TravelMole Guest Comment: Don’t forget the Brazilians, says Euromonitor

Outbound flows from Brazil to Europe are growing at fast rates, favoured by a strong economic performance and rising income levels. Lisandra Minussi, travel and tourism analyst at Euromonitor International, reviews the benefits this brings to Europe.

Economic prospects favour outbound flows
Brazil gained the spotlight in past years as one of the emerging market economies (EMEs) that led the global economy out of global economic crisis in 2008-2009 and continues to fuel the recovery owing to strong domestic demand and rising disposable incomes.

The country also experienced a significant appreciation against the Euro between 2005 and 2011. In 2011, there were 2.3 reals per Euro compared to 3.0 reals per Euro in 2005. This has helped spur travel to European destinations.

Top European Destinations for Brazilians:

Year 2009 2010 2011
France 372.6 383.2 432.9
Portugal 274.7 282.1 308.4
Italy 262.3 274.9 297.6
Spain 217.6 249.3 243.5
Germany 175.0 174.2 200.2

Source: Ministry of Tourism and Euromonitor International
Notes: 2011 are provisional data and may be subject to change

Europe lures Brazilian tourists
With their eyes on the promising Brazilian market, a number of European countries developed international marketing campaigns targeted to Brazilians.

In April 2011, Germany and the Czech Republic joined efforts to launch a tourism route targeted at Brazilian tourists. The initiative taken by the German Tourist Centre (DZT) and the Czech Republic Tourism Office is supported by the Berlin Tourism Office, Rail Europe and TAM Linhas Aéreas.

The brand new tourism product includes a total of eight cities – four from Germany (Berlin, Weimar, Leipzig and Dresden) and four from the Czech Republic (Prague, Cesky, Jrumlov, Pilsen and Rarlovy Vary) – exploring the main attractions at each city destination and introducing unexplored tourist sites.

It was introduced to travel agents in Brazil including MGM, Designer, Flot, TT Operadora, New Age and Marsans, who are in charge of selling and promoting the product to Brazilian travelers. An advertising campaign is also being featured on main Brazilian newspapers.

ETC in Brazil
The European Tourism Commission (ETC) is also involved in actions aimed at attracting a larger number of international tourists to Europe. In October 2011, for example, it is hosting the “Workshop Internacional Descubra a Europa” or the “International Workshop Discover Europe” (WIDE) in the city of São Paulo.

Dated back to 2007, the event that brings a number of European travel agents, hotel operators and official European tourism offices to Brazil grows every year. In 2010, there were a total of 120 exhibitors and 550 attendees to the event.
In 2011, there will be business meetings, through which Brazilian operators are given the opportunity to have one-to-one conversations with the European exhibitors. So far, confirmed countries for the event are Germany, Croatia, Denmark, Scotland, Spain, France, the UK, Hungary, Wales, Italy, Poland, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Slovakia.

Brazilians venture abroad
Outbound flows from Brazil are expected to increase 14% in the next five years, favored by positive economic prospects. A rapidly growing middle class with easy access to credit is also likely to boost future outbound tourism flows.
Increased promotional activity from European countries in Brazil will also be key to boost visits to Europe during the forecast period. The only factors hindering Brazilian visits to Europe in the upcoming years are volatile exchange rates and visa issues.

Top Five Destinations for Brazilians 2012-2016:

Year 2012 2016 % Growth 2012-2016
France 447.1 526.1 17.7
Portugal 315.6 360.0 14.0
Italy 302.9 338.9 11.9
Spain 247.9 281.0 13.3
Germany 204.2 241.7 18.3

Source: Ministry of Tourism and Euromonitor International

For further insight, contact Lisandra Minussi, Travel and Tourism Analyst, [email protected]