Number of Passengers to Portugal Drops While More Cruises Reach the Country
According to the local Portuguese media, compared to pre-pandemic levels, the number of stopovers recorded was up by nine stopovers in Porto do Funchal (44 in 2019) and seven more in Porto Santo, which had only two in 2019, AtoZSerwisPlus.pt reports.
The Administration of Ports of Madeira (Apram) points out that these are the highest rates recorded since 2012, which had a record of 64 stopovers – being an exceptional year.
However, the number of passengers has dropped as there were 44,810 passengers recorded last month, 33,639, reaching 57 per cent of 2019 levels.
Previously, Portuguese media reported that 431 Portuguese beaches, boats and marinas had received the Blue Flag in 2022 – 32 more than in the previous year.
This means that 431 spots in Portugal have demonstrated high quality and environmental standards, with these spots being distributed across the 102 municipalities.
“Thirty-five years after the first Blue Flag was hoisted, precisely in the municipality of Cascais, where we are located, we saw the announcement of the awarding of blue flags for 2022 to 393 beaches, 18 marinas, and 20 ecotourism vessels for a total of 431 blue flags awarded,” Jose Archer from the Associação Bandeira Azul Europe (ABAE), said.
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More specifically, Algarve and Northern Portugal have more blue flagged beaches, 86 and 82, respectively, followed by Tejo with 77 and the Central region with 50 beaches. On the other hand, Alentejo has 40 while Azores and Madeira have 42 and 16, respectively.
Marinas with blue flags in Portugal are the Nautical Recreation Centre in Velas, the Machico Recreational Port, and the Lajes do Pico Nautical Recreation Centre, which were awarded this year for the first time, while ecotourism boats have also recorded an increase, with nine more vessels obtaining the flag across Portugal, except for the Azores.
The tourism season in Portugal is showing positive signs as the number of bookings for holiday spots has surged. More specifically, the number of British nationals showing interest in the destination has increased by 25 per cent in the last week, as a travel search platform revealed.
According to the same, Porto Santo has become the most searched holiday spot in the country, with Comporta in South Lisbon and Villa Real de Santo Antonia in Algarve following the lead.
Portugal also remains one of the friendliest countries for Brits as it has become the first EU country to permit fast-tracked entry for these nationals in an effort to speed up the passport control procedures.
