The Algarve Wine Tourism project is renewing the Algarve wine route with a new image and strategy. Sara Silva said that the goal is to strengthen the connection to those who work directly with tourists so that the offer of wine tourism in the region is disclosed.

"This route will work well namely with partners, specifically the hotel industry and restaurants so that we can reach, not only the tourist but also work with the operators, with the partners on the tourism side so that they can integrate wine tourism into their own offer packages ", he stressed.

According to the official, the Algarve Wine Tourism route combines wine tourism with gastronomic and leisure experiences and heritage, in order to promote the diversity of the Algarve, where there are 50 producers, when in 2010 there were only 16, spread over four regions that produce wine: Lagos, Portimão, Lagoa and Tavira.

"The vineyards are full and do not stop receiving tourists, even at this time, which is the low season, visits are happening in a very continuous way and increasingly there are specific times for people to go to visit them, when before it was by appointment, although for some experiences it is still necessary to make reservations."

According to Sara Silva, Lagoa and Silves are where the most wine producers are concentrated, where activities aimed at visitors range from the basic wine tasting, to business events, and there are also more radical experiences, such as safaris on various vineyards.

In addition to the intensification of institutional partnerships, they plan to enable the training of those who are on the vineyards to receive tourists, through the creation of synergies with hotel schools and the university, she noted.

The Algarve Wine Tourism project brings together in this initial phase more than 20 wine producers, from the baroque to the coast, under the motto "The perfect 'pairing' for your visit to the Algarve".

Under the project, the bilingual Internet site www.algarvewinetourism.pt was launched, which contains a map which will constantly update with the adherent farms and where you can consult the existing experiences.

The Algarve currently produces 1.5 million bottles of wine per year in the 1,400 hectares of vineyards in the region, of which half have production of geographical indication and designation of origin.