Tourism Minister leads talks to attract more cruises to Brazil

Celso Sabino is in Miami, in the United States, where he is taking part in a global meeting of the segment

Published in Apr 10, 2024 03:28 PM Updated in Apr 11, 2024 12:12 PM

Photo: Lívia Nascimento.

Expanding the presence of cruises along Brazil's almost 8,000 km of coastline all year round. It is with this mission that the Minister of Tourism, Celso Sabino, has landed in Miami, United States, where he will be taking part in Seatrade Cruise Global from Tuesday, April 9. The event is the main exhibition for companies and organizations looking to do business with the international cruise industry.

"We have a coastline with some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world and our aim is to boost the cruise industry. The Brazilian delegation's participation in this event is precisely with a view to publicizing new route possibilities in Brazil, as well as identifying existing bottlenecks so that we can stimulate this market, both internally and externally," explained Tourism Minister Celso Sabino.

The 2023/2024 Brazilian cruise season, which ends this month, is expected to be the best of the last decade. The segment is expected to inject BRL 5.1 billion into the country's economy and generate 80,000 jobs. There are a total of 203 itineraries involving dozens of national destinations, as well as more than 840,000 beds for passengers.

"The effort we have made to attract investment in the sector, including the cruise segment, contributes strongly to increasing the number of jobs in our country, promoting social inclusion through tourism, which is good for everyone," concluded Sabino.

During the agenda, the minister met with the CEOs of MSC Cruises, Gianni Onorato, and Costa Cruises, Mario Zanetti, to present new itinerary possibilities to be developed in Brazil and explain the measures being promoted by the government to increase the competitiveness of the segment.

"Minister Celso Sabino is the first tourism minister to come to this event, which shows that cruises are a priority for the federal government, which recognizes the full potential of our segment for the Brazilian economy and how we can contribute to job creation," said the president of Clia Brasil.

STAND - Brazil is present at the event with a 111 square meter stand and the presence of 15 co-exhibitors, including Píer Mauá and the states of Ceará, São Paulo, Bahia, Alagoas and Amazonas.

By Lívia Nascimento.