On an early-November Tuesday, the owner of a gift shop in La Laguna looks at the calendar and decides to leave her Christmas communication for December. Christmas looks far away to her. To her customers, it doesn't.
According to a study by KPMG and Appinio reported by Forbes España, 80% of Spanish consumers say they will bring forward their gift shopping during Black Friday. By the time she starts posting, a good part of the list will already be bought.
When does the Christmas campaign really start for a business in Tenerife?
In November, before Black Friday, which falls on the 27th this year. The same study says 67% of respondents prefer that date for shopping, and that the average spend planned for those days is 379 euros. These are figures for the whole of Spain, not the Canary Islands, so treat them as a guide, not a promise.
What that means for a local business is simple: customers decide where to buy before the offers begin. What matters in November isn't the discount, but that when someone looks you up they can find what you sell, until when, and how to order from you. A gift shop, a restaurant with a Christmas menu or some apartments with gaps between holidays are all playing the same game.
What happens between Black Friday and Three Kings Day?
There are five different moments, and each one calls for a different message. It's a general pattern: your sector may move a little differently, but it helps put the calendar in order.
| Moment | What the customer usually does | What they should find about your business |
|---|---|---|
| Until 26 November | Compares and builds the list | What you offer during these dates and how to order or book |
| 27 and 30 November (Black Friday and Cyber Monday) | Takes advantage of offers and buys gifts early | A clear offer, with an end date and no small print |
| 1 to 20 December | Buys gifts and organises lunches and dinners | Real availability, opening hours and an easy way to order |
| 21 to 24 December | Shops at the last minute | What is still available and what time you close |
| 25 December to 6 January | Celebrates, eats out and buys the Three Kings gifts | Opening hours for each holiday and a Three Kings message |
The last row is the one most often forgotten, and it is one of the heaviest.
Did you know…? In Spain the Three Kings gift budget (192 euros on average) is higher than the Christmas one (178), according to the OCU survey from December 2025.
You can see it on the islands. On 4 January 2026, according to RTVC, several shopping areas in the Canary Islands were completely packed on the last shopping day for the Three Kings. If your campaign switches off on 25 December, you miss exactly that part. If you want an example of how the calendar for a local festival is prepared, see how to communicate a romería.
What if your customer doesn't live in Tenerife?
In winter, a good share of the people looking for you are on holiday. Ashotel, the hotel association of the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, put hotel occupancy over Christmas 2025 at around 85%, according to its survey of member establishments.
Think of a restaurant in Los Cristianos or some apartments in Adeje. That customer won't phone you, doesn't know the local calendar and looks at your Google listing from the hotel room. 6 January is a public holiday across Spain and a visitor may not take it into account: if your listing doesn't say so, they turn up at your door with the shutters down and leave you a one-star review.
That part is avoidable. The menu counts too: if you change it for Christmas, update it on Google Maps before the first visitor sees it.
What can you check today in five minutes?
The special hours on your Google listing. According to Google's official help, the path is: Business Profile, Edit profile, Hours and, next to "Special hours", the edit icon. You choose the date, mark "Closed" or enter the hours, and save. Do it for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day and 6 January.
Did you know…? Google recommends confirming your hours even on official holidays when you open as usual, so customers know the information is correct. And special hours can't exceed 24 hours: if your New Year's Eve dinner runs past midnight, it has to be split into two entries.
One more detail almost nobody knows: if you are going to close for several days in a row, Google's own help says to mark the business as temporarily closed instead of using special hours. What the rest of the listing involves is explained in what a Google listing management service really includes.
The second check is another five-minute one: search for yourself the way a visitor would. Open Google on your phone, type in English what you sell and add "near me". See what comes up, in what order and what your listing says. If you don't show up, you know where to start.
What changes depending on the type of business?
The calendar is the same, but the message for each date isn't. Three typical examples from the island:
- A shop in Santa Cruz or La Laguna. Its peak is gifts: what matters is showing what's in stock, what can be ordered and the last day it arrives in time for Christmas and for Three Kings. Selling for 6 January happens on 4 January.
- A restaurant in Costa Adeje or Puerto de la Cruz. Its peak is bookings: company dinners in early December, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and Three Kings lunch. Each has its own menu, indicative price and booking deadline. If it isn't clear, the customer goes somewhere else.
- Apartments in Adeje or Arona. Their peak is gaps: the winter season fills some weeks and leaves others empty. Communicating the gaps left between holidays, and in English, is worth more than repeating that the pool is lovely.
In all three cases the job is the same: one idea per date, said once, in the place where the customer will look for it. You don't need to post every day. What you do post needs a date, conditions and a clear way to act.
What mistakes get repeated when the holidays arrive?
The mistakes most often seen in Tenerife businesses are almost always the same:
- Starting in December. By then, a good part of the decision is already made.
- Switching communication off on the 25th. Three Kings is the second campaign, not an epilogue.
- An offer with no date or conditions. Customers distrust what they can't tell when it ends.
- Forgetting opening hours. It's the first thing a visitor from abroad looks at.
- Speaking only in Spanish. In a tourist destination, the listing and the main message should also be understood in English.
None of them costs money to fix. They cost one November afternoon.
At GMB Horizon we build this calendar into the digital strategy of island businesses, and communication around key dates is part of what we do in festival and event communication. If you want us to put it in order with you before Black Friday, get in touch.