The influential magazine, Today's Golfer, has awarded the Best European Golf Destination to the Algarve.
This golfing ‘Oscar’ results from readers’ votes with 48% choosing the Algarve region’s golf courses.
In addition to this prize, a first, the Algarve was recognised for the fourth time with the Best Value golf award, which ranked the quality:price ratio of the region as one of the big attractions for golfers.
Dora Coelho, executive director of the Tourism Association of the Algarve (ATA) said that these two awards are "an excellent indicator for 2017 and a recognition of the success achieved through the effort and joint work developed by ATA and its associates in ensuring the excellence that golfers expect from a destination like the Algarve.
"These prizes result from the strong promotion strategy that has been developed in partnership with the private sector of the golf tourism industry."
Golf generates annual revenue of €120 million and is one of Portugal’s strategic tourism sectors, albeit a small one when compared with traditional sun and sand holidays.
Every year, 300,000 tourists visit the country to play golf – a number that is on the increase.
Francisco Calheiros, president of the Portuguese Tourism Confederation (CTP), said that it is vital that VAT on golf green fees, which rose to 23% in 2012, should go back to 6%. Calheiros was speaking at the National Conference on Residential Tourism and Golf.
With the Algarve winning the Best Value golf destination for the fourth time, the governmment will not be inclined to drop VAT to support the sector when consumers are happy with the current pricing level.
In a speech, marked by a mix of compliments to the golf sector and calls for government action, Calheiros said the sector has “a need to attract foreign tourists who move to Portugal, so that either they live in the country or return as fast as possible."
The conference was attended by several speakers, both national and international, who debated the current state of residential tourism and golf: Turismo de Portugal, the Algarve Tourism Bureau, Oceânico Golf, Vale de Lobo, Europcar, among other companies were present at the Hotel Dom Pedro in Lisbon to discuss these two themes at an event organised by the Portuguese Resort Association and the National Council of Golf Industry.
