Contact | Site Map
| Friday, 29 dEurope/Berlin March dEurope/Berlin 2024

Información Turística de Agaete

Economy

Agriculture, cattle raising, fishing and tourism.

Historically, the main economic activity has been agriculture, marked in its beginning by the exportation of sugar cane, and then the cochineal and tomato to foreign countries, and the cultivation of grains for the local population. At present time, cattle raising has a place in the economy of this municipality with the production of cheese made with traditional techniques.

Nowadays, the traditional crops are destined for the local consumption, and cattle have been left to marginal zones, of small properties and dried land. On the other hand, the best lands, situated in the deepness of the Valley, are dedicated to cultivation of trees and tropical fruit (mangos, oranges, papayas, coffee, avocado pears).

The shortage of water and the urban development outline serious problems for agriculture. The old water-springs that used to cover water needs, nowadays are dry, giving place and land for the activities of the tertiary sector, hotels and restaurants above all, which are also a result of the tourist development experienced by the whole island.

Fishing, localised in the Port of Las Nieves, was important until a few years ago, being right now in a process of retrocession, and it is mainly supplying the local consumption of the region. Just a small percentage of the population in Agaete lives on this activity.

The construction of the port with a commercial-fishing and sports orientation has led the village into an important form of maritime communication between Gran Canaria and the island of Tenerife.

On the other hand, rural tourism is playing an important role in the development of the tourism activity in this area. The natural richness of this place, characterised by a varied landscape and full of contrasts, along with cattle, handmade and agriculture activity attract visitors. At the present time there are houses dedicated to this type of tourism, throughout the whole municipality: the Valley, El Risco and the old town, which joined to the hotels situated in Agaete in making an approximated total of 200 tourist beds in the whole municipality.

Handmade Products and Ethnographic Patrimony: a historic reference:

The different economic activities that have been developed in Agaete have left an ethnographic patrimony worthy of mention. Agricultural activity has taken advantage of dams, water and wind mills for the grain, warehouses, wells, irrigation ditches and reservoirs. In the fishing activity the most varied arts have been used, these are all kinds of different nets; the cattle activity has left caves, barns, corrals and so on; other structures that are included into this patrimony are: washing places, ovens of lime and of roofing tile or bricks.

In relation to the handmade goods from the place it is mainly based on the handmade elaboration of nets and utensils to fish, and made by the fishermen from the zone.

It is possible to find typical handmade crafts of the island in different shops in Puerto de Las Nieves.

Population: demographic evolution in the last century:
EVOLUTION OF THE DEMOGRAPHY

1900 1930
1950
1970
1981
1986
1995
1998
2001
2002
2005
2.835
4.208
4.366
4.414
4.427
5.088
5.5606.028
5.610
5.648
5.703
© 2024 Ayuntamiento de Agaete |
Legal note | Privacy policy | General conditions