Post covid, many tourist destinations are opened up and organising FAM trips to promote their tourist destinations. This time Portugal tourism has taken a lead by inviting representatives from tour and travel companies. Visit Portugal in association with Lufthansa Airlines hosted its first Trade FAM trip for travel trade partners from India to have a real-time experience. The FAM tour was organised from the 14th to the 20th of March 2022. The delegations were representatives from travel companies including SOTC, Kesari Tours and Travels, Mango Holidays, and Veena World.
Claudia Matias, Director, Visit Portugal India, commenting about this initiative said,” India is an important market for Portugal. We foresee that Portugal as a destination will be of keen interest to travelers from India, due to what the destination has to offer which is so suitable for Indian travelers. The idea behind this trip was to restart initiatives with Indian trade partners and introduce them to Portuguese suppliers at the main travel tourism exhibition in Portugal- Lisbon Travel Market, at the International Hosted Buyers Programme, aiming to promote and reveal Portugal tourism offer”.
Claudia Matias, Director, Visit Portugal India
The visiting representative from travel agencies arrived in Lisbon on 14th March 2022. They kick-started the trip with a Pre Tour of the beautiful city of Lisbon and the Estoril Coast. The delegation then participated at The International Hosted Buyers Meetings. After the exhibition the group continued to experience Portugal, visiting the Centre of Portugal and picturesque villages like Óbidos, Batalha Monastery, and Coimbra (university) both listed by UNESCO as World Heritage sites. The delegation also experienced the amazing Portuguese gastronomy. The trip finished at Porto and the Douro valley with amazing wine estate experiences and river view landscapes.
George Ettiyil, Senior Director – South Asia from Lufthansa Group added, “Portugal has so much to offer to the discerning Indian Globetrotter and we are glad that Lufthansa connects beautifully to many Portuguese destinations from all of Lufthansa’s gateways in India”.
It may be noted that the tourism economy has been heavily hit by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic but it is reviving its path. Portugal is increasingly noted in International rankings of the best places to travel, popular countries for gastronomic tourism and safe countries to visit. The country also worked towards accelerating the development of the tourism sector and subsequently increasing its role in contributing to the economy, diversifying and improvement of the quality of tourist services, and improvement of tourist infrastructure.
George Ettiyil, Senior Director – South Asia from Lufthansa
The intensive development of the tourism industry in Portugal, including respect for the historical and cultural heritage, creation of infrastructure that meets international standards, and strengthening of international relations have turned it into one of the most visited countries in the region and has become one of the most favorite destinations for Indian tourists too.
Fam tours are basically for travel agents, travel writers, tour operators, and tourism partners. The participants have to work hard to capture all the tour experiences to the fullest. Familiarization trip plays a very important role in becoming a successful and experienced travel agent. It is the best strategy to increase sales on their target.
Editor in Chief : Mewati SItaram
