Portugal’s tourism sector is on a roll, according to Secretary of State for Tourism Adolfo Mesquita Nunes.
The official thumbs-up came during a meeting in the Algarve this week with members of the British-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce.
“We have seen growth in terms of the number of foreign tourists, sleepovers, income per room, hotelier profit and revenue from tourism’s satellite account,” he said, forecasting a developing tendency for the future.
Before an audience of approximately 70, Mesquita Nunes also took the chance to present the sector’s promotional strategy and the plan to counteract touristic seasonality.
Dissecting both, he expained that the promotional strategy is based on taking advantage of technology, such as social networks or online media, to promote the country. The secretary of state said that, believe it or not, Portugal is currently considered the eighth “most valuable brand” in terms of tourism worldwide.
When it comes to the plan to combat seasonality, Nunes revealed the government has changed the way it interacts with tour operators and airlines. Now, instead of relying mostly on events to allure travellers, it is focusing on creating a close relationship with support structures and, therefore, bringing more tourists to the country.
And although no dates were given, he announced that the promotional strategy for 2015 is already well into planning and will be presented soon.
Besides these topics, the meeting touched on issues like the VAT rating for the sector and tolls on national roads.
After the meeting, the Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Commerce, Chris Barton, said: “I think that people from the tourism sector sometimes think there is no strategy in place. But today, the secretary of state proved that there is one and that he is aware of the existing problems.”
Photo: Secretary of State for Tourism, Adolfo Mesquita Nunes
