Brazil comes in fifth place among the most sought after destinations for international tourists this year. The country was pointed out, in addition to nine other countries, by the Miami Herald newspaper, from the United States, as one of the best travel destinations for 2007.
The article is based on a ranking by the journalists in charge of writing the travel guides for Lonely Planet, the world's leading publishing company in the area of books on tourist destinations.
The journalists at Lonely Planet have singled out China as the hottest spot to visit this year. The United States came in second and Morocco the third. Argentina is the fourth best destination. Also on the list are Turkey, in sixth place, Nicaragua, in seventh, Spain, in eighth, and Greece, in ninth. Mexico and India share the tenth place.
The reasons why the Lonely Planet journalists recommend going to Brazil include the natural and cultural diversity. The news story published in the Miami Herald also claims that tourism is "taking off" with the establishment of good boutique hotels, i.e., hotels that have high-end stores on their premises.
Hotel Fasano, located in the southeastern Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro and designed by the French Philippe Starck, is cited as an example. The article also touches upon the quality gastronomy found in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, both in the southeast, as well as the carnival and the Pan American Games, to be held this year in Rio.
Brazil is making an effort to attract a larger number of international tourists. This year, according to an advertisement developed by the Ministry of Tourism near the end of 2006, the federal government is investing US$ 120 million in order to promote Brazil as a tourist destination abroad.
Revenues from tourism should increase from US$ 150 million in 2008 to US$ 200 million in 2009. The year of 2006 was a record-breaking one for Brazilian tourism. Between January and November, foreigners spent US$ 3.9 billion in the country, 1.42% more than the amount spent in all of 2005.
According to information provided by the press office at the Brazilian Tourism Institute (Embratur), implementation of the Aquarela Plan for promoting Brazilian tourism abroad will continue this year.
Developed by the Ministry of Tourism in partnership with Embratur, the project aims at carrying out promotional actions for Brazilian tourism in 18 different countries in South America, North America and Europe. The plan will be updated to include actions that better suit the profile of each country.
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