“The war in Ukraine values the destiny of Portugal”
Portugal may benefit, in terms of tourism, from the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. According to those responsible for the tourism sector, the distance to the stage of war and the fact that Portugal is the third safest country in the world are factors that convey confidence to the outbound markets. Recognizing that it is “still early” for a final assessment of the impacts of the war, the first indicators confirm the optimism of tourism leaders and do not activate the cause as recovery goals for 2022. After a month of conflict between Ukraine and Russia, and perhaps The first few days saw a retraction in demand, with a slowdown in bookings and flights, “all the numbers of stations and more recent flights, pointed to values very close to 2019, the best ever for national tourism”, he guarantees. Pedro Siza Vieira, Minister of State, Economy and Digital Transition. “The reservations we have for flights for April are 500% above what happened last year”, reinforces Luís Araújo, president of Turismo de Portugal, also highlighting that, “in terms of air capacity, we are between 80% and 90% of the joint effort of other options in 2019 and as weeks of companies of companies as operations and that pay attention to other options for connections to Portugal”.
One of the cases is easyJet, which last week announced the creation of four new routes to Portugal. It is these data that led the minister Siza Vieira to state, during the presentation of the fourth edition of the National Tourism Award (PNT), that “the war in Ukraine values the destination Portugal”: “international tourists are looking for destinations, where you can be sure that your vacation will not be disturbed by any outside interference.” António Trindade, president of the PortoBay hotel group, reinforces this idea, recalling the circumstance that the “east of the Mediterranean basin will suffer from a lack of tourists, with countries such as Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania and even Turkey, existing, therefore, a derivation to look for the west, where we find ourselves”. The entrepreneur, recently, with the Career Award from the guide “Boa Cama Boa Mesa”, presents figures for this tourist mobility: “In our six hotels in Madeira in March, the occupancy rate has been around 90%.” João Fernandes, president of Turismo do Algarve, said that the reservations already made for this year were “very encouraging”. He also said that new routes and new services are planned for the summer and that the average occupancy rate, per room, in February, is around 40.2%. In 2019 it was, in the same month, 43.3%. “I can say that 88% of connections to outbound markets are already secured for this summer. Of the 23 countries we had connections to, we will only have connections to Hungary and, unfortunately, to Ukraine. Even a very interesting operation, due to the reality that everyone, but not expected, “explained the person in charge of Algarve tourism.
consumer trust
For 20 in a second war in Europe, it is difficult to explain that we are at one end and that the conflict is at the other”. Equating “the increase and loss of purchasing power in important markets such as Germany or the United Kingdom, the confidence of airlines and operators in Portugal promises an exceptional year”. Luís Pedro Martins, president of the Porto and North Tourism Region, also stressed that a “privileged geographical location of Portugal, combined with the safety mark, will be attractive as it is suitable for proximity markets, as well as long-distance ones, such as the Brazil and the United States”. But what happens, says Luís Araújo, Spain and France, which may have already recovered from the client Italy, since the recognition of the United States is necessary and can already start to recover from the client Italy.
Ready for renewal
“Portugal’s image is very strong”, assumed the president of Turismo de Portugal, who sustains optimism with the strong change in the sector carried out in the last two years. And proof of this is the number of participants in the PNT, which exceeded 400 candidacies. Now in its fourth edition, the PNT — whose 2022 version was launched — aims to motivate this week’s agents, as well as the dissemination of the best projects and experiences in areas such as sustainable, innovative and economic tourism. Despite all this optimism, Luís Araújo said that there are “worrying” issues, such as the lack of manpower, which can only be resolved “by bringing in people from outside, at least immediately”. And in this field, he assumes that he has good news, since the “agreement with the CPLP to simplify visas for workers and the agreement between Portugal and India will fill some gaps”. Obviously, he hopes that “the refugees arriving from Ukraine will also be labor for the sector”.
WHAT IS IT
The National Tourism Award (PNT) highlights the best and gives visibility to projects with value in the tourism sector in Portugal. The Expresso and BPI initiative has the high sponsorship of the Ministry of Economy and Digital Transition, the institutional support of Turismo de Portugal, IP and the technical support of Deloitte
CATEGORIES
Authentic Tourism Projects that offer a comprehensive and balanced offer from the territorial point of view, as well as the use of local resources
Gastronomic Tourism Projects that stand out for their differentiated gastronomic offer and, based on the appreciation and prominence of regional and national gastronomy
Inclusive Tourism Projects that promote a strengthening of the relationship with the consumer, through communication or initiatives aimed at their inclusion and loyalty
Innovative Tourism Projects that present an innovative offer and use of tools and digital media for communication, distribution and performance analysis
Sustainable tourism Projects distinguished by the environmental, economic and social responsibility underlying the medium/long-term strategy
MOST IMPORTANT DATES
Applications – 1 April to 31 May
Review – June 1st to September 31st
Meeting of committees and juries – October
Prize Giving – December
CANDIDATURES
To qualify to win the PNT, submit your candidacy between April 1 and May 31, 2022. Follow everything HERE
Texts published in the Express of March 25, 2022