Qingdao Fragrant Hills Tourism Summit 2018 Exclusive Interview: Come Here Living Like a Local

Focus on city’s specificities, make smart solutions

A city that values its own history and culture and that celebrates the important dates through different events and shares its habits and singularities, offering its tourists unique experiences. Encouraging initiatives that reveal the specificities of the city is a big stimulating action for the valuable experience of tourists.

Another major factor is that the city invests in smart solutions that better the quality of life of the population and, therefore, of the tourist. In order to do so, it must, for example, promote integration between mobility, urbanism, environment, energy, technology and innovation, economy, education, health, safety, entrepreneurship and governance.

Concerning the methods that tourists should use to better experience what a city has to offer, I will highlight one of the main trends of tourism nowadays: the search for experiences where the tourist gets to explore the city “living like a local”. In this way, it is very important to value all the actions taken, for example, in order to allow the tourist to participate in events and celebrations of regional tradition, tasting and also preparing typical meals from the local gastronomy, learning how to make some handicrafts from the city they are visiting, amongst others.

Belo Horizonte: Surpreendente

Belo Horizonte has recently created a new tourism brand and has also launched a new brand positioning. “Belo Horizonte: Surpreendente” (Belo Horizonte: Amazing) is the way our city now introduces itself to the public. The objective is to clarify the aspects that turn the capital of Minas Gerais into this city that overcomes all the expectations of its citizens and visitors and that is in constant transformation.

Belo Horizonte is also a city where arts, culture, scientific knowledge and technology thrusts daily life forward, stimulates its constant renewal and boosts its economic growth. Events such as the Carnival of Belo Horizonte, which reached 3.8 million of people in 2018.

Another highlight is the “Pampulha Modern Ensemble”, which was recognized by UNESCO, in July 2016, as a World Cultural Heritage site. Let’s not forget the outskirts of the city and their rich experiences. Municipalities such as Mariana, Ouro Preto and Congonhas – the two latter also World Cultural Heritage sites -, reveal the richness of Brazil through the gems of the baroque production of the colonial period and are located in a range of 100km from the capital of Minas Gerais. In Brumadinho, the Institute Inhotim – famous museum of contemporary art and botanical garden-, 60km distant from the city, allows the tourist to visit galleries with pieces of art and sculptures exhibited outdoors, in a singular spatial relation between arts and nature.

Look for the collaboration between cities

The “urban tourism”, through which tourists live an experience of the city in its diverse aspects, is a trend. More than traveling in search of specific attractions, the numbers are on the rise of tourists in search of multiple experiences, contact with other cultures, with other ways of life and experiences.

This way, the collaboration between cities is important in order to encourage tourism between residents of involved localities, promoting marketing and advertising opportunities, sharing experiences and offering incentives for travels. With this perspective in mind, we are looking for partnerships for this kind of cooperation.

The city of Belo Horizonte, through Belotur, has recently participated in the 1st Latin America Tourism Conference, in Bogota, a relevant experience to get to know the professionals of tourism of China and establish contacts with other members of the WTCF of that region. We believe that this exchange and network of experiences is really important for the development of tourism potential of Belo Horizonte.