The Supreme Court has accepted for review this March an appeal that could transform the landscape of holiday rentals in southern Gran Canaria. In a ruling dated March 5, 2026, the Administrative Chamber has agreed to examine whether the strict "principle of single operation" applied in the archipelago violates European regulations on free markets.
According to the lower court ruling, which Maspalomas24H has obtained, these reasons of general interest justify restricting the freedom of enterprise and the free provision of services in favor of consumer protection. However, the appeal accepted by the Supreme Court questions whether these reasons fall under the "overriding reasons of general interest" required by the European Services Directive and the Law on Guaranteeing Market Unity.
The legal battle stems from the ban on holiday rental activity at the 'El Balcón Sur' (Waikiki) complex, located in San Bartolomé de Tirajana. The Gran Canaria Tourism Board declared it impossible to continue this activity, arguing that if a complex is already being operated by a hotel company, individual owners cannot market their apartments separately.
The Supreme Court has accepted appeal number 8002/2025, drafted by Justice María Pilar Cancer Minchot, to determine whether the principle of unified management under the Canary Islands Tourism Law violates the European Services Directive and the Law on Guaranteeing Market Unity. The litigation originates in the Waikiki Complex in San Bartolomé de Tirajana, where the Gran Canaria Tourist Board prohibited the operation of the holiday rental 'El Balcón Sur' (registration VV-35-1-0018291), privately owned, because it is part of an establishment operated by the company Servatur.
Although the High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands initially endorsed this restriction in July 2025, arguing reasons of general interest and consumer protection, the Supreme Court considers that there is an objective interest in cassation due to the huge number of affected owners in Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria and Tenerife who are unable to rent their properties due to the presence of an external tourist operator.
The Canary Islands courts had previously upheld this limitation, arguing that the principle of unified management, enshrined in the Canary Islands Tourism Planning Act, is a necessary instrument for "professionalizing service provision" and offering "quality tourism." The appellant argues that there is no proportional justification for excluding holiday rentals on tourist land simply because of the presence of another provider. The Supreme Court acknowledges that the case presents "objective grounds for cassation," as the final ruling will affect a massive number of owners and resorts in Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, and Tenerife. The resulting judgment will determine whether the Canary Islands' model of tourism control is a legitimate safeguard of quality or an illegal barrier to competition in the European internal market.
