This paper assesses the determinants of international tourists' spending in the Algarve from 2007 to 2010. Based on a sample of 15,542 observations a cross-section model was estimated using ordinary least squares. The results reveal that a combination of socio-demographic, behavioural and motivation variables explain the spending patterns of international tourists in the Algarve. Analysis of the data indicates that tourist motivations related to accommodation facilities, cultural and historical resources, gastronomy, hospitality, prices and sightseeing tours positively affect tourists' spending. Moreover, the findings provide evidence that, over the years, the most loyal markets in Algarve reveal changing patterns in their spending behaviour. Destination management authorities should be aware of this spending behaviour of second-generation sun and sand visitors and should formulate strategies accordingly. Policy and managerial recommendations are discussed.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites (WHS) act as icons to attract visitors seeking to experience cultural (ancient) heritage. Gastronomy, as cultural heritage, reinforces the identity of a destination. Presenting a case study from a Portuguese UNESCO WHS, this study brings insights into how these destinations may deepen the knowledge on gastronomic visitors, contributing to their sustainable development. Specifically, this study aims to identify the importance that visitors give to gastronomy and to identify their differences in terms of profile and travel behaviour, through data collected using a visitors’ survey. Results show that gastronomy can be a major motivator for visiting a WHS and indicate that visitors strongly motivated by gastronomy have differences in terms of demographic profile, motivations and expenditures.

The development of creative tourism in small towns in rural areas has been the subject of growing interest and research from different perspectives. As part of the national CREATOUR project, which took place in Portugal over about four years, various organisations with relevant activity in the cultural aspect of creative tourism were analysed, constituting a successful reference at a national and international level. However, since mid-2020, the health crisis owing to the pandemic made it necessary to reflect and work under new circumstances for tourism, in contexts not previously planned for, and at the same time as continuing to champion sustainable development. It is in this context that the present study emerges, the aim of which is to identify organizations’ strategies for adaptation within the scope of creative tourism activities in a pandemic situation. This empirical approach is anchored in the case study of the activities of the ‘Saídas de Mestre’ project based on intangible cultural heritage, using in-depth analysis of strategies developed to mitigate the effects of supply and demand constraints. The results show that there was no disintegration of the supply structure, as planned, due to the fact that creative activities are based on the valorisation of the principles of sustainable development and, therefore, depend on endogenous resources and local agents, who remained accessible.

This is an exploratory study aiming to assess the fire risk perception by operators of the Vale do Guadiana Natural