The British budget airline Jet2 and its partner Jet2holidays has announced that is increasing its capacity on UK flights to the Canary Islands by 25,000 this winter – in a humiliating blow to islanders protesting against overtourism.

The seats will be available from February to March 2025, and although these aren’t peak season months, it will be sure to anger locals that have been protesting the number of tourists arriving in the archipelago every year.

The increased capacity will see new seats  available from five of Jet2’s British bases: Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Manchester, and Newcastle.

In addition, from next year Jet2 will be running flights from its new base in Bournemouth.

The flights are due to land in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, and Lanzarote.

Steve Heapy, Jet2 CEO, emphasised what a firm favourite the Canaries are to British holidaymakers.

He said: “We are the leading British tour operator here and are well aware of what these islands represent to our travellers. We are thrilled that the upcoming winter will be our most ambitious ever in the Canary Islands”.

Meanwhile, in Majorca, another British holiday mecca, tourists have been up in arms over calls from locals to “ban” restaurants using English menus.

According to the Majorca Daily Bulletin, locals have been staging unusual protests by buying food from shops and eating it on park benches near restaurants.

In a protesting social media post, one resident said: “We will do this until menus are not just in English.”