Portugal invests in literary tourism to attract visitors and develop the interior | Tourism

The member of Turismo de Portugal Lídia Monteiro said, on Monday, in Buenos Aires, that a big investment is being made in literary tourism, due to its potential to attract visitors and develop the interior of the country.

Speaking at the Buenos Aires Book Fair, where Lisbon is the guest city of honor, Lídia Monteiro said that demand for Portugal as a tourism destination continues to grow, and that last year the country “recovered everything it lost in the pandemic “.

Noting that there is an increasing interest in visiting the country based on the lives of national writers or based on books that have Portugal as a character, such as some books by José Saramago, such as “Viagem a Portugal” or “The Elephant’s Journey”, Lídia Monteiro stated that tourism is exploring this path.

“In Portugal, we are developing what has immense potential: literary tourism, that is, visiting the country through the eyes of writers, or inspired by the lives of writers. Developing proposals so that people can visit the country from literature”.

The head of Tourism of Portugal said that there are more than 25 writers’ houses, each with a different story and gave as an example Casa Fernando Pessoa, in Lisbon, which not only has “timeless objects” from the poet, but also has a program for learn about the author’s life and work.

In this regard, he mentioned that it is “very important for these houses to have programming and an expository narrative”, as is also the case with the Saramago Foundation, considering that this must be developed throughout the country.

Furthermore, he highlighted how literary tourism “allows tourists to be taken to various parts of the country, and not just the capital, and to develop them”.

“Many authors were not born in Lisbon, but in small towns. This allows small businesses to grow around these houses.”

As an example, he mentioned Eça de Queirós, who had a house in Baião, in the Douro, where he spent his holidays, and Miguel Torga, who was born and lived in Sabrosa, where there are two spaces: an interpretive center, designed by the architect Souto de Moura, and the reconstruction of the family home.

Lídia Monteiro also said that Turismo de Portugal began offering a literary tourism course for professionals three years ago, an “online” course that began during the pandemic, and that “there are more and more people interested in taking this course”.

“It’s sad to say this, but the pandemic was an opportunity for literary tourism. As we couldn’t invite people to visit Portugal, we decided to invite people to read Portugal”, he said.

A Brazilian citizen who visited the Portuguese pavilion, accompanied by an old book “Viagem a Portugal”, by Saramago, said that she has been traveling to Portugal for years with that novel as a guide, and added that her objective is to experience and know everything what the author describes.

This year, a Portuguese Network of Writers’ Houses was created, under the authority of the General Directorate of Books, Archives and Libraries, in conjunction with the National Library.

“Considering the growing importance of literary tourism and the need to promote and qualify the existing offer, it is also expected that the dynamization of the Network will be carried out in conjunction with Turismo de Portugal, in order to increase the offer and structuring of itineraries literary activities around the life and work of authors of Portuguese literature and, as well, provide a differentiated tourist experience”, can be read in the ordinance that created that network, still under the mandate of the previous Government.

The Lusa agency traveled at the invitation of Lisbon City Council