Hotel chain of Rio needs to increase, says secretary of Tourism

Text: Rio de Janeiro must increase its hotel chain between 8,000 and 10,000 beds because of 2016 Olympics and 2014 World Cup, said the secretary of Tourism of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Ronald Ázaro.

Ázaro participated this week in the Madrid’s International Tourism Fair (Fitur), closed last Sunday (23th), in the Spanish capital.

Speaking to Efe News Agency, the secretary outlined that, to facilitate the development of new hotel projects, the legislation was eased and currently there are three hotels under construction in the city.

The growth that the sporting events will represent for tourism in Brazil has encouraged the expansion of international hotel chains such as Hilton, Accor and the Spanish Sol Meliá, and some local groups.

Sol Meliá should initiate new urban hotel projects not only in Rio de Janeiro, but also in other World Cup host cities, such as Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte, Fortaleza, Manaus and Recife.

Up to seven cruise ships are planned to be used as hotels during the Olympics. This possibility, which was presented in Rio's Olympic candidature, will only be used if the offer of beds is not expanded as required.

Preparations for the major sporting events include infrastructure investments, particularly transport and leisure areas, because it is expected that the flow of tourists continue expanding after the events.

Ázaro told that the country used as a reference the Olympics in Barcelona in 1992, and studies indicate that over 60% of people who have been during the games returned in the years after the event.

Of the total number of foreign tourists that Brazil receives, over 5 million per year, one-third goes through the State of Rio de Janeiro and 80% of them are French.

The infrastructures improvement  will be accompanied by a professional qualification process, which will count on the collaboration of Spain and Portugal.

Until 2016, each year, 120 thousand new jobs will be created in Rio.

Last year, for the first time in history, Rio was the state that most generated employment among the 27 states of Brazil, with 150,000 new jobs.