How to Get a Job in Gran Canaria
88Gran Canaria is one of the Canary Islands and is situated off the coast of North Africa. With great weather all year round, Gran Canaria is a great tourist desination and somewhere you can work all year round if you are a member of the EC or have a visa to work in Europe.
What Type of Work is There?
If you are willing to accept a bar job or PR job, it isn't too hard but you do have to be on the island! The best thing to do is to get return flights, perhaps including accommodation for a week or two so you don't have to find an apartment immediately. Pick up a Spanish sim card for your phone and visit as many premises as possible, leaving your Spanish phone number. Come over with at least enough money for several months' rent - don't assume you are going to find work immediately!
Many people work in Gran Canaria as a PR, which means you will stand outside a bar, restaurant or similar and try to get people in. In Tenerife it is common to earn a certain amount per head but in Gran Canaria you usually get a fixed wage. It helps if you speak a few languages for this job (and any others) but you can come to Gran Canaria speaking only English and still find work.
Average Wages in Gran Canaria
The average wage for a bar, shop or restaurant job is 35 or 40 euros (50 to 60 US dollars) for a 9 hour shift without breaks. There are also commission only jobs and you can do well at these. I work on a fishing desk in Puerto Rico harbor and the commission for selling boat trips is 10% or 20% of the ticket prices, depending on the boat you are working for. I can do well in the summer and over Christmas but some months are extremely quiet!
You can also earn commission working for a timeshare company such as Anfi del Mar. The jobs ranging from standing on the street trying to get people to go along to a timeshare presentation to working in the offices at Anfi del Mar.
I worked for eighteen months as a DJ here and enjoyed that but I got fed up with working until seven in the morning and having to sleep all day!
Gran Canaria Tourist Areas
The biggest tourist areas (where you have the most chance of finding work) are Playa del Inglés and Puerto Rico. Amadores, Arguineguín, San Agustín and Mogán are other resort areas. Some tourists stay in the capital, Las Palmas, but you will need to speak Spanish if you want to live and work there.
Best Time to Come
The best time to come to Gran Canaria if you are looking for work is just before the summer season starts because that is when bars, restaurants and shops are taking on more staff. However, you can come at any time if you have enough money to sustain you for a while or until you find work.
Accommodation in Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria is a friendly island and you can take Spanish lessons when you arrive if you want to be able to chat to the locals. Property rental prices range from 400 euros (600 US dollars) for a small studio apartment to about 800 euros (1200 US dollars) for a larger one with several bedrooms. In Puerto Rico there are only apartments because the resort is built into the side of a mountain and space is at a premium but in the other resorts you can have a duplex, triplex or villa.
There are free schools here and if you are coming over with children, they usually pick up the local language very quickly and adapt well to the lifestyle.
Do some research before deciding to come to Gran Canaria. There are plenty of websites about it. It can get very hot in Gran Canaria in the summer - can you cope with that? There is no point in coming to Gran Canaria if you hate the heat!
As long as you are willing to accept any job to begin with, you should be fine. Once you know a few people, you will find out about other work and can take a better job. As long as you are friendly, honest and a hard worker, you will be fine and can live happily here and enjoy the climate.
Gran Canaria Photos
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Comments
Marketing at the tough end. Still what a life. Thanks for sharing this incite to Gran Canaria
P.S. I might have a wicked sense of humour, but you laughed. Thanks for your comments.
I meant "wicked" in the UK sense of the word, like "really good" LOL
Gran Canaria is just one big shopping centre made up of bars and restaurants; the streets are littered and dirty and you get heckled by people trying to force you into the said bars and restaurants.. I for one will most definately spend my money on a proper holiday-or stay at my local shopping mall for the summer and save myself a fortune!
You are obviously one of the tourists who remains in the resort rather than exploring the island properly if you think the whole island is like that. I don't expect you bothered with the lakes, pine forest, museums or out of the way places. There are a number of shopping centres on the island because people like to buy things but you don't have to spend your whole holiday in one unless you really can't think of anything else to do.
Stumbled accross this article and thought you may be able to be of some assistance. I'm currently living in the UK and am looking to relocate to Gran Canaria in the very near future until at least the end of this year as my Girlfriend works over there.
I'm vastly experienced in sales, and am currently a manager of a 25 strong insurance telesales team in the UK. I was up until recently a self employed sales consultant in the telecommunications industry.
In my spare time (not that i get too much) i also do a bit of bar work and i promote, run and DJ at my own club night.
I'm ideally looking for well paid sales roles and a job as a DJ and or doing some promo work either in Puerto Rico or Playa del Ingles. I was wondering if you have any specific advice or places that i could apply to.
I'll check back on here in a few days, otherwise you could e-mail me at Negrie@hotmail.co.uk
Thanks in advance for your help
Mark
Hi Mark, well things here are pretty quiet at the moment and you would really need to be on the island to find work (unless you are very lucky) because potential employers want to meet you face to face. I used to be a DJ here. There is also sales in timeshare (tends to be commission only) so it depends if you are good with people. You can make good money from it.
You can try the Canarian section of http://www.roundtownnews.co.uk/index.php or http://www.gran-canaria-info.com or http://www.canaryforum.com for advice from other people living here.
To be honest though it is best to come over with some savings and have a proper look around.
Good luck!
