News – Natal Travel Guide

Buggy rides: Safety and evaluation – Regulating the fun is welcome

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As a matter of safety and good value for money, the services of buggy rides in Natal and region were evaluated by an organisation named Instituto Fecomércio Rio Grande do Norte. The findings were presented to the president of Sindbuggy RN, Hertz Medeiros, and to the coordinator of the Business Chamber for Tourism at FECOMERCIO (Rio Grande do Norte), Jorge Costa.

Marcelo Queiroz, the president of Fecomércio (RN), stated the aim in reinforcing the Federation’s work in supporting activities that make tourism in the state. “The gathered data will guide the work developed by the category, with a view to improve the service provided to serve not only tourists, but also the Potiguares who take the buggy rides along our coast”, said Mr Queiroz, a well known person in the tourism industry.

Perspectives

The numbers were presented by the Director of Innovation and Competitiveness, Luciano Kleiber, and bring a good perspective to buggy drivers and passengers. When evaluated about the service provided by buggy drivers:

Respondents
(75.1%) praised the service
(99.3%) punctuality
(67%) empathy
(98.5%) technical and theoretical knowledge

In addition, 78.1% of tourists indicated the tour as excellent, 20.9% indicated it as good. Those who would most indicate are tourists from the South (88.9%) and North (88.9%) regions. Still, 97% of users revealed that they would take the buggy ride again.

Evaluation – At the end, the grade that the user would give for the tour performed, from 0 to 10, 65.5% answered the grade “Ten”; 23.2% answered the grade “Nine”; 8.9% “Eight” and only 2.5% grades “Seven or lower”.

“This survey came at a good time for the category and presents satisfactory numbers. We are going to gather the buggy, show the data and expand our quality to the rest of the coast, and also plead through the numbers, improvements and qualification for the professionals”, declared Hertz Medeiros, president of Sindibuggy. The entity represents more than 720 accredited buggy drivers.

Relevance – The coordinator of the Business Chamber of Tourism, Jorge Costa, commented that, with the figures presented by FECOMERCIO, it is possible to show public authorities and reaffirm the level of relevance that the activity has for the tourist chain.

“These are satisfactory results that prove the quality of the service. They are professionals who do their job well and help the image of tourism in RN”, commented Costa.

Survey – The profile of the consumer of buggy rides is men, with 56.2%; aged 25 to 34 years (34.2%). The average individual income of tour users was 5.2 salaries.

In the sample, a little more than 46.1% of the tour users were from the Southeast region; 30.3% from the Northeast region; 11.1% from the South region. Most were people from São Paulo (26.8%), Pernambuco (13.5%); Minas Gerais (11.1%); Rio de Janeiro (7.9%).

Itineraries – Regarding the route contracted for the tour, the largest share (37.2%) of users opted for the complete tour to Muriú. In addition, the choice of mobile dunes with fixed ones stands out (31.3%); only fixed dunes (18.7%) and fixed dunes with sunset (12.1%).

buggy, ride, safety

Cruise ships are back – Life is returning to normal

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The Federal Government announced in early October that the return of cruises to the Brazilian coast will take place next November, with the beginning of the 2021/2022 season. According to the Rio Grande do Norte Docks Company (Codern), the forecast is that Natal will receive six cruises during the season, with the possibility of expanding this number.

“This increase can happen at any time. But, to include our State in the routes, an effort is also necessary from the secretariats (State and Municipal Tourism) and entities linked to the sector”, explained Codern in a statement. The Company stated that a shipowner (owner, partner or charterer of a ship) will come to Natal in November to visit the port and include it in cruise routes.

According to the Company, the cruises that will arrive in Natal next season will come from Ilhéus, Recife and Macapá. The State received a cruise for the last time last year, in respect of the decree of the State Government, which spoke about measures to prevent the pandemic. “Cruises did not dock in RN to enforce State Decree No. 29,541, of March 20, 2020”, he informed.

Article 16, of Decree 29,541, established that “passengers and crew of flights and ships, from locations” where there was a record of covid-19 cases and who disembarked in potiguar territory should “submit themselves to social isolation at home for at least 14 days”, even if they did not present any symptoms related to the disease”.

Also because of the pandemic, the Maritime Passenger Terminal (TMP), which has an average maintenance cost of R$ 70 thousand per month, stopped carrying out activities such as parties and fairs, in compliance with another decree of the State Government (of March 13, 2020), which prevented mass events. “It is noteworthy that the structure houses units of Codern, the Federal Revenue, the Federal Police, the Ministry of Agriculture and that it has repairs and local security”, explained the Company in the note, to justify the average cost of maintenance.

The TMP in Natal has a total built area of 5,068.67 m². The event room has a capacity for 1,500 people and the gazebo seats another 600. The equipment is divided into two buildings: the historic warehouse, located at Largo da Rua Chile; and in a building that houses the passenger station, function rooms, kitchens, restrooms and elevators.

The Port of Natal supports the mooring of ships with a maximum length of 205 meters, due to the draft of the Potengi River and the height of the central span of the Newton Navarro Bridge, which is only 55 meters. The area is part of the Ribeira neighborhood revitalization project. The Terminal was a work of the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC), which received investments in the order of R$ 74 million.

