Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, chief town of the province of that name and of the island of Gran Canaria, lies at the northeastern tip of the island, extending along the coast for a distance of some 14km/9mi. With its population of 366,000 Las Palmas is by far the largest town in the Canary
archipelago and the eighth largest in the whole of Spain. It has long been a major center of industry, commerce and communications, much of its economic importance being due to its harbor (Puerto de la Luz). Its favorable situation at the intersection of shipping routes between Europe, Africa and South America has enabled it to become one of the world's largest Atlantic ports. The many thousands of visitors who come to Las Palmas from all over the world, whether as seamen or as tourists, have given it something of an international air. It has some 200 hotels; but many foreign visitors prefer to see the sights of this rather noisy and hectically busy city on a day trip and spend the rest of their holiday in the south of the island with its more reliable sunshine.
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