First Sao Paulo – Punta Cana Charter Flight Arrives

The arrival of the first charter flight from CVC Tour Operators to the Punta Cana International Airport represents a before-and-after scenario for the dynamic Dominican tourism market in Brazil as it cuts at least four hours off the normal flights from Sao Paulo to this part of the DR.

“We are waking up the giant that is Brazil,”…

With the landing of TAM Airlines Boeing 767, with its 200 passenger capacity, the huge South American country moves closer to becoming a potentially large source for Dominican tourism market within a short time, according to the Ministry of Tourism.  

 “We are waking up the giant that is Brazil,” Andréa Majela, director of the Dominican Tourism Promotion Office in Brazil, said shortly after the historical flight arrived at 7:00 a.m. on Monday morning from the Guarulhos International Airport of Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo is the Brazilian state which has the most international airline connections.

 “After two-and-a-half years of work and enormous efforts on the part of the government, Brazilian tour operators and the tourism office in Brazil, we have finally put the first charter in the air. This is the first nudge to wake up the sleeping giant. South America is a market that has grown a lot – 34% – in terms of tourists to the DR. Brazil is also growing and surely, sooner rather than later – will be the country with the most tourists heading to the Dominican Republic.” 

“After two-and-a-half years of work and enormous efforts on the part of the government, Brazilian tour operators and the tourism office in Brazil, we have finally put the first charter in the air.

 Ms. Majela said the CVC, the biggest tour operator in Latin America and one of the ten major operators in the world, will pilot a weekly flight until the first week of August. In December the flights will increase to twice weekly. “This way we can have flights on Fridays and Mondays then by March and April we will return to the once-weekly schedule. We’re talking about a total of more than 5,000 Brazilians traveling during the winter,” said Majela.

She described the work plan undertaken by the OPT of Brazil as “very ambitious” for this year. The plan is supported by the government through the Ministry of Tourism (SECTUR) and its Minister Félix Jiménez.

“We are going to develop an enormous training program, with each Brazilian tour operator and especially with the CVC; we have a very ambitious advertising plan as well involving television, newspapers and  magazines. But the most important thing is that we’ve managed to get to the travel agents through the blitzes, meetings, trainings and formation programs. That is to say that we’ve come to understand what the Brazilian travel agent expects from our country and that is very important because this way we can report to the Ministry and the feedback we offer the agents is much more precise,” she noted.

“Last year nearly 13,000 Brazilians traveled to the DR and I am sure that there will be at least 18,000 traveling this year. And the most important thing is that they will be 18,000 happy and satisfied Brazilians who will return home with the wonderful feeling of having been in a beautiful country with a rich cultural heritage,” like the Dominican Republic.

At the terminal, upon the plane’s arrival, the CVC International Product Director referred to the first Sao Paulo – Punta Cana charter flight as “an important first step for tourism in Brazil, the product of joint effort with the Dominican government.”

“This is our best moment here,” said the CVC executive who has been working in the DR for ten years and says it is a market “that is growing a lot in Brazil.”

The tourists, who, since Monday, have been enjoying the fascinating Eastern part of the country, come from various parts of Brazil. They are staying for a week in various resorts in the area such as Oasis, Paradisus Palma Real and Occidental.        

“Last year nearly 13,000 Brazilians traveled to the DR and I am sure that there will be at least 18,000 traveling this year. And the most important thing is that they will be 18,000 happy and satisfied…

The Brazilian tourists “are fascinated by the music, the food, the lodging, going out and being in a beautiful place, the warmth, the culture, the beaches, traveling with their families. They are also fascinated by the shopping, spending their thousand dollars where ever they feel like it. In the end, the Brazilian tourists are culturally very similar to the Dominicans,” explained our tourism representative in Brazil.

The visitors on board the charter were welcomed by a SECTUR delegation headed by the directors of Public Relations and Promotion,  Giselle Días and Isabel Vásquez, respectively. They were also given a promotional CD about the Dominican Republic.

Awaiting the visitors upon landing was colorful folklore ballet performance and, in typical SECTUR musical group whose lead singer danced with the lovely TAM airline hostesses.

According to Central Bank data, between January and May 2008, 5,681 Brazilian tourists visited the DR. This figure implies a 10.22% increase from this same period last year when 5,154 citizens of the “South American Giant” entered the Dominican Republic.

Tourists getting off the airplane

Andrea Majela, in the center, Giselle Díaz, Marcelo Portillo and Isabel Vásquez, accompanied by the TAM airline crew.