Brazilian Minister of Tourism Marta Suplicy hopes her upcoming visit to China will be an opportunity to learn from the preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games and attract more visitors to her country.
Suplicy expressed the hope in a recent interview with Xinhua at her office in the capital city Brasilia. The minister is set to begin her trip to China later this month, the fourth in three decades.
She said she would first of all learn exactly how China has prepared for the August Olympic Games in Beijing.
"Everything we have heard thus far is that China has prepared very well for the event and has paid a lot of attention to every detail," the minister said.
Suplicy expressed confidence that China's organizational work "will help Brazil to prepare for the football World Cup in 2014 and for the possibility of being the Olympic host for the 2016 games."
The minister was also eager to exploit China's market potential for tourism, forecasting "50 million Chinese people vacationing throughout the globe" in 2010.
She said only 37,000 Chinese tourists visited Brazil in 2006, but arrivals are estimated to hit 100,000 in 2008.
There are also other desired changes. In 1993, 30 percent of Chinese travelers to Brazil came for pleasure, while 70 percent were on business, she said.
In 2004, 81 percent of Chinese tourists came for a vacation, with Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou listed as the top cities of origin, she added.
The average age of tourists is between 35 and 44. The number of children under the age of 14 has increased, a sign of more Chinese families traveling to Brazil, according to the minister.
Brazil is making preparations for new arrivals from China.
"We carried out a poll and found that there is not a search for beaches and sun, like throughout Europe, but rather for natural beauty, such as bird watching, waterfalls, fauna and flora, music and soccer. This knowledge allows us to gear our publicity in that direction," Suplicy said.
"We cannot waste one minute because the competition to receive as many Chinese tourists as possible will be great," She told Xinhua.
As one of the attractions, "I will inaugurate a luxury train that will travel from Curitiba, in Parana, to the Iguazu waterfalls," she said.
Brazil also plans to promote tourism during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
"We would like to be able to have shows and demonstrations of Brazilian products in downtown Beijing, at the House of Brazil. Wewill also try to spread as much publicity as possible, even buyinga piece of the stadium to announce 'Visit Brazil'," Suplicy said.
Meanwhile, the minister admitted that Chinese restaurants and Chinese tourist guides are still inadequate in Brazil. But she said her country "wants to help build the infrastructure and have some type of cooperation in this area."
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article