• The venue opened its doors on 15 March 1966 with the first Spanish Atlantic Fair
• After six decades of activity, Infecar is on the verge of beginning construction works on a new pavilion adapted to the demands of the trade fair and conference sector

Sixty years have passed since 15 March 1966, when Infecar, Gran Canaria Fair, hosted the first edition of the Spanish Atlantic Fair, a milestone that marked the beginning of its journey in the trade fair and conference sector. Although the Cabildo de Gran Canaria had founded the institution a year earlier, in 1965, it was not until that moment that the venue officially opened its doors, placing the island at the forefront as a commercial showcase for the African countries that had recently emerged during the decade of the continent’s decolonisation.

It was the first venue and the first trade fair, in the modern sense of the term, in the whole of the Canary Islands. The inaugural fair, held from 15 to 30 March 1966 in a 36,000-square-metre venue designed by architects Fernando Cavestany and Manuel de la Peña, brought together 272 exhibitors and welcomed around 320,000 visitors in just fifteen days, according to the executive committee’s report and press coverage of the time.

That first event laid the foundations for an institution conceived to connect Canary Islands businesses with African, Latin American and mainland Spanish markets, acting as a platform for the archipelago’s economic and commercial promotion.

Since then, Infecar has continuously served as a space for economic, business and social development for Gran Canaria and the Canary Islands as a whole. Throughout its history, the venue has evolved in response to the needs of the sector and the growth of trade fair and conference activity. In 1983, the institution was renamed Feria del Atlántico and, later, in 1992, it adopted the name Institución Ferial de Canarias (Infecar), consolidating its role as a regional benchmark in the organisation of trade fairs and professional events.

A decisive step in this evolution came in 1994 with the افتتاح? Wait need remove Arabic typo. Let’s continue cleanly.

A decisive step in this evolution came in 1994 with the inauguration of the Gran Canaria Conference Centre, an infrastructure that made it possible to complement trade fair activity with conferences, conventions and professional meetings, thereby broadening the scope of the venue and reinforcing its role as a meeting point for the archipelago’s business and social fabric.

More recently, in 2023, the venue took a further step in its strategic evolution with the renewal of its corporate identity and its positioning as Infecar, Gran Canaria Fair, a name that reinforces its bond with the island and its role as a space that drives business, knowledge and experiences.

Over the course of these six decades, Infecar has hosted hundreds of trade fairs, conferences and professional events, establishing itself as a key venue for the island’s economic dynamism and as a meeting place for businesses, institutions and the public.

Six decades after that first fair, which opened Gran Canaria to international trade, Infecar is now entering a new phase marked by the transformation of its venue and its adaptation to the challenges of the trade fair and conference sector.

An anniversary in the midst of renewal

Infecar is on the verge of embarking on a major transformation with the construction of a new pavilion that will enable its facilities to adapt to the current demands of the trade fair, conference and events sector.

In this regard, the Councillor for Economic Development, Industry, Trade and Crafts of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Minerva Alonso, stresses that this anniversary comes at a particularly significant moment for the venue: “Infecar turns 60, a 60th anniversary for a space that has not only contributed to the island’s economic dynamism, but is also looking to the future through the progress of recent years, with an increase in fairs, events, exhibitors and visitors, as well as the planned 7,500-square-metre pavilion, which will become a benchmark in the Canary Islands’ MICE sector.”

The modernisation of this emblematic venue will also bring urban, commercial and social added value to its immediate surroundings, the upper district of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Beyond an architectural intervention, the project aims to become a driving force for the surrounding neighbourhoods, generating new opportunities for local residents and businesses.

The expansion of the venue forms part of a strategy promoted by the Cabildo de Gran Canaria to deliver a qualitative leap in the MICE sector — meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions — with the aim of placing the island at the forefront of competitiveness in this field. The new pavilion will be developed around three fundamental pillars: innovation, design and sustainability, making it possible to host larger-scale events and strengthen Gran Canaria’s positioning as a destination for the organisation of professional gatherings.

Sixty years after that first Spanish Atlantic Fair, which opened the venue’s doors to thousands of visitors and businesses, Infecar looks to the future with the same spirit with which it was founded: to be a meeting point for commercial exchange, knowledge and innovation. A vocation that will continue to guide its evolution in the decades ahead, reinforcing its role as a driver of economic and social development for Gran Canaria.