“We are experiencing a good moment in tourism in our region,” said the executive secretary of CIM Viseu Dão Lafões, Nuno Martinho, during the presentation of the region’s presence at the Lisbon Tourism Exchange (BTL), which took place in Penalva do Castelo.

He explained that, compared to 2024, in 2025 there was a 4.68% increase in the number of guests staying in tourist accommodation establishments – to a total of 363,700 – “higher than the national average, which was around 3%”.

According to Nuno Martinho, there was also a 3.66% increase in overnight stays (to 655,400), higher than the national average of 2.15%.

“We have growing activity in terms of guests and overnight stays, but we have, fundamentally, in terms of revenue. From 2024 to 2023 (2025 is not yet closed), we grew our region’s total tourism revenue by more than 22%,” he stressed.

In a region where the average stay in tourist accommodation was 1.8 nights, Nuno Martinho considered that, despite the current positive situation, there is “an ever-increasing margin for progress”.

“And that is the work we have been doing. It is the work of the CIM together with the public and private actors in the territory,” he said.

The president of CIM, João Azevedo, considered that the figures presented by Nuno Martinho represent “a great responsibility”.

“The figures are very good, but we want to improve,” he stressed, expressing his conviction that this will be possible by combining “public policies and private investment, associated with CIM”s strategy”.

During this year and next, João Azevedo hopes that the region will have “more tourists, more overnight stays, more economy, more employment and more territorial strength”.

“We have the rest. We have quality, tradition, culture, history, the iron pot and rustic cuisine,” he said, adding that in this territory, the difficult thing is “to eat badly, drink badly, see a bad landscape”.

The Viseu Dão Lafões region will present itself at BTL this year, from 25 February to 1 March, under the motto “Follow your heart” and with a stand (two floors and three stages) inspired by the region’s historic gardens.

The region is focusing on the arts, crafts and gastronomy. A stew made with Dão wine will be taken to BTL, which, according to chef Diogo Rocha (the only Michelin-starred chef in the region), is not just a recipe but “a memory”.