Portugal’s tourism authorities are setting their sights on China, with a new target to welcome half a million Chinese visitors and a million overnight stays per year by 2026, announced at ITB Beijing, Asia’s biggest trade fair.
Carlos Abade, Head of Portugal’s Tourist Board, told the fair that 57,740 Chinese visitors had made it to the western European nation in the first quarter of 2024, representing a 135% increase year on year. That was not enough, however, with pre-pandemic numbers still only 70% recovered.
Recovery yet to be tapped
China is the world’s largest source market for tourists and in 2023 they spent more than any other nation abroad. But the impact of the Republic’s tight Covid-19 travel restrictions, lifted relatively late, means the recent surge in Chinese numbers is still 44% behind the pre-Covid highs, according to figures from the Economist Intelligence Unit.
Over the last two years though China has put in place swathes of visa waiver deals around the world in its ongoing drive to reconnect and do business. Commercial aviation connections will need to increase, and a lag on renewing Chinese passports and visas that expired during the pandemic lull will need to be addressed to facilitate that push, but Portugal is hoping to tap into what is expected to be a fuller recovery by 2025.
“We think this is possible”
Some might say Abade’s goals are conservative. While 500,000 inbound Chinese tourists (over 100,000 more than in 2019) and a million overnighters by 2026 may seem ambitious, it would represent a lower proportion of overnight stays to visitor than in 2019. In addition though, Portugal will be seeking to equal 2019’s tourism income of €224 million, Abade said, explaining: “In line with the growth forecasts for the Chinese market worldwide, we think this is possible.”
Part of the strategy to achieve those results includes activity on Chinese social media, hailed as a large part of the success seen in Portugal’s second city, Porto, which saw a 107% increase on 2019’s Chinese visitor figures in the first quarter of 2024.
Though the Chinese operate strict censorship firewalls, Abade emphasised the importance of operating on channels such as online marketing platforms and said, “We are very active in this area, because we realise that this is where the dynamics are”. Initiatives he was referring to include Turismo de Portugal’s WeChat programme, a forum that shares teasers about the Portuguese food scene, which includes some of the world’s best chefs, as well as cultural attractions and festivals.
