São Paulo – Morocco played host to the annual meeting of the Brazilian Travel Agencies Association (Abav), with its 27 regional offices. At the invite of Moroccans, a 60-strong Brazilian delegation travelled to the cities of Casablanca, Fez, Marrakesh and Rabat from June 5th to 12th to see the country and witness its project to draw tourists in.
According to Abav International Relations vice president Leonel Rossi Júnior, the meeting is held in a different country each year. It happened in Cuba in 2014 and in Portugal in 2013. Spain, the United States, France, Germany, Argentina, Jamaica, Uruguay and others have welcomed the Abav professionals.
“This is a positive experience for both sides. It is good for Abav because professionals who weren’t familiar with Morocco now are, and this builds experience and knowledge of the destination. And it is good for Morocco because it becomes known all over Brazil, since people from all of Abav’s offices attend,” says Rossi.
Ever since the Moroccan airline Royal Air Maroc resumed flying to Brazil, in late 2013, the country stepped up promotion as a tourist destination in Brazil. Last year, 15,000 Brazilians travelled to the North African country, a number that could increase in years to come.
“They need to keep this flight to Brazil (Casablanca-São Paulo, three times a week) and they need to do promotional actions. In the past, agencies used to sell [Morocco] with layovers in Frankfurt, Paris or Portugal. Now, the direct flight has made things easier and even cheaper,” Rossi claimed.
Potential
According to Rossi, Brazil shows great promise as an issuer of tourists. Roughly 7 million people travel abroad every year. “We are in the midst of a crisis this year, but it will go away eventually. Brazilians will tend to travel more. In the last three years, 13 airlines started flying to Brazil. This is not random. They are here because they know the passengers will be there,” he says.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
