Boa Vista Experience

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A total of 35,287 tourists visited the island of Boa Vista in the first six months of 2009, according to data from the Boa Vista border services. So far this summer between 6,500 and 7,000 tourists are thought to have come to the island, but the data provided indicates only those visitors arriving at Rabil International Airport directly from other countries. In January of 2009, 5,188 tourists arrived on Boa Vista on direct charter flights from abroad. In February that figure rose to 5,275, and in March to 5,688. In April the number of tourists arriving directly from abroad on the island stood at 6,601, but dropped slightly, to 6,021, in May, only to go back up to 6,514 in June.

The Boa Vista border services count only those tourists who pass through border controls at Rabil International Airport after arriving on direct charter flights from abroad, and are unable to determine the number of foreign tourists who arrive on the island on domestic flights from the rest of the country.

Italians continue to make up the largest portion of visitors to the island, followed by Spaniards, English, Germans, French and Portuguese. Demand is centered largely on the “sun and beach” tourism sub-sector, given the island’s beautiful, sandy landscapes. But eco—tourism is also awakening increasing interest, and the ever-growing number of tourists who come to the island to observe sea turtles, whales, sand sharks, dolphins and birds is notable.

Most of those making their way to the island have stayed at the hotels Riu Karamboa, Venta Club and Marine Clube, which have been packed with tourists this summer. The number of tourists arriving every month, which currently stands at between 6,500 and 7,000, is expected to increase even further with the opening, in October, of yet another hotel on Chaves beach. The island expects to have welcomed some 40,000 tourists by the end of the year.

A Semana