Turismo do Algarve welcomes the announcement of the inclusion of Portugal in the list of safe destinations defined by the United Kingdom, hoping that the region can recover some of the lost time.
“This was news that had been long awaited, not only by the region but also by the thousands of British tourists who visit the Algarve every year”, explains João Fernandes, president of Turismo do Algarve. “They will now finally have the opportunity to witness how the destination is properly prepared to welcome all visitors safely, a message that we have been reinforcing for a long time in that market.”
Although the region has had flights to the United Kingdom since the beginning of June, Turismo do Algarve expects that this decision will significantly boost the increase in the number of passengers at Faro airport and the resumption of operations by some operators, reinforcing the promotion effort that has been made in this regard: “In addition to having always maintained contact with the airlines and the main tour operators, we are already strategically reactivating some marketing campaigns with some of them, in the in order to capture the interest of new visitors by the end of this year, through incentives for last minute reservations. In the United Kingdom, these campaigns are already taking place in partnership with British Airways, Ryanair and Easyjet ”, says João Fernandes. "We are strongly committed to reversing the negative effects that resulted from the previous British government decision and we hope that the region can now make up for some of the wasted time." It should be remembered that since yesterday and until the end of October, a promotional campaign for the destination is also taking place in the United Kingdom, in partnership with Channel 5, a popular entertainment channel in that market.
Turismo do Algarve expects this positioning in the United Kingdom to take effect as early as September, when the high golf season kicks off and when the region will host the Portugal Masters, proof of the European Tour this year. modality. “We believe that there may still be some positive prospects for tourism in the region. We have good weather, a diverse offer of experiences and a strong calendar of international events to run until the end of the year, including the Formula 1 World Championship and the MotoGP Grand Prix. We believe that these are good arguments that will encourage British tourists to return to the Algarve even outside the high season ”, says João Fernandes.
