ABSTRACT

La Gomera is one of the Canary Islands, an archipelago off the northwest coast of Africa. It is an autonomous region of Spain with an island government subject to the national government in specific areas of activity. La Gomera has a population of around 23,000 (2006) and is circular in shape covering 378 square kilometres. Since the inclusion of Spain in the European Community in 1986, La Gomera has received funding for development projects, focused on infrastructural work related to transport and access. This chapter considers the ways in which tourism has developed on the island of La Gomera; in particular, the most popular destination, Valle Gran Rey (VGR) with its fishing port of Vueltas, which has been responsible for attracting most tourists to the island. It places the development of tourism into the context of sustainability and looks at the way that tourism in its many forms and parts has changed and evolved and is influenced by strategic official plans.