From being voted “best country in the world” by the readers of Condé Nast Traveller to being nominated for 54 awards in the World Travel Awards (viewed as the ‘Oscars’ of tourism), Portugal is riding a wave of international success and recognition.
Despite the impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had on travel and tourism across the globe, Portugal’s reputation as one of the world’s leading destinations has remained virtually untouched.
After finishing third in the last two editions of Condé Nast Traveller’s The Readers’ Choice Awards, Portugal was voted the “best country in the world” by the travel magazine’s readers in 2021.
“There were no big surprises this year, although Spain and France were notable exceptions from the top 20. Portugal, on the other hand, is a country that just keeps getting better, with a growing appreciation not only of its beaches but its food and wine, and with lesser-known corners such as the artistically inclined Melides on our radar alongside the obvious hotspots of Comporta and the Algarve,” says Condé Nast.
Portugal edged out countries like New Zealand and Japan for the number one spot on the top-20 list, while Mediterranean countries usually viewed as tourism ‘rivals’ such as Greece and Croatia placed 8th and 9th, respectively.
Meanwhile, the country has received 54 nominations for the World Travel Awards, including ‘World’s Leading Destination’, ‘World’s Leading Family Destination’ and ‘World’s Leading Nature Destination’.
The Algarve is also in the running for ‘World’s Leading Beach Destination’ – a title which it received in last year’s edition of the awards – while the region’s hotels have received 20 nominations in an array of categories.
Lisbon is also vying for several accolades, including Leading City Destination, Leading Cruise Port, Leading Cruise Destination, Leading City Break Destination and Leading Heritage City Destination – the last two of which also feature Porto among the nominees.
Voting is open to everyone at (click here) until October 24. The gala ceremony to announce the winners will be held in November in Moscow, Russia. Another award that could make its way to the Algarve is the CIFFT “People’s Choice” Award, which aims to select the world’s best promotional tourism short film.
The film, entitled ‘The Algarve Looks Good on You’, is the centrepiece of a campaign using the same name which was launched in the midst of the pandemic and aims to show potential visitors that the Algarve is a safe destination.
It features couple Raquel and Miguel, known on Instagram as ‘Explorerssaurus’, one of the most successful influencers in the business, as they enjoy a trip to the Algarve. You can vote for the film here.
Last month also saw Vilamoura Marina in the Algarve being named ‘International Marina of the Year’ in 2021 by The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA) and the British Marine Federation for the fifth time (click here).
Source: CCIPV / Portugal Resident