Tourism sector boosted Portuguese Cities in the last 20 years

Source: Jornal de Negócios

Portuguese cities are now privileged tourist destinations, but high demand puts more pressure on their infrastructure and the well-being of their populations. Dialogue between the various “stakeholders” will be key to alleviating this pressure

Tourism is considered one of Portugal's development drivers, especially in recent years, with impacts at various levels, including in cities. The topic was discussed in the talk: The Impact of Tourism on Cities and Well-Being: Two Sides of the Same Coin, promoted by the Business Sustainability 20|30 initiative. 

“What we have seen in the last two decades is the rise of cities as privileged destinations for tourism in Portugal”, began by mentioning Sérgio Guerreiro, director of the Bussiness Management Department in Turismo de Portugal.

According to the expert, “Portugal has grown a lot in tourism with destinations such as the Algarve or Madeira, but in recent years Lisbon, Porto, and other cities have grown significantly in their attractiveness, improved their hotel, service, and entertainment offer, and today we have cities like fundamental elements in our international positioning as a tourist destination”. 

Sérgio Guerreiro also highlighted the role in the country's economic development, as “there are investments that are only viable if they are considered for the domestic and international markets” that visit us. Considering that development models are monitored to be corrected, he pointed out that “there may be issues of tourist pressure in some situations, but nothing that cannot be corrected with public policies or company activity".

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