Return should inject BRL 2.5 billion into the country’s economy

The guarantee for the resumption of maritime cruise navigation will enable Brazilians to join the more than 2 million people who have already sailed around the world since this type of activity resumed operations in around 50 countries. According to the Ministry of Tourism (Mtur), the return should generate 35,000 jobs and inject R$ 2.5 billion into the national economy.

The amount is 11% higher than that recorded in the last season, held in 2019/2020. For the 2021/2022 season, seven vessels are planned, responsible for offering more than 566,000 beds, the highest offer in the last four years (the offer is equivalent to 35,000 more beds than registered in the last season).

In addition, according to information from the Mtur, around 130 itineraries and 570 stops are planned in national destinations much sought after by Brazilians, such as Rio de Janeiro, Santos, Salvador, Angra dos Reis, Balneário Camboriú, Búzios, Cabo Frio, Fortaleza, Ilha Grande , Ilhabela, Ilhéus, Itajaí, Maceió, Porto Belo, Recife and Ubatuba.

Rules
Ordinance 658/2021, which authorizes the return of maritime cruises in the country, establishes conditions for the resumption and brings rules on borders – activities must take place exclusively in Brazilian jurisdictional waters.

The document, edited by the ministers of the Civil House, Justice and Public Security, Health and Infrastructure, conditions the return to the previous edition of the Ministry of Health’s ordinance, which should provide for the epidemiological scenario and define the situations considered to be outbreaks of covid. -19 in vessels, as well as the conditions for the fulfillment of passenger and ship isolation.

States and Municipalities must implement an Operational Plan that establishes conditions to provide health care to passengers arriving in their territories, in addition to the local execution of active epidemiological surveillance.

The sanitary conditions for the embarkation and disembarkation of passengers and crew (including those from other countries) will be defined by the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) in a specific act. Anvisa met last week with representatives of associations and companies operating cruise lines in the country to discuss the sanitary protocols to be adopted.

During the meeting, the Agency anticipated that the complete vaccination of passengers is one of the main points under discussion. The Agency also discusses the need for testing before boarding and on board (periodically), to monitor passengers during the trip.

The protocols under discussion also involve screening for boarding, onboard health rules, capacity, reduced number of cabins and permanent monitoring during activities.

cruise, ship

More flights between Natal and Lisbon – TAP announces extra flights in a permanent basis.

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Good news for travellers! Businessmen and the State government of Rio Grande do Norte celebrate the return of flights on the Natal – Lisbon – Natal route, with the first taking place on the 3rd of November and operated by TAP Air Portugal. The trips are not just for the next peak tourist season, but permanent, with a frequency of three flights a week.

Over the years 2020 and 2021, the State government held meetings with TAP throughout to ensure that Natal was on the first routes as soon as the resumption of activities took place in a concrete manner. The most recent meeting between Governor Fátima Bezerra (PT) and the airline operator took place this Tuesday (26), when the Chief Executive meets, in São Paulo, with the new CEO of TAP, Christine Ourmières-Widene,

Politicians and technicians from the Tourism secretariat continue to work on Natal in Europe. “The current moment was long awaited and planned. During this last week, we were on a road-show (trips to present a location) in the main emitting destinations in Europe, promoting RN as a safe and responsible place”, explained RN’s Tourism Secretary, Aninha Costa.

The president of the Brazilian Association of the Hotel Industry in RN (ABIH-RN), Abdon Gosson, comments that European flights are what was needed for a stronger recovery in the sector, since Brazilian tourists are already arriving frequently in Natal . “The flights are very busy and now the European tourist comes with the euro, an overvalued currency. The expectation that the European will stay at our destination is much higher and the daily expenditure higher than that of Brazilian tourists”, says Gosson.

He adds that the sector’s recovery has been gradual and consistent each month. “The recovery is very good and we hope that in the coming months the occupancy rate will increase even more, just when New Year’s Eve and summer occur to reach the best moment of tourism in our state, logically after having spent almost a year of losses practically daily.

However, those who come to Natal will have to strengthen the budget with stays a little, since, in addition to the increase in demand for beds, the entire country is going through an inflation of costs, which are passed on to the consumer. “Tariff increases are inevitable, not only because of the high demand, but because costs have increased considerably. This increase is justified by the quality of service that hotels offer their guests”, concludes Gosson.

The Portuguese government suspended the flight in the middle of the covid-19 pandemic, when its borders were closed. A government delegation will carry out actions at Aluízio Alves International Airport to receive European tourists.

Airport, Flight, Lisbon, Natal, TAP

Pandemic: After a sad time, it is time to celebrate with precaution

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After pandemic peak, the Christmas festivities in Natal return to the calendar of year-end celebrations in the capital after an eventless 2020 due to the covid-19 pandemic. It was not a easy year, with reduced investments due to the health crisis, the next edition, which starts on November 19th and runs until January 6th, 2022, when Santos Reis Day is celebrated, will only have the participation of local artists. The allocated resources for the party are estimated at up to
$ 3 million reais – in previous editions, investments were around $ 8 million reais.

