A group of travel agents, tour operators and journalists from the region walked this Thursday through the municipality of Lagos as if they were tourists.
This was an initiative of the Algarve Tourism Region (RTA), part of the «Rediscover the Secrets of the Algarve» project, which aims to show «professionals who help sell the destination» their best kept secrets.
The mission was demanding: visit the main attractions of Lagos, in a program lasting only one day.
After the reception by the Councilor for Culture and Tourism, Maria Fernanda Afonso, next to the old Town Hall and the statue of D. Sebastião, without wasting time, the participants in the familiarization visit immersed themselves in the history of Lagos, starting with the reclassified riverfront , where the square dominated by the statue that immortalizes the figure and work of Infante D. Henrique refers to the grandiose period of the Portuguese Discoveries.
From then onwards, always guided by José António Martins, historian and senior technician at the Câmara de Lagos, the group visited archaeological remains, namely the Discoveries wharf, toured the streets of the historic area and continued on to Armazém do Espingardeiro, where a museum is located. information about the city.
They then visited the Dr. José Formosinho Municipal Museum, which is thus a kind of museum for museums, and the beautiful Church of Santo António, which is next to it, and which is the second most visited monument in the Algarve, right after the Fortaleza of Sagres.
Even before lunch, journalists, travel agents and tour operators headed to Onyria Palmares, with Meia Praia at their feet, which recently, for the third consecutive year, was the winner in the category of Best Golf Course at the Publituris Portugal Travel Awards '14.
António Pinto Coelho, one of the people responsible for the resort, presented the project and future plans, namely for the construction of a hotel.
Lunch was at the Club House of Onyria Palmares, with a breathtaking view over the Bay of Lagos, Meia Praia and the Ria de Alvor.
The afternoon began with a trip to Monte Molião, an area opposite the current city of Lagos, on the other side of the Ribeira de Bensafrim, which would have been the site of the old Lacóbriga, judging by the Carthaginian and Roman remains that have been excavated by the archaeologists.
Although the intention was to reveal some secrets, a visit to Ponta da Piedade and its rock formations carved by the sea and the wind was inevitable. Even more because this place was considered in April, by an influential US online news portal as «the most beautiful beach in the world». Strictly speaking, this is not a beach, as Mayor Maria Joaquina Matos said at lunch. "But what matters is that they talk about us and that they speak well!"
The program of this intense familiarization trip (family trip) ended at Praia da Luz.
At lunch, the president of RTA had underlined the interest of these familiarization trips, aimed at journalists, tour operators and travel agents, who are, after all, who have to make the Algarve known to outsiders. “The humanization of tourism, giving one's face, is very important”, he underlined.
As mayor Maria Joaquina Matos later said, “It is one thing to read about the issues, to go online to research, it is another thing to walk these streets. Lagos was born from the sea and this can be felt in its streets».
The mayor expressed her satisfaction with the fact that "in Lagos this summer we have had more tourism". In fact, it was not just in Lagos, but throughout the Algarve, since the numbers that the Tourism Region just announced they say the region surpassed three million overnight stays for the first time in August.
However, lamented Joaquina Matos, «the Government has been very forgetful of the region: the requalification of the EN125 is urgent, the announced increase in tolls will be another challenge for the region and health is also a delicate problem».
The project «Rediscovering the Secrets of the Algarve» has already been carried out in the municipalities of Alcoutim, São Brás de Alportel and Monchique. Today, it resulted from a partnership between RTA, the Câmara de Lagos and the Regional Directorate of Culture of the Algarve. And soon, it will be time to discover the municipalities of Lagoa and Aljezur.
Click here to see more photos from fam trip in Lagos
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