The Youth Hostel which is under construction "qualifies the tourism offer on Santa Maria, while simultaneously enabling the recovery of a building of high heritage value, located in the historic centre of Vila do Porto".

The Regional Secretary of the Presidency, who spoke at the end of a visit to the construction site of the Santa Maria Youth Hostel, conveyed his satisfaction with the progress of the works which are "ahead of schedule" and their completion is estimated for the first quarter of next year.

In addition to the "significant contribution to the recovery of the historical heritage of Vila do Porto," André Bradford stressed the "very important impact of the hostel on the economic dynamics of Santa Maria Island, including the direct creation of seven jobs and the support to other companies operating in the tourism sector."

The Pico Tourism Hostel, according to the government official, is an example that contradicts the "doubts concerning the capacity of this investment generating demand: overnight stays have grown 27% after a year in business."

By restating the importance of Youth Hostels in developing the Azores tourist destination, André Bradford added that "the new infrastructure on Santa Maria, even without being completed but already registered on the distribution network, already has already started to receive bookings for the high season, which "is a clear sign that we have made the right investment.”

The Secretary of the Presidency, who oversees the Youth policies developed by the Azorean Government, recalled the "effort that has been made in promoting Youth Hostels and the Azores as a youth tourist destination both nationally and internationally."

In this context, he announced that next month "a protocol will be signed with a tourism entity specialised in surf, an area related to youngsters, being in line with the tourism offer in the area of nature and sea" as well as “with the strategy developed for regional tourism."