“The tourism sector was very affected. The effect of the crisis was asymmetrical, but the sector is recovering well and all the associated activities”, Miguel Albuquerque told journalists.
The head of the Madeiran executive, of the PSD/CDS-PP coalition, added that, at the moment, the region has "about 90% of the hotels already in operation" and those that are still closed are due to restoration works that are being carried out.
But he assured that “occupancy rates are very good” in the hotel sector in the region.
“This month of September has been a great month”, he argued, mentioning that the October 5th holiday has led to “great occupation rates” in the islands of Porto Santo and Madeira.
Miguel Albuquerque said that the Regional Government will analyse the situation of the tourism sector in October and November, considering that “recovery is underway”.
Asked about the possibility of easing the restrictive measures in force in Madeira, the government official insisted that the situation will be evaluated after the Flower Festival, whose programme runs from October 1st to 24th, simultaneously with the Wine Festival.
Albuquerque reaffirmed that this event "will be a rehearsal", stating that the authorities will "analyse the effects of the Flower Festival in terms of concentration of people", especially after the first weekend.
“And we need a few days to assess what's going to happen and after that we'll take action,” he emphasised.