The Cabildo de Gran Canaria is preparing a 650 euro fine against a company over a group outing into a restricted part of the Dunas de Maspalomas on 11 October 2026, Canarias7 reported on 27 October. The same report says large joint patrols will walk the reserve during November, and that anyone found off the marked paths will be reported. Anyone heading for the dunes or the gay beach below them this month should know the rules.
What happened on 11 October
A group of about 30 people went some 70 metres into a zone of restricted use, most of them on all fours, wearing leashes, hoods and collars behind a Puppy Pride flag. The first videos showed them on a dune crest near kiosk 5, which is not itself restricted. Canarias7 and AtlánticoHoy link the outing to the Maspalomas Fetish Pride, which ran from 1 to 12 October. AtlánticoHoy stresses that the row is about where the group walked and not about what it wore.
The fine goes to the organising company, which has not been named, and had not been served when the reports appeared. According to Canarias Ahora, the participants cannot be fined individually, because no officers were present to identify them.
The November patrols
Canarias7 reports that environmental officers, the Guardia Civil's Seprona unit and the Policía Canaria are organising large collective inspections of the dunes during November, helped by drones. No dates have been published. The report does not mention Maspalomas Winter Pride, which runs from 2 to 8 November, and nothing we read says the patrols are tied to it.
The patrols are part of a wider tightening. In August 2026 the Cabildo ran a sunset operation with about ten officers and a drone unit, and on 26 August it began a pilot of loudspeaker warnings in Spanish, English and German at the Mirador de las Dunas, every 15 minutes from 07:30 to 10:00 and from 18:00 to 21:00, Maspalomas Plus reported. Libertad Digital counted 200 fines in 2024 for leaving the paths and says the Cabildo began work on a new management plan for the reserve in June 2026.
What this means on the ground
The reserve is open to visitors, but only on about 8 kilometres of marked paths lined with wooden bollards. The island's tourist board asks visitors to stay on them, respect the signs and build nothing from stones, and camping is banned. Much of the ground where men have traditionally cruised lies off those paths.
Fines for breaking the rules start at 150 euros and vary with the conduct, according to AtlánticoHoy. Canarias7 also reports that the Cabildo got an influencer to take down videos encouraging people to cruise in the dunes and leave the paths. None of the reports we read says anything about nudity on the beach itself. The stretch of sand between kiosks 5 and 6 is outside what these reports describe, and the patrols concern the reserve behind it.
For the rest of the trip, our Maspalomas guide lists the bars, clubs and hotels, and our Spain page covers the legal position.