The Regional Secretary for Energy, Environment and Tourism noted that the Azores are taking the first steps towards cultural tourism so that it may become an increasingly relevant sector. In this context, she emphasised culture as an essential factor in the archipelago's tourism offer to visitors.
 
Marta Guerreiro spoke Monday in Ponta Delgada at the closing session of the conference "The importance of culture in tourism," stressing that "this is still a premise that requires additional efforts, despite its presence in specific itineraries of some islands and at certain times of the year."
 
"Culture and art should be part of the set of products we have available for those who visit us," stressed the Secretary for Tourism.
 
In her speech, the Regional Secretary assured that the intention is to promote the creation of visits or organised itineraries to discover and explore landscapes as well as cultural and gastronomic attractions, which will be complemented by the promotion of a cultural agenda to be disseminated among travel agents and tourist accommodation units.
 
"The positioning of Azores Destination is undoubtedly associated with nature tourism as the potential of biodiversity is a major feature of the Region. Hence, talking about sustainability in this sector is to promote its diversity in terms of tourism offer," said the government official.
 
In this regard, Marta Guerreiro stressed that this type of product "involves the active use of natural spaces, but it cannot be limited to the beauty of the landscape and its mere contemplation. As far as cultural aspects are concerned, these are also sources of inspiration for the creation of new artistic objects, which start at a local scale but reach a global dimension."