Vítor Fraga announces two flight connections between Germany, Terceira and São Miguel
The Regional Secretary for Tourism and Transport announced in Ponta Delgada that the airline Air Berlin will add two new flight connections between the Azores and Germany.
"From May to October 2016, Air Berlin will add a new flight connection in Ponta Delgada, which will now have two weekly flights at this time. For the first time, there will be a direct link from Germany to Terceira, also on a weekly basis," said Vítor Fraga. The government official spoke at the opening of the 3rd Tourism Forum 2015, an event organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ponta Delgada.
According to the Secretary for Tourism, these new operations "clearly demonstrate that the Azores are increasingly becoming a more visible and attractive destination."
In this regard, the Regional Secretary recalled that he recently announced "a full year operation that will link Terceira to Madrid, an operation linking Terceira to Boston during the IATA winter, and the creation of a new gateway to the Region to be operated by TUI from Ponta Delgada, Terceira and Pico. The latter will seize the opportunities of the 'Triangle' islands [Pico, Faial and São Jorge] where mobility is enhanced by maritime transport and by the good conditions of inter-island air transport in the archipelago."
In his speech, the Regional Secretary stressed that this activity sector faces "new challenges continuously, but tourism is probably the most competitive industry in the world."
"If we maximise the differentiating aspects of each island and take into consideration the complementarity between islands, we will become increasingly stronger as a tourist destination," added the government official.
Vítor Fraga launched a challenge to entrepreneurs, urging them "to enhance their tourism offer in terms of accommodation and leisure activities to provide tourists with the best experiences with the purpose of generating added value."
"We must continue to develop a work that allows us to constantly adapt to new trends in demand, avoid competition, being unique and genuine and responding to our main goals: leverage our projection, improve the competitiveness of the destination, increase tourism flows, and ensure economic, environmental and socio-cultural sustainability," said the government official.
According to Victor Fraga, "the path to be followed in the coming years, as it has been done by this Government, is to become more efficient in raising funds."
"We cannot just throw money at tourism. We have to be efficient in what we do and, over this period, we have shown our ability to be more efficient," the Regional Secretary said, adding that "this is a sector that requires a permanent investment and a growing commitment among public and private entities.”
Furthermore, Vítor Fraga stressed that the Strategic Plan and Marketing of the Tourism Sector with Horizon 2020, "the most comprehensive effort ever, involved the population, market players, opinion leaders and political parties, reflecting "an integrated and comprehensive vision of society in a fundamental sector for the development of the Region." The document is in the final stage of approval.
"This document will deserve the approval of the Council of the Government, followed by its appropriate public presentation and sharing with all market players," said the Regional Secretary.