São Paulo – Morocco wants to increase the number of tourists from Brazil and to achieve this it will be promoting its tourism sector at the 46th Abav Expo, an international tourism industry expo scheduled for September 26 to 28 in São Paulo. The Arab country’s tourism promotion actions in the Brazilian market have been a constant, among them the participation at Abav, and it’s been getting results. In H1 2018, the arrivals of Brazilians in Morocco rose 30% over the same months of 2017.
For the fifth time, the official delegation of the Moroccan National Tourist Office for Portugal and Brazil, based in Lisbon, is organizing the country’s participation in the expo. According to the delegation’s director, Abdellatif Achachi, 12 tour operators and representatives of Morocco’s tourist regional councils will be at the fair at a 100-square meter stand.
According to Achachi, Brazilian tourists like exotic destinations, thus, the focus of these promotion actions will be places such as the desert (picture above) and the imperial cities circuit. These cities – Fez, Marrakech, Rabat and Meknes – are the capitals of the country’s old dynasties. The director says that Brazilian tourists come for the country’s cultural identity. He believes that beaches – a feature that Morocco also promotes – is something that Brazilians already have.
“Morocco is the closest Eastern country to Brazil”, said Abdellatif Achachi via phone to ANBA, mentioning the duration of a direct flight between the two countries offered by Moroccan airline Royal Air Maroc.
Morocco welcomed in this year’s first half 25,500 Brazilians, says Achachi. He points out that the data only goes until June and, therefore, doesn’t included Brazil’s vacation period of July. Last July, the country welcomed 45,000 Brazilians, which meant a 38% surge over the previous year.
Besides taking part in Abav Expo, the country has also been organizing other type of promotion actions in the Brazilian market. Among other initiatives, between April and May of this year, it held the Morocco Week, an event with cultural and artistic attractions in São Paulo. And from December of last year to June of this one, it has been doing digital campaigns via social media, with around 20 million views, according to Achachi.
The Arab country also launched, last year, an e-learning program with training to Brazilian travel agents on Morocco as a tourist destination, with the participation of five thousand professionals. A new digital training programme will be launched at Abav Expo, along an extended platform. He says that the country is also promoting other actions in the Brazilian press.
Abav Expo’s is managed by the Brazilian Travel Agencies Association (Abav) and gathers exhibitors of national and international destinations, operators, airlines, hotels, cruising companies, technology suppliers for the area, car rental companies, ecotourism companies, among others.
In addition to the exhibition pavilion, the expo will have a side programme, with B2B meetings and discussions on the sector. Last year’s Abav Expo was visited by over 23,000 people, with 1,100 exhibiting companies.
Quick info:
46ª Abav International Tourism Expo
From September 26 to 28, from noon to 8 pm.
Parque Anhembi
Avenida Olavo Fontoura, 1.209 – São Paulo – SP
Further information: http://www.abavexpo.com.br/
Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
