The MED Festival was distinguished this Saturday, March 11, at the Grand Auditorium of the Forum da Maia, at the 7th edition of the Iberian Festival Awards, in the categories of Best Tourism Promotion in the Iberian Peninsula and Best Lusophone and Hispanic Festival.
«We leave this gala happy for, once again, being part of the lot of events distinguished in these awards. Iberian are, without a doubt, a barometer of the best that is produced in terms of this festival industry, whether in terms of artists, organization, production, partners, spaces, among others. These two awards are the culmination of yet another year in which we managed to put on a high-quality MED, which deserved praise from spectators but also recognition from the specialized press and other organizers», said Carlos Carmo.
For the director of the event and councilor of the Municipality of Loulé, these distinctions are, above all, the result of «the commitment and dedication of all the workers of the Municipality of Loulé who make this event happen».
After, in 2018 and 2020, it was distinguished as the festival that most promotes tourism on the national scene, this time the award had a broader character as it is related to events throughout the Iberian Peninsula.
In a note, the Loulé municipality recalls that the MED has contributed to attracting more tourists to the Algarve and the country, boosting the economy.
«Increasingly, it is a tourist attraction factor: 40% of Festival visitors are foreign tourists, especially the Spanish, British and French; of these, 39% already choose to come to the Algarve at this time of year because of the MED Festival», says the Municipality, noting that the impact on the local economy is reflected in a considerable increase in hotel occupancy rates (from 50 % to 80%), as well as the positive impact on restaurants, where sales increases by 50% can be seen.
On the other hand, the Loulé event repeated the feat achieved in 2020, by winning the prize for Best Lusophone and Hispanic Festival.
With a strong focus on national music and also on projects from the PALOPS or Brazil, the Portuguese language was once again in focus in this edition of the MED Festival, thus pursuing one of its missions: «disseminating and valuing this fundamental aspect of our Culture».
Portugal, Brazil, Cape Verde or Angola joined the range of nationalities on last year's poster, through names such as Aline Frazão, Mallu Magalhães, Johnny Hooker, Criatura, Viviane, RE:Imaginar Banda Monte Cara, among others. Names that brought to this stage all the richness of the language of Camões, adapted to different universes and musical territories.
With these results, there are now 8 Iberian Festival Awards won by Festival MED since the launch of these awards.
O Festival MED returns this year to the historic area of Loulé, between the 29th of June and the 2nd of July. Among the names already confirmed are the Portuguese Sétima Legião, Sara Correia and Pedro Mafama, the Syrian Omar Souleyman, the Jamaican Horace Andy and the duo Amadou&Mariam, from Mali.
The ticket pre-sale period starts this Monday, March 13th. Tickets can be purchased at a reduced price,
in the Diary, Festival and Family modalities and can be picked up at Cineteatro Louletano or through the platform BALL.
Comments