Portugal backs inland tourism
- Portugal announced an €11 million investment to shift visitors toward inland regions and away from hotspots. (euronews.com) - The funding targets nature, gastronomy, wellness, and cultural tourism to relieve pressure on Lisbon and Porto. (euronews.com) - Meanwhile Italy is rolling out 2026 tourism laws with fines and new restrictions for Capri, Venice, Florence, Rome, and the Dolomites. (travelandtourworld.com)
Portugal is putting €11 million behind a plan to draw visitors inland instead of sending more of them to Lisbon, Porto, and the Algarve. (euronews.com) The package covers 12 tourism projects, with Turismo de Portugal providing €4.5 million in direct support and the full investment totaling about €11 million. The contracts were signed in Porto in March under the “Growing with Tourism” program. (turismodeportugal.pt) The projects are spread across the North, Center, Alentejo, and Ribatejo, with a focus on lower-density areas. Officials said the funding will back nature, gastronomy, wellness, and cultural tourism products tied to local resources. (turismodeportugal.pt) Portugal is making that shift after another strong tourism run. Turismo de Portugal says the country took in €31.6 billion in tourism receipts in 2025, with the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the United States, and Spain as its biggest source markets. (turismodeportugal.pt) The pressure has been unevenly distributed. Euronews reported that the inland push is meant to pull travelers away from the biggest hotspots, especially Lisbon and Porto, where crowding has become part of the tourism debate. (euronews.com) Elsewhere in southern Europe, governments are moving faster from promotion to restriction. Italy has expanded anti-overtourism measures in 2026, with destinations including Venice, Capri, Florence, Rome, and parts of the Dolomites tightening rules for visitors. (forbes.com) Those Italian measures include Venice’s access fee on peak days, limits on loudspeakers and oversized tour groups in places such as Florence and Capri, and new local enforcement aimed at protecting crowded historic centers and fragile mountain areas. (afar.com, forbes.com) Portugal’s answer, for now, is to spread demand before it has to police it. The bet is that rivers, vineyards, thermal spas, historic villages, and regional food can absorb more visitors without adding to the crush in the country’s biggest city breaks. (euronews.com, turismodeportugal.pt)
