With the presence of various tourism-related entities and schools
On January 13th, the Tourism seminar took place at TEMPO - Portimão Municipal Theatre, as part of the Qualificar Gera(Ação) Programme, promoted by the Instituto Superior Manuel Teixeira Gomes (ISMAT) in partnership with Turismo de Portugal and supported by the Portimão City Council. Its main objective was to communicate to students from the western Algarve that tourism is a profession with a future.
All the seminar support work, from accreditation and guest assistance inside and outside the auditorium to entry control and even the on-stage presentation of the entire programme, from the opening to the closing of the seminar, was carried out by students of the Tourism Management degree.
The seminar opened with a speech by Álvaro Bila, President of the Portimão City Council, who stated that tourism is a phenomenon responsible for generating wealth, sustaining thousands of families, and driving Portimão’s identity as a top destination. He also took the opportunity to announce the intention to launch a Strategic Plan for Tourism in Portimão, to be developed in the coming years.
All the invited speakers who followed, distributed across four panels, reflected on the development of educational offerings to meet the growing market demands and prepare future professionals in the sector. It was unanimously agreed that educational offerings must be adapted to new tourism models, with courses integrating topics related to sustainability, environmental management, and the circular economy.
Duarte Padinha, from the Algarve Tourism Region, presented the Strategic Marketing Plan for the Algarve 2028.
Next, Alberto Borges, Director of Gago Coutinho Airport, presented representative data on tourism growth through the Algarve’s main entry point for tourists, which set the stage for the debate “Training for Quality” with Madalena Feu, Regional Delegate for the Algarve of the Institute for Employment and Vocational Training, Carla Martins Fernandes, from the Algarve Regional Directorate of Education (DREA), Catarina Paiva, Administrator of Turismo de Portugal, and Miguel Nuno Portugal, Director of the Tourism Management Course at Instituto Superior Manuel Teixeira Gomes (ISMAT), moderated by Elisabete Rodrigues, journalist and Director of the newspaper Sul Informação.
After a short coffee break, prepared and served by students from the Portimão School of Hospitality and Tourism, the theme “Tourism as a Professional Area with a Future” was presented by David Martins, General Director of Castro Marim Golfe & Country Club.
Finally, José Apolinário, President of CCDR Algarve, and André Gomes, President of the Algarve Tourism Region, representing the Secretary of State for Tourism, concluded the panels, reinforcing the importance of partnerships to ensure an increasingly structured and high-quality offering.
At the end of the seminar, ISMAT, through its Director Rui Loureiro, besides thanking all those present, addressed and launched the challenge of including programme content in Tourism courses to prepare students in developing management models to tackle successive regional and global crises, such as wars and pandemics, which have affected us in recent years.
At 7:30 pm, the seminar was concluded with a networking moment during a fantastic cocktail, prepared and served by the students of the Portimão School of Hospitality and Tourism, demonstrating the quality of service provided in the Algarve’s hospitality sector.
Check out the Event Photos on ISMAT’s Facebook
