The ubiquitous Secretary of State for Tourism, Ana Mendes Godinho, today announced that Portugal is the country with the highest growth in tourism of those along the northern Mediterranean coast, with an 11.5% growth rate which has created 40,000 sector jobs this year.
"Portugal registered a significant growth compared to last year," said Godinho during a hearing at the economy committee meeting today.
Godinho took stock of tourist activity for the year and said that "Portugal is experiencing good times" in tourism, but "it must not be ephemeral."
The number of flights to Portugal has doubled between 2005 and 2015 as has the number of hotel beds available.
In this ten year period, the average stay by tourists in Portugal rose from 3.1 days to 3.8 days with the Secretary of State acknowledging that there is still are seasonal and regional differences, with 90% of overnight stays are in coastal areas.
Godinho said that work needs to be done to achieve "‘sustainable’ tourist activity that generates wealth and jobs throughout the year," with job creation this year spreading from the high summer season into off season periods.
The focus on quality education was also mentioned by Godinho, who announced the opening of a new tourism school in Lagos.
The politician also noted that companies in the tourism sector are undercapitalised and said the recent VAT reduction was actioned to help out, with 230 tourism projects receiving a total of €34 million for investment.
The PCP and the Left Bloc said that workers in the sector remain among the lowest paid in Portugal with most still on the minimum wage despite a rise in tourism income for tourism businesses this year.
The PSD and the CDS were critical of the proposed hike in taxes for those in the Alojamento Local sub-sector but the Secretary of State denied this would have any adverse effects.
