The state of Brazilian Tourism
Up-and-coming tourism destinations often prove attractive to foreign property investors, and Brazil is one such country.
Interest in Brazilian property has boomed since it was announced that Rio de Janeiro would be holding the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. For the same reason tourists have also been prompted to discover the attractions of this South American country.
Facts and figures on tourism for Brazilian property investors.
Brazilian property investors may be interested to know that over 180,000 British citizens visited the country in 2008. According to companiesandmarkets.com, this helped the country’s tourism arrivals reach 7.2 million that year, a significant increase from the 4.7 million visitors in 2001.
This growth has led to property for sale in Brazil becoming a hot commodity.
In addition, the country’s revenue from tourism grew by 17 per cent in 2008 and this is expected to continue on an upward trend. By the year 2014, two years before the Olympics, tourism arrivals are expected to reach 9.2 million.
Tom Hall, travel editor at Lonely Planet, said in late 2009 that Brazil’s "time has come as a destination".
Property in Brazil and emerging tourism trends
Brazil is well-placed to cash in on the emerging eco-tourism trend. The country’s diverse range of natural attractions and resources mean that it is developing as a destination of choice for those looking for a more diverse holiday experience.
Iguassu Falls on the border with Argentina is currently in the running to become one of the new seven natural wonders of the world and Brazil contains no less than four natural Unesco World Heritage sites.
Late last year Laercio Souza, coordinator of inward investment at the Ministry of Tourism, spoke at the Why Brazil, Why Now? conference in London. He explained that the country was taking steps conserve its natural features in the wake of positive economic development.
"We have a very strict environmental law and we don’t want what happened on the southern coast of Spain to happen in Brazil … If we spoil the nature, why should we go there?" he explained.
The country is now marketing itself as a destination for bird watching, as the home of 18 per cent of the world’s bird diversity, fauna watching, hiking, floating (a type of snorkelling) and cave tourism.
"Brazil is famous worldwide among the richest destinations in terms of options in the tourism sector," the country’s ministry of tourism explained.
Property in Brazil which is most likely to benefit from this trend is located in the areas around Teresopolis, Santarem, Garopaba, Marajó Archipelago and Alta Floresta. According to a report by the Co operative Bank, spending on eco-travel has increase nine-fold over the past decade.
Brazilian tourism and major sporting events
As one of the oldest and biggest sporting events the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 are expected to provide a serious boost to the country’s tourism sector.
The Beijing Tourism Administration estimated that 550,000 international visitors were in attendance when it held the event in 2008. The increase in travellers could be much larger for Brazil thanks to its ease of access from the US and other South American nations.
Figures from the National Economic and Social Development bank show that 274 billion Brazil reais (£97.6 billion) will be invested in infrastructure projects in the country between 2010 and 2013, with the Games acting as a "key driver".
Olympic fever has already begun to spread to other events within the city. The annual Rio de Janeiro carnival saw a ten per cent increase in hotel occupancy rates in 2010, which stood at 94 per cent.
Antonio Pedro Figueira de Mello, municipal secretary of tourism, said: "Rio is in the headlines since it was elected to host 2016 Games. Celebrities from all over the world have been visiting us and helping to keep [up the] media’s interest in the city."
Euromonitor International recently revealed that Rio was the most popular tourism destination in the southern hemisphere.
Brazil is also set to be the host of the 2014 Fifa football world cup. The event will mark the first time that the event has been held in the southern hemisphere since 1978.
In total, 12 of the country’s cities will be holding the matches, following a decision by Fifa to spread the economic benefits of the event over a wider area. These cities are Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Manaus, Belo Horizonte, Natal, Fortaleza, Curitiba, Salvador, Brasilia, Cuiaba, Recife and Porto Alegre.
It seems Brazil’s tourism industry is one which is set to boom in coming years and Brazilian property investors will be well placed to cash in on increased investment and visitor numbers.
