Secretary of State for Tourism, Trade and Services is in Washington to promote Portugal in the United States

The Secretary of State for Tourism, Trade and Services Nuno Fazenda will be in Washington over the following days to boost cooperation and Portugal’s notoriety in the US, a strategic market for tourism. Promoting tourism, knowledge and cooperation around cultural tourism will be the subjects on the agenda for this visit.

 One of the highlights of the Secretary of State Nuno Fazenda’s agenda is the Financial Times Weekend Festival, for which Portugal is the invited country. This prestigious event, which counts on several personalities attending and speaking, among whom are Hilary Clinton, Salmon Rushdie, and Jamie Lee Curtis, offers a platform to showcase Portuguese tourism with opinion makes, tourism operators, and travel agents in the US market. Specific products will also be promoted namely focusing on Jancis Robinson’s presence, one of the world references in wine critique who will comment on a Portuguese wine tasting. Literary tourism will also be on show in the area dedicated to Portugal, where Fernando Pessoa and José Saramago will stand out, as well as seven books by Portuguese authors in the FT Weekend bookstore.

During his visit, the Secretary of State will also hold a seminar at the prestigious George Washington University. This session is open to the academic community, sector professionals, and entrepreneurs. A cooperation process for exchanging knowledge between this University and the Portuguese Tourism Board will be driven under this seminar, with view to broaden information on the US market.

 As part of promoting cultural tourism, the Secretary of State Nuno Fazenda, together with the Portuguese Tourism Board, will meet with the Smithsonian to explore means of cooperation around the common history pertaining to the African diaspora and its influences in both counties. The intention is to make it easier to exchange knowledge, fostering a deeper understanding of the cultural heritage shared by Portugal and the United States.

 The US represent a consistently growing market for Portuguese tourism. According to statistics by the Statistics Office on 2022, this country is already the fourth largest market sending tourists to Portugal, with a growth of 27% and 52% in overnight stays and revenue, respectively, when compared to 2019. In Lisbon, the US is the largest market, which shows the importance of strengthening cooperation and promotion in this market.