The Portugal National Tourist Board and Portuguese Travel Agents Association (APAVT) have maintained their support for and presence at the annual Macau International Tourism (Industry) Expo (MITE) to promote destination Portugal to Macau and China as well as to raise Greater China’s profile among Portuguese-speaking travellers.
According to a spokesperson for the Portugal National Tourist Board, both organisations have participated in MITE for the past three years, with the support of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and Macau Travel Agents Association.
“With great support and extraordinary hospitality from Macau, we have hosted more than 30 Portuguese travel agents at each of the past editions. We follow closely MGTO’s strategy and some of their promotional actions; we can always learn a lot (from our Macau peers),” said the spokesperson.
The Portugal National Tourist Board expressed appreciation of its partnership with MGTO: “Macau represents five centuries of friendship, business, and mutual understanding, and (diplomatic ties are) extremely important between the two countries. Travel and tourism are no exception. The importance of tourism for both economies is critical, and we can benefit from each other’s good practices, innovation, and development.”
MGTO’s director, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, told TTG Asia that there are several areas of cooperation between Macau and Portugal, as well as various Portuguese-speaking markets. One of these areas is training, where student interns visit Macau for a two-week introduction to different aspects of tourism management.
“We intend to continue with this training programme while looking into other ways of working with these markets,” she added.
APAVT’s spokesperson told TTG Asia that Macau’s “historical proximity to Portugal” makes it a “fantastic gateway” to China, which is “currently one of the most important markets in the world”.
The Portugal National Tourist Board believes there is still more to be done, particularly in improving the understanding of Portugal in China. Efforts are underway to “boost the full potential of Chinese outbound travel to our country,” including marketing campaigns with OTAs and tour operators, enhancing the digital footprint on Chinese social media platforms through key travel influencers, organising roadshows in China to showcase Portuguese companies, and arranging fam trips for travel trade partners and media representatives.
Portugal’s presence at MITE is therefore a key step towards this goal.
The close Portugal-Macau relations will be underscored this year with Macau hosting the 50th National Congress of the APAVT in December, with between 800 and 1,000 delegates expected.
“It will be an extraordinary moment for the Portuguese and Chinese tourism communities,” said the APAVT spokesperson, adding that attendees will witness travel and tourism development undertaken by both Portugal and Macau, and grow demand for Greater China in the Portuguese market.
Altogether, congress activities will present new business opportunities for travel and tourism companies in both lands.
de Senna Fernandes expressed hopes that the congress would foster greater collaboration between Macau and Portuguese-speaking countries to advance travel and tourism.
Nuttall brings a wealth of experience from leadership roles in airlines across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. Most recently, he served as CEO of SriLankan Airlines, where he successfully led the airline’s turnaround, returning it to operational profitability and contributing to the growth of Sri Lanka’s tourism sector.
