Regional focus
The coast is here F
or hundreds of years, the Portuguese gazed out from their coastal home – then set sail to see what they could find. This was the age of explorers like De Gama and Magellan, men armed with thick beards and caravel ships, and who utterly transformed Europe’s place in the world. As early as 1456, Portuguese seamen had discovered
Cape Verde and the jungles of Central Africa. A few decades later, they had rounded Africa and landed in India. By the 16th century, Portuguese could be heard from Brazil to Malacca, symbolising a seaborne empire that ultimately lasted right through to the 1970s. No wonder Hilaire Belloc, the renowned British poet and historian, once proclaimed that this was a land “made by the Atlantic”.
Over more recent years, of course, Portugal’s vast possessions have vanished almost to nothing. Yet even as Lisbon and Porto have become geopolitical backwaters, decaying gracefully on the very edge of the European landmass, the country remains as cosmopolitan as ever. For if the Portuguese no longer go to the world, the world has started coming to them. Consider the statistics. Over the first five months of 2023 alone, over 6.4 million visitors visited the country, with May alone a record-breaking month for new arrivals. This remarkable influx unsurprisingly
represents a major boon for the Portuguese exchequer, with tourism now accounting for about 16% of national GDP, according to the WTTC. This excitement isn’t hard to appreciate. Offering wonderful food, fabulous wines, hosts of ancient buildings – and natural wonders that put far bigger countries to shame – Portugal is a joy. Amid this enthusiasm, meanwhile, hoteliers have been quick to react, with design-driven and mass- market properties opening in established centres and less famous regions alike. Not that the enthusiasm is necessarily destined to last forever. From staffing shortages to a simple lack of space, the powers-that-be have plenty to do if Portuguese tourism is to thrive over the coming years. Get it right, though, and the consequences could be immense, both for visitors and the locals who greet them.
Going west
Few insiders are as well-placed to appreciate Portugal’s hospitality boom as Gonçalo Rebelo de Almeida. The CEO at Vila Galé Hotels, De Almeida presides over dozens of properties right across the country – a situation he suggests is down to the buoyancy of the industry in general. “The development of hospitality, as well as other accommodation models, such as short-term rentals or
Immensely popular among the near neighbours, and now enjoying an infl ux of Chinese visitors, this beautiful and historic coastal nation is booming. Certainly, this is clear from the fi gures with even remote parts of Portugal welcoming hundreds of thousands of new arrivals and a number of stunning new hotels. Andrea Valentino talks to Gonçalo Rebelo de Almeida of Vila Galé Hotels, and Rui Diogo of JLL to learn more.
Hotel Management International /
www.hmi-online.com
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Vila Galé Hotels
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