With A Goldilocks Climate & Stunning Beauty, The Azores Is Romancing ACTA Members

The 140 Canadian travel advisors in Portugal’s Azores for the ACTA International Destination Conference are feeling like lottery winners.

The group, which includes 45 with CTC designations and seven more CTMs, was selected from more than 400 applicants.

Now they are reaping the rewards, exploring an island archipelago with a Goldilocks climate, enthralling scenic beauty, extensive marine opportunities, hiking and biking trails, tasty volcanic wines, delicious cheeses made from the milk of free-roaming cows, and much more. And the trip has only just begun.

A year of planning and hard work went into this journey, with ACTA’s key partners including Visit Portugal, Visit Azores and SATA International Airlines.

Visit Portugal Director Canada Inês Almeida Garrett is along with us for the entire trip. She’s been in Canada for two and a half years, and while she modestly maintains that Portugal’s steep rise in Canadian visitors coincided with the post-COVID travel gold rush, it’s very clear that her energy and passion for Portugal as a destination has played a significant role in driving visitation.

Sadly missed on the trip is ACTA President Wendy Paradis, currently recovering from surgery. But the ACTA team hosting the conference: Marco Pozzobon, Lesley Berry, Katherina Thilavanh and Marilyn Maillet, have things running seamlessly – not an easy task when you’re herding 150 travel cats.

Filipe Silva, Senior Director for Visit Portugal, travelled from Lisbon to spend time with Canadian travel advisors. He has a sharp mind and a talent for listening to and probing advisors about what their clients want in a destination.

“It has been so important to host this conference,” Silva told TravelPulse Canada. “We’re here to learn about Canadian agents and what their clients are looking for. My impression is that Canadians are interesting people who are interested in the destinations they visit. The Canadian market has been increasing steadily, both for Portugal overall and for the Azores, and we are very confident the coming years will be positive.”

Silva and other Portuguese officials like Luis Capdeville Botelho, CEO of Visit Azores, are also keenly aware that local communities must see the benefits of increased tourism, and also that growth must be carefully managed to avoid the problems and resentments that can result from over-tourism.

“We are not a mass market destination,” Capdeville Botelho said. “These are small islands with a small population, and we want tourists who are coming to engage with our nature, our culture and our people.”

Currently, Capdeville Botelho says Canadians are the fifth-largest source market for Azores tourism, but rank second in added value – spend and length of stay. He says that with current trends, Canada is likely to move into the top three source markets in the next few years.

The ACTA conference is likely to play a role in that growth. Of the 140 travel advisor participants, only a small handful have previously visited the islands. That’s a huge positive, says Justin Gosling, Director, Canada for Discover The World, which promotes Azores Airlines in the Canadian market.

“There is enormous interest in this destination, as you can see by how many advisors are here, and the many others who applied to join the trip. There is huge potential in this market and we’re here to give you the tools to sell this amazing destination.”

Leslie Schaff, a long-time BDM for the Globus family of brands, offered advice for travel agents looking to offer their clients something new. The company has only been offering visits to the Azores for a couple of years, as part of a comprehensive 15-day Portugal itinerary, but she sees potential for Azores-only small group tours in future.

“The best thing is to experience the product, which you’re doing right now. Then it’s time to talk about it, not only to your clients but to your peers. You can use this experience to really bring it to life in Canada.”

Rosa Costa, Regional Director for Tourism for the Azores Government, says tourism to the islands has really only developed since the turn of the millennium. But in that short time, many local companies have been born, offering hiking and biking tours, diving, whale watching, and food and wine focused opportunities.

“We want to increase the value of tourism to the Azores,” Costa says. We don’t want the kind of people who just want to take selfies at iconic locations. The Azores are much more than a selfie spot.”

The Azores was the first archipelago in the world to achieve certification by EarthCheck, the world’s leading certification, consulting and advisory group for sustainable destinations and tourism. That happened in 2019, and just last year was upgraded to the Gold designation.

The Azores has also been singled out by EarthCheck as one of Leading Destinations of the World, a global network of destinations that share a vision and a passion for achieving improved sustainability outcomes.

“We have become an international case study on sustainability,” says Visit Azores’ Capdeville Botelho. “We not only protect our island, but enhance the visitor experience in the process.”

The nine islands of the Azores are one of the world’s largest whale sanctuaries, and the archipelago’s former whaling industry has been transformed into a year-round whale watching industry. After two mornings of conference presentations and a trade show featuring more than 30 Azorean suppliers, an afternoon whale-watching trip is next on the agency for ACTA conference participants.

Stay tuned for more coverage and insights from your industry peers on this exciting emerging destination.

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