Brazil Tourism
Brazil is an immense country with a great number of industries that contribute to its economy, one growing sector of which is tourism. Tourism is actually a key part of the economy in several regions of the country. In 2008, the country had had 5.2 million visitors, and in 2007 it was ranked the fourth largest tourist destination in the Americas. It was also ranked the main destination in South America, and second in Latin America, following only Mexico. These rankings were based on numbers of international tourist arrivals.
In 2008, revenues from tourism in Brazil had reached 5.78 billion, and in 2005 it was reported that 3.2 percent of the country’s revenues from exports of good and services was contributed by tourism. Tourism also represents seven percent of direct and indirect employment in the Brazilian economy. In 2006, direct employment alone in the tourism industry had reached 1.87 million people. Domestic tourism is another important Brazilian industry. In 2005, fifty-one million people travelled through out the country, and the direct revenues from Brazilian domestic tourism reached 21.8 billion, which was nearly six times greater than the receipts from international tourism that year.
One of the reasons that Brazil is such a popular tourist destination is that it offers such a wide range of options in activities and destinations. Both domestic and international tourists find a great deal to do around the country. The natural areas of Brazil are its most popular tourism product; it is a product that combines ecotourism with recreation and leisure. Sunny beaches, adventure travel, as well as historical and cultural tourism are all popular forms of natural tourism. Some of the more popular natural destinations are the beaches and dunes of the Northeast Region, the Amazon Rainforest, the Pantanal in the Center-West Region, cultural and historic locations in Minas Gerais, the business area of Sao Paulo city, and the beaches of Rio de Janeiro and Santa Catarina.
The 2008 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index measures the factors that make it attractive to develop business in the travel of tourism industries of individual countries. In this evaluation, Brazil ranked forty-ninth in the world, which was second in all Latin American countries and sixth in all the Americas. Where Brazil shows its main competitive advantages are visible in the sub index that measures human, cultural, and natural resources. In this sub index, Brazil ranks sixth at the world wide level, and third when only natural resources are considered. This evaluation also points out Brazil’s main weaknesses, which would be the information and communications technology infrastructure, where it ranked fifty-eighth in the world, the ground transport infrastructure, where they ranked ninety-fifth worldwide, and safety and security where it ranked one hundred and twenty-eighth worldwide.
The diversity of Brazil’s culture is another aspect that adds to its appeal as a tourist destination. There are so many different locales available to tourists, each with their individual flavor of lifestyle, music, food, art and people. The tourist possibilities in Brazil are endless.