Brazil's int'l arrivals for Q1 surpassed pre-COVID levels

Brazil is reporting positive tourism arrivals for the first quarter of 2023, saying it surpassed pre-pandemic levels with 2.3 million international arrivals, according to the Brazilian Agency for the International Promotion of Tourism (Embratur) and the Ministry of Tourism.

The mark is higher than in the same period in 2020, the last year before the onset of COVID-19, when the country received 1.9 million visitors from other countries.

The performance also surpasses the first quarter of 2019, when there were 2.2 million international tourists, Embratur says.

Most tourists came from Argentina, totaling one million people, followed by the United States (184,300) and Paraguay (151,500).

The Brazilian states through which the most international travelers entered were Rio Grande do Sul, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Paraná, and Santa Catarina.

Brazil is also resuming air frequencies to 2020 standards – Embratur says airlines will add two million new seats on flights to Brazil by the end of the year

Between April and December of this year, 9.7 million seats are scheduled on international flights to Brazil, an increase of 26 per cent or two million new seats compared to the same period last year.

Embratur calls thus growth one of its “institutional missions.” The agency says it has been working in partnership with airlines, promoting destinations in Brazil in the countries of origin of these new flights to generate demand that gives economic sustainability to the new routes.

“With the help of big data, we know where the potential new tourists are and who are interested in what Brazil has to offer. So, we first demonstrate the potential demand to stimulate new routes to airlines. Once the new route is guaranteed, our mission is to connect operators and work on tools to promote Brazilian destinations and bring tourists here,” stated Marcelo Freixo, president of Embratur.

Brazil to host World Pride Games

One of the biggest multi-sport events of the LGBTQ community will also be held in Brazil.

Embratur's Director of Marketing, Intelligence, and Communication, Jaqueline Gil, received the project for the World Pride Games from the executive director of the games, Edgar Hubner.

The competition is expected to be held in November 2024 in Curitiba and in the country for the first time.

Brazil Pride Games will take place between the 14th and 17th of November 2024, with an estimated gathering of 2,500 athletes from various countries.

“We are organizing a competition that will receive teams from various corners of the world, such as Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Uruguay, the United States, and other countries, in 12 sports: athletics, beach tennis, dance, soccer 7, handball, jiu-jitsu. Jitsu, judo, swimming, table tennis, volleyball, beach volleyball, and chess,” stated Hubner.

Gil highlighted the importance of the sporting event.

“This is an important initiative for the sport, as well as for our society as a whole. And sport is indeed an inclusion tool for LGBTQIAP+ people; many athletes have already gone through some situation of prejudice and/or social exclusion,” she stated.

Brazil & Portugal sign agreement

Embratur and the Public Institute of Tourism of Portugal have also signed a cooperation agreement to exchange experiences in the areas of innovation and information technology with a focus on the international promotion of tourism.

The countries will team up to attract foreign tourists based on segmentations ranging from surfing to literary tourism.

The agreement, which provides for the exchange of “good practices in the international promotion of tourism and attraction of foreign tourists,” aims to expand the flow of tourists between the two countries.

Embratur, after meeting with the company Diáspora Black, is also ramping up efforts to promote afro-tourism in Brazil, with a focus on the U.S. market.

"We have created a coordination that will treat afro-tourism as a priority. From now on, we will establish integrated actions with those who work in the segment to make our destinations more competitive," said Freixo

The new leadership of Embratur has created a department within the Management of Experiences and International Competitiveness Office to promote “Afro-tourism, Diversity, and Original People.”

The intention is to act with these strategic audiences for the agency and who portray Brazilian culture as a “diverse, inclusive, and welcoming country to the world.”

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