The Canarian people are open and welcoming, but next time you visit Lanzarote, you might notice an even bigger greeting awaiting you. Spanish tourism chiefs are using the island to try new ways to make visitors feel at home.

Special courses have been arranged for business people in the tourist sector, taxi drivers, shop keepers etc and they will be taught a few useful English phrases to greet their customers. These representatives will also be given a quick update on local places of interest so they have plenty of tourist information at their fingertips.

The Lanzarote chamber of commerce has welcomed the initiative, a spokesman said ” a smile costs nothing, and is the most effective welcome”. Visitors to Sands Beach Resort Hotel in Costa Teguise, are used to a warm welcome. All staff at the hotel are noted for their sunny disposition, and the reception staff speak a wide range of languages, and know all the best places to recommend. Maybe that’s why people keep coming back, year after year.