The event is divided into five territories: Árvore de Mirassol – opening of the party; Black tip; Redinha; Historic Center and Jesiel Figueiredo space, in the North Zone. During the launch this Thursday (28), Mayor Álvaro Dias (PSDB) spoke about the importance of Christmas in Natal for the city’s economy.

“As a tourist hub, Natal has always invested in the creative economy, with the promotion of events, because, through them, we encourage people from other cities and states to visit our capital. This makes the frequency of bars, restaurants, hotels and inns increase, generating jobs and income for the city. So, we are resuming the incentive to this type of economy with Christmas in Natal”, said the mayor during the launch event.

Dácio Galvão, secretary of Culture in Natal and president of the Capitania das Artes Cultural Foundation (Funcarte) also highlighted, as the head of the municipal Executive, that the event serves as a hub for business movement in the most varied segments in the City. “The City Hall issued a public notice with democratic processes and that made possible a grid with more than 200 actions in the most diverse areas”, he pointed out.

“Our cultural planning is diverse, with the participation of areas such as theater, cinema, music and dance. Therefore, it is a process of absorption of artists from the city and the state, which made possible, I repeat, a grid with more than 200 actions in these different areas. All segments are happy, since, in this post-pandemic process, these actions mean a movement of the creative economy, and of fostering citizenship”, highlighted Dácio next.

Protocols
The covid-19 pandemic scenario led the City of Natal to create biosafety protocols, in addition to actions to encourage vaccination against the disease. A fixed trailler will be set up in the Mirassol Tree, with a team made available by the Municipal Health Department (SMS/Natal) to immunize those who are participating in the events.

“The artists will sensitize the population attending these events to the importance of vaccination. This is a partnership that we signed with Funcarte to seek to sensitize those who have not yet taken D2, considering that there is a significant portion of Natal residents who have not yet received this second dose”, explained the head of the Health Surveillance of Natal, José Antônio de Moura, who coordinates the actions.

In addition, rules such as mandatory use of masks, use of alcohol gel, constant cleaning of spaces and installation of washbasins – in the latter case, in the Mirassol Tree – are also required. “That pole, which is the main one for Christmas in Natal, will have a washbasin blocks for hand hygiene near the chemical toilets, food parks and the area where the street vendors will be”, pointed out Moura.

Also according to the head of Sanitary Surveillance, a survey will be carried out by the Municipal Department of Urban Services of Natal (Semsur), with information on licensed street vendors, who may work during the festivities. The objective is to train them in good practices for handling commercialized products, with training on the main care and ways of preventing covid-19.

Bidders must present proof of the complete vaccination schedule. In the case of food sales, the recommendation is that the products undergo little manipulation in event venues.

The Sanitary Surveillance informed that there will be no audience limitation, since the events take place in open environments. “Since the spaces are open, there is no way to restrict the audience. However, the orientation is to respect distancing issues, as this is possible in these places”, describes José José Antônio de Moura.

City Hall must carry out the carnival
This year’s edition of Christmas in Natal is considered a new beginning by the authorities, due to the suspension of the event in 2020. With the impacts caused by the pandemic, one of the options found was to opt for the exclusive participation of local artists.

“We were always asked so that they could have a chance for Christmas in Natal to happen only with local artists. It is evident that this will improve the circulation of the productive chain of Culture and Tourism in the city. It’s a challenge, because the artists from other states who arrived here had a capillarity of mobilization of a larger audience”, says Dácio Galvão, from Funcarte.

“But it is evident that this challenge brings local workers to a new protagonism and a new economic reintegration. And this rescues, above all, this interruption that occurred, where the cultural segment was the first to be reached and is being the last to leave the cocoon”, he adds.

The Christmas program in Natal counts with the participation of artists such as Dodora Cardoso, Luizinho Nobre, Rodolfo Amaral, Fernando Luiz, Priscila Matos, Yhran Barreto, Filipe Toca, among others. The events include the shows Presente de Natal and Cortejo Natalino, which are directed by Diana Fontes, in addition to fairs, music and photography contests, visual arts exhibition, in addition to several other attractions.

“It is noticeable how much people are eager for the return of the shows, and there is nothing better than Christmas in Natal to resume our presentations”, celebrated the scenic director, Diana Fontes. For Mayor Álvaro Dias, the expectation is that the people of Natal enjoy the program and celebrate together the return of the festivities in the capital. “It will be an event of great proportion, which I hope will have the reception and acceptance of the population, because it really marks the resumption of the great events in Natal.”

Carnatal
Christmas in Natal announces the arrival of great shows and events in the state capital and will not be the only one of this size to fill the city’s calendar after more than a year. According to the secretary of Culture of Natal and president of Funcarte, Dácio Galvão, Carnival 2022 is confirmed.

“Carnatal will take place in 2022 and we are mobilizing all segments in a meeting that should take place next Wednesday (November 3) to discuss the details. Together with the mayor, we are about to dispatch the possibility of launching next year’s public notice”, said the secretary.

Celebrations, Christmas, Natal, Party