The Tunnel of Time and the dramatised routes set in the 16th century brought together almost 6,000 people, with direct repercussions on the local commercial and gastronomic sector.

The City Council of La Laguna has today made a very positive assessment of the big week with which the city celebrated the 25th anniversary of its declaration as a World Heritage Site by Unesco, an extensive programme of events focused on the dissemination of the history and heritage of the only city in the Canary Islands with this recognition, as well as on the technical analysis of the challenges that lie ahead after this quarter of a century. With attendance exceeding all expectations, to the extent that the Tunnel of Time and the dramatised routes on the 16th century alone attracted almost 6,000 people, this commemoration not only had a positive impact on the economic sectors of the historic city, but also on the local strategy of raising awareness of the protection and safeguarding of heritage.

The Mayor of La Laguna, Luis Yeray Gutiérrez, thanked “all the people, institutions and groups that have joined in this important celebration for the municipality, in which we not only commemorate a date that has been fundamental for the development of La Laguna, but we also open a new period, a framework for reflection on the work done in these 25 years and an analysis of the new objectives that we must set in order to continue to make progress in the conservation of our heritage, to be prepared to face new commitments and to defend our role as a territory that promotes peace”. and an analysis of the new objectives that we must set in order to continue to make progress in the conservation of our heritage, to be prepared to face new commitments and to defend our role as a territory that promotes peace”.

For almost a month, the city has brought together conferences, book presentations and new proposals for dissemination, proposals that were reinforced during the Big Week with, among other proposals, an international symposium on cultural and natural heritage, as the rights of future generations. “All these actions provide us with an invaluable technical background and a starting point for designing the municipal strategy in this area, in which we are going to count on a high level of participation and which we have already begun, as of this Tuesday, with the Municipal Council of Cultural Heritage”, explained the councillor of the area, Adolfo Cordobés.

“In addition to actions in various assets or the creation of new tools to raise awareness of the importance of protecting our heritage, we are going to develop new actions to have an updated regulatory framework and advance in innovation,” Cordobés said. In this sense, he explained that work is already underway on the specifications for the drafting of the Management Plan for the historical complex and the updating of the Special Protection Plan, but also on a complete archaeological and ethnographic catalogue of the municipality.

“We also face the challenge of incorporating the natural envelope of the historic city and re-establishing this relationship with the landscape, actions in which the new General Plan and the municipal Urban Agenda will be essential. We are keeping a close eye on the evolution of the new Canary Islands Land Law so that we can move forward along this path and avoid having to make corrections that would entail a considerable cost overrun”, added the councillor for Cultural Heritage and Territorial Planning.

Likewise, given that the 25th anniversary covers a whole year, until 4 December 2025, the mayor announced that the City Council is already working on new actions together with the Government of the Canary Islands, the Cabildo, Unesco and other supra-municipal institutions to take new steps in the recovery, improvement and conservation of the enormous monumental, historical and natural heritage of La Laguna.