“After two years conditioned by the [covid-19] pandemic, we had a year of recovery which, for the New Year, has a very positive outlook, with an average occupancy rate of more than 80%. Some hotels, especially those that already have their own entertainment programmes, have been sold out for some time”, said João Fernandes.

He highlighted the contribution of the Portuguese market, stressing that, "although the national market is always the most relevant at New Year's Eve, this year it made itself felt with an even more expressive presence".

Reservations for the end of year period and 'New Year's Eve' have had this year "more direct reservations, without intermediation", and were made "earlier", said the president of the RTA, stressing that "the weather perspectives" for the New Year “point to minimum temperatures of 15 degrees and maximums of 20 degrees”.

The prospects are thus good "in terms of weather", which gives "the opportunity to be outdoors, with a very strong New Year's Eve entertainment offering in several locations in the Algarve", he added, considering that these forecasts "also anticipate that last minute bookings will increase”.

“From the point of view of international markets, Spain is also always a strong market, as the cross-border regions - Andalusia, Extremadura, but also Galicia, have a generational tradition of coming to the Algarve during this period and in the summer”, he added.

The Portuguese and Spanish markets are joined by the “traditional markets” of the Algarve, such as the “United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the French-speaking markets”, which are, according to the president of the Tourism Region, “showing good signs”.

“These are the reasons why AHETA [Associação de Hotéis e Empreendimentos Turísticos do Algarve], the hotel association in the region, expects a 10% increase in turnover for this period, which is very significant”, he pointed out.

Asked whether the increase in turnover is related to greater demand or an increase in prices, João Fernandes replied that the 10% increase predicted by AHETA results from the “two factors combined”.

“Prices followed the cost of production factors because of inflation. In practice, it also has repercussions on sales to the public”, added the director of Turismo do Algarve, a region that, “when compared with competing destinations in southern Europe, continues to be a good bet” for those who want to spend a few days of rest over New Year.