During the press conference of the District Civil Protection Commission, which took place this morning in Loulé, António Miguel Pina, AMAL president, and José Apolinário stated that the region is fully prepared to receive tourists during the coming summer season, but underline the importance of responsibility and awareness, especially amongst younger visitor.
Going to the beach is regarded as a moment of relaxation, but as of this Saturday, when the bathing season opens, bathers, of the sun and sea alike, will have to follow a set of rules to minimise the spread of COVID-19. Prime Minister António Costa and his wife set foot on a beach this week, setting an example and examining the measures imposed to aid in the safety of the population. Distancing on the beach between people who are not from the same household is the main care to be taken.
With summer at the door, vacations are among the topics that most arouse interest for those who have been confined for three months because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. British tabloid Daily Mail chose to write an article, published yesterday, in which it compares the COVID -19 infection rates per million inhabitants among the main holiday destinations of the English population.
Portuguese airports will be ready to resume air traffic, with some degree of normality, starting on June 15th, guaranteed this Friday morning Prime Minister António Costa. Portugal thus meets the desire expressed a few hours earlier by the European Commission, through the Commissioner for Internal Affairs, Ylva Johansson, who said she had a desire that the free movement space within the European Union (EU), for air, land and sea, become a reality again by the end of the month.
Spain was forced into a U-turn yesterday after announcing that its borders with Portugal and France were to reopen this month — leading Lisbon to complain that it hadn't been informed.
A 43-year-old German prisoner who travelled around Portugal in a camper van is now the focus of Scotland Yard's investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann 13 years ago.
"Any dialogue you have with travel agents and hoteliers in the Algarve, if we think about June, July, August and September, we will be talking, at best, about 30% occupation or business level" estimated today, Pedro Costa Ferreira, president of the Portuguese Association of Travel and Tourism Agencies (APAVT), during a digital conference.
The Environmental Impact Study of the lake city mega-project in Vilamoura has received an "unfavorable opinion" by the Municipality of Loulé. The project has large environmental impacts, as it foresees the construction of buildings around four saltwater lakes, and also due to its large urban mass, from which 2400 beds would arise. The work would be developed in two phases and would be completed in ten years.