Victoria
hi im thinking of moving to gran canaria i have lived there before with my fiance but now we have a 13 month old little boy and was wondering what sort of education my son could have and medical services thanks richard
hi im thinking of moving to gran canaria i have lived there before with my fiance but now we have a 13 month old little boy and was wondering what sort of education my son could have and medical services thanks richard
Hi Victoria! :) My friend Renata - http://www.myspace.com/ladymetalmania - lives in Gran Canaria and sometimes plays my songs on her radio show. I live on Tenerife but still haven't visited the island but hope to some day.
At the moment, guys, it is EXTREMELY quiet over here and there are more people looking for work than there are open jobs. Unless you speak several languages or have a specialist skill it's not a good time to come over and work.
@Richard - you get medical cover if you have a job with a contract, else you will need to look at private healthcare. The education system has both state schools (personally I don't rate them at all and attending school is "optional" here too, which says a lot). Some of the private schools are very good but expensive.
@Bard of Ely.... GC is very similar to Tenerife although there is more of a Scandinavian presence (and German too) rather than the more Brit areas like in Tenerife.
You can check my blog at http://www.cunningcanary.com if you like. I also post about the current weather on there are whether it's busy or not.
Victoria
Hi victel :)
could you tell me if it's easy to find an IT job ? i cannot find website for IT jobs , everything is about pub, marketing....
Hi Mickael, do you speak Spanish? This is a Spanish speaking country so you will need to speak the lingo if you are going to work for a Canarian company. Check http://www.laprovincia.es/ which is the national newspaper here.
Alternatively you can work from home like I do. You might like to check http://www.getafreelancer.com/affiliates/Victel/ or http://www.guru.com or http://www.odesk.com. You can pick up jobs from there and work from home (like I do).
Victoria
Hola Victoria
I am looking at coming to Gran Canaria next year to find work for at least 6 months maybe longer, I have been to Gran Canaria 5 times now and love Taurito and Mogan. I have already registered with a job site and an estate agent but what do you think is my best bet for finding work? I have been a retail Manager for 8 years and also have 4 years waitress/ bar experience.
Would appreciate some info. Gracias!!!!!
Hi Alexandra,
Don't bother registering with job sites - just get yourself over here and start looking! You will need a Spanish mobile phone number (to leave with potential employers) and your best best seriously is going door to door asking what's available.
I assume you speak some Spanish?
Victoria
Thanks for getting back to me.
I wil be enrolling in beginners spanish lessons nxt month to help me.
Hopefully that will work a bit in my favor. I am quite an outgoing person and have made a few friends at the hotel I stay in, i will be viewing some rental properties nxt month on my hols and have already contacted some english estate agents over there who will show me around the area's i want to stay in.
Do you think its worth having a spanish cv?
I will come out with enough rental for 6 months anyway just in case but wnat to be prepared well in advance.
Alexandra
Hi Alexandra,
Learning Spanish before you come is a must. Just don't be under any illusions that finding work is going to be easy right now because it isn't. We are having the quietest year here in more than 10 years and there are people looking for work in every town.
Again, forget the English estate agents and get a package holiday. Find something long term once you are over. English estate agents charge a month "finder's fee", a month deposit plus 1 or 2 months rent. If you rent from a Canarian you don't have to pay more than 1 month rent (and usually a deposit) - why pay an estate agent 500 euros or more "finder's fee" if you don't have to? You can find rental properties once you are here via word of mouth, people who work here or in the local newspapers (some of which are in English).
It's not worth having a Spanish CV unless your Spanish is fluent, in which case go for it.
It's a good idea to bring 6 months rental money with you in case it takes you a while to find something.
I don't mean to be pessimistic, Alexandra, but arm yourself with all the best info before you come over and you'll be better prepared when you are here to find somewhere to live and somewhere to work.
First of all you should aim to pick up something like bar, restaurant or hotel work until you get to know the place. Then you can expand your circle of friends/acquaintances, get to know the area better and find something else to do workwise. Take whatever you can get first of all. Once you are working you can find something else. There are a lot of people here looking for work so obviously you don't want to be one of those.
I've worked here for 10 years and have never had a CV, Spanish or English.
Victoria
Thanks for the info it really helps!!!!
I just hope I can find a job nxt year so I can stay in Gran Canaria I love it on the island and feel more at home there than back here in England.
Thanks again. Alexandra
Can I just ask everyone sending me emails about whether I can find them a job (and there are quite a few of you!) the answer is NO.
I'm not a job agency.
If you want to work in Gran Canaria, get a return ticket, get a Spanish sim card, learn Spanish and bring enough money for 6 months rent.
That's how it is!
Victoria
Useful Websites
- Cunning Canary
A blog about everything to do with the island of Gran Canaria - Gran Canaria Info
A website about the island of Gran Canaria, full of tips and useful advise about visiting or living in Gran Canaria - Canary Forum
A Canary Islands forum where you can ask questions, find work and accommodation and meet new people who have visited the island many times or live here - Tales from Gran Canaria
Some stories from my time on the island.
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Val says:
15 months ago
Very interesting, well written and anyone reading it would definitely want to visit Gran Canaria - I would imagine you could run a Welcome to Gran Can Company and make everyone feel wanted whether a holidaymaker or possible worker. Well done.