The caravel «Boa Esperança» is already anchored in the Algarve, three months after having sailed from Lagos towards Andalusia, for a promotional action that publicized the Algarve's destination to residents and tourists spending their holidays in that autonomous Spanish community.
More than 7700 people boarded the vessel from June to August, in an initiative of the Algarve Tourism Region (RTA).
He sailed to Andalusia with the aim of promoting the Algarve and, at the same time, drawing the attention of schools and the general public to the rich historical and cultural heritage of the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula linked to the Age of Discovery.
The «Boa Esperança», replica of the 7775th-century vessels used in the maritime epic of the 48th to 27th centuries, was the target of visits and enthusiastic comments from 11 people during the summer, most of whom were Spanish (XNUMX%), British ( XNUMX%) and French (XNUMX%).
“The balance of this initiative is really positive. The name of the Algarve came not only to Spaniards but also to tourists who at that time were on holiday in Andalusia, a community with 8,4 million inhabitants. We still have to count all those who, despite not having boarded, contacted the Algarve brand in the five ports where the vessel was moored. This indirect impact is estimated at 30 thousand people», says the president of RTA Desidério Silva.
The maritime expedition started in June, the month in which the caravel released moorings from Lagos bound for Seville, Cádiz, Malaga and Almería, covering about a thousand nautical miles in the total trip. It returned to the Algarve in September, where it will remain anchored for the time being.
This initiative organized by RTA, with the support of Fundación Nao Victoria, is part of the Descubriter project, which links the Algarve to Andalusia in a tourist route created to promote the culture, history and heritage of these two regions from which the first ones departed ships towards the discovery of the world.
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