One of the evils that affect tourism in Brazil is prejudice. I have always said this and repeated it again recently, in an interview I gave to the “red pages” of Economy&Law magazine, a publication whose main audience is businessmen, jurists and politicians in Brazil. The question raised by the magazine's journalists was the following: "Can the proposal to legalize casinos integrated into resorts leverage Brazilian tourism?"
Despite my affirmative answer – and with the caveat that this does not mean that we should not approach the subject with the necessary caution and care – I once again stated that Brazil is a country full of prejudices in relation to Tourism, which need to be overcome.
A clear example of this are hotels inside national parks, which is a common practice worldwide, and here in Brazil we have very rare cases, such as in the Itatiaia National Park, where a hotel was built before the area became a park, in 1931, and especially the Hotel das Cataratas, in Foz do Iguaçu, which is one of the best hotels in Latin America, but opened in 1958! Since then, we no longer have relevant hotels within our parks. Delay and prejudice are old traveling companions in our country.
A similar situation exists with the issue of casino legalization – the many positive and interlinked effects need to be carefully analyzed. Especially if you follow the formula proposed by the most advanced bill going through Congress, which authorizes resorts integrated with casinos, large hotel developments in which casinos could not occupy more than 10% of the total area, which is quite balanced.
We cannot forget the role of the Urca and Quitandinha casinos in the formation of the Brazilian artistic class and “show business” in the 1940s, and the way in which new investments could leverage and promote tourism, entertainment and a whole network of services.
What needs to be fought is illegal gambling, the evasion of resources from online gambling that is proposed to be taxed, and other unregulated gambling. You can see that even China considers casinos fundamental for its Tourism strategy, which is why it encourages one of the best structures in the world, in Macau. Thus, those who play legally play in their own country. That is, they were not afraid, but courageous.
Both in the luxury segment, in resorts, natural parks, we have the potential to grow in the domestic market. We need to have price and quality in good terms to attract Brazilian tourists of all levels of purchasing power, including those who spend abroad. But, for that, we need to abandon preconceptions in the first place; and investing in work, planning and government actions – in partnership with the private sector – in all sectors of Tourism, to make Brazilians know, like and travel around Brazil.
In the same line of thought, I cannot fail to comment on how stupefying and frightening we are when we observe that the national elections took place without much mention of Tourism, huge potential for development and job creation for the future of Brazil.
And it also continues to cause astonishment when in government transitions, as now, and with the country in extreme difficulty closing its accounts, little or almost nothing is said about improving the environment for investments, in Tourism, as in Energy and Infrastructure. What do they talk about in Brazil? Debts, interest, lack of money and popularity; much is said about the vicious circle, but very little in getting out of it.
Vinicius Lummertz
Former Minister of Tourism of Brazil and current São Paulo State Secretary of Tourism and Travel
