responsible accommodation near the island's natural spaces.
There is an industry lesson here as well. Responsible tourism cannot be left only to public signs, brochures or social media campaigns. It needs people who translate values into daily practice. It needs guides, accommodation hosts, conservation teams, municipal services, educators, producers and activity operators. By recognising named people and concrete projects, Lanzarote is showing that the model depends on a network of real actors, not only on a slogan.
The Special Importance Of Guardianes Del Territorio
The special mention for Guardianes del territorio is one of the most significant parts of the announcement because it puts landscape maintenance at the centre of the tourism conversation. Visitors often see trails, stone margins, viewpoints and agrarian spaces as natural parts of the scenery. In reality, many of these places require continuous care. Paths need to be kept passable, edges need attention, invasive or accumulated material may need removal, and traditional rural features can deteriorate without steady work.
The project's reported recovery of more than 190 hectares and maintenance of nearly 50 kilometres of trails, margins and agrarian spaces gives the award a practical dimension. It suggests a model in which tourism benefit is connected to territorial stewardship. That is important for Lanzarote because the island's value as a holiday destination is inseparable from the condition of its landscape.
The inclusion of social inclusion in the project also broadens the story. Responsible tourism is often discussed in environmental terms, but a destination's long-term health also depends on who participates in its economy and who benefits from its care. Projects that combine landscape work with inclusion can create a more grounded form of sustainability, where the destination is not just protected for visitors but maintained through local participation and social value.
For travellers, this is a useful reminder that a well-kept trail or beautiful rural view does not appear by accident. When choosing excursions, visitors can ask whether their spending supports guides, local associations, restoration work, producers or small businesses that keep these places alive. That kind of choice is especially relevant in the Canary Islands, where tourism demand is large but many inland and rural areas need tourism to arrive in a more distributed and respectful way.
Lanzarote And La Graciosa Share The Same Message
The awards repeatedly connect Lanzarote with La Graciosa, and that pairing is important. La Graciosa is smaller, quieter and more physically limited than Lanzarote, but it is closely linked to the island's visitor economy. Many travellers experience it as a day trip, a boat crossing, a cycling route, a beach escape or a slower extension to a Lanzarote holiday.
Because of that, responsible tourism behaviour has to travel across the water too. La Graciosa cannot be treated as an unlimited excursion product. Its charm depends on restraint: moving carefully, respecting access, avoiding litter, understanding local services, accepting a slower pace and recognising that a small island has small-island limits. A campaign built around knowing, respecting and enjoying is especially relevant there.
For Lanzarote-based visitors planning a La Graciosa day, the practical takeaway is to prepare rather than improvise. Check ferry times, sun exposure, water needs, beach conditions, waste rules and transport options. Avoid assuming that every service available in a larger resort will be available on demand. The more visitors understand the island before arriving, the better the experience is likely to be for both guests and residents.
A Stronger Kind Of Destination Marketing
One reason this story matters for FlyToCanarias readers is that it shows a shift in destination marketing. Lanzarote is not only promoting what visitors can see. It is promoting how visitors should relate to what they see. That is a more mature form of tourism communication, especially for a destination with a strong environmental and cultural identity.
The campaign has been developed through physical supports, digital channels, public spaces, airports, media activity, international markets and educational, experiential and interactive actions. That wider rollout matters because responsible behaviour is not created at the moment a visitor reaches a protected area. It is shaped before the trip, at the airport, in booking decisions, in hotel communication, in social media expectations and in the way the destination explains itself.
For search-oriented travellers, this also helps answer a growing set of practical questions: how to visit Lanzarote responsibly, what sustainable tourism means in the Canary Islands, how to respect volcanic landscapes, whether La Graciosa is suitable for a low-impact day trip, and how to choose experiences that support local identity. Those questions are becoming part of mainstream travel planning, not a niche concern for specialists.
For the destination, the challenge will be consistency. Awards and campaigns can set direction, but visitors will judge the model by what they experience on the ground. Clear signage, reliable information, responsible operators, easy-to-understand access rules, quality guiding and visible local benefits all need to align. When they do, responsible tourism becomes easier for visitors to practise and easier for businesses to sell.
No Immediate Travel Restrictions, But A Clear Planning Signal
It is important to be clear about what this news does and does not mean. The awards do not introduce a new tourist tax, a visitor permit, a ban on any standard holiday activity, a change to flights or ferries, or a new accommodation rule. Travellers with upcoming holidays to Lanzarote or La Graciosa do not need to change plans because of the announcement.
What it does provide is a planning signal. Visitors should expect responsible tourism messages to become more visible across the island. They may see campaign material in public spaces, airports, media and digital channels. They may find more emphasis on respectful access to natural spaces, better interpretation of fragile landscapes, and stronger encouragement to choose experiences that connect with the territory rather than treating the island as a disposable holiday setting.
That is good news for travellers who want a richer Canary Islands holiday. Lanzarote is at its best when visitors understand why the island looks and feels different. Its beauty is not only visual; it is geological, agricultural, cultural and social. The new awards underline that the future of tourism on the island depends on protecting that complexity while still welcoming people who come to enjoy it.
What To Watch Next
The most useful follow-up will be whether Lanzarote turns this recognition into more visible visitor tools. That could include clearer responsible-travel guidance for specific landscapes, more support for qualified guides, wider promotion of low-impact experiences, practical visitor education for La Graciosa, or new partnerships between tourism businesses and landscape-care projects.
There may also be room for the campaign to influence how accommodation providers, activity companies and local authorities communicate with guests during the summer and winter seasons. If the message remains practical, specific and rooted in real places, it could help Lanzarote strengthen its position as one of the Canary Islands' leading destinations for conscious travel without losing the warmth and accessibility that make it popular.
For now, the awards give the island a timely way to tell visitors what kind of destination it wants to be. Lanzarote is not asking people to enjoy it less. It is asking them to enjoy it with more knowledge, more respect and more attention to the land and communities that make the experience possible. For a volcanic island whose tourism appeal depends so heavily on place, that may be one of the most important travel messages of the season.