Visit Alto Tâmega e Barroso

2022 was another positive year in the history of the Alto Tâmega e Barroso Tourism Office (PTAT) and tourism in the region. This infrastructure, which serves the six municipalities of Alto Tâmega e Barroso and which opened its doors in September 2020, has already been visited by over 25 thousand tourists, of which 13 622 over the last year.

These numbers demonstrate the work that the region has been doing at the level of promotion of this territory that is increasingly affirmed as a tourist destination. The year 2022 reinforced this belief by registering an increase of about 12% over the previous year.

It should be noted that of the 12 months of last year, seven of them recorded a number of visitors exceeding 1000 per month (from April to October), the majority being Portuguese, but also from Spain, France, the United Kingdom and Brazil.

Still on the profile of the tourist who visited the PTAT during the year 2022, the majority sought the following tourist products: Cultural, National Road 2 (N2) and Thermal. The predominant age group was between 40-50, followed by the over 60s.

Beside these tourists we still detach the considerable number of visitors resident in the territory, in part thanks to the 20 initiatives of promotion realized in the facilities of PTAT, organized by the team of the tourism technicians of the same, with the collaboration of the six municipalities that compose the Intermunicipal Community of Alto Tâmega and Barroso (Boticas, Chaves, Montalegre, Ribeira de Pena, Valpaços and Vila Pouca de Aguiar).

To remind that was invested in this Tourism Office about 460 thousand euros, from which 383 517,04 euros financed by European funds, being the remaining amount supported by the six municipalities of the region. This financial support from the European Union was fundamental for the creation of this structure which serves the six municipalities, guiding tourists to the various points of special touristic interest in the region.

What is called the “gateway” of tourism to this territory is thus aligned with the strategic plan for tourism development of this Intermunicipal Community, which was possible to achieve much thanks to the support of European funds, contributing to the attraction of tourist flows, which are of great significance for the economic growth of the region.

For these reasons and the positive numbers of tourists that have been recorded year after year, this is considered to be a good example of projects that have benefited from the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF).

For the dissemination of this type of projects and investments made with the support of FEEI – Portugal 2020, CIMAT applied to Notice No. 01/POAT/2022 with a view to making an illustrative video on the investment made in this Tourist Office, which was sponsored by Portugal 2020, through the POAT – Technical Assistance Operational Programme and the European Union, through ERDF, and which we now disclose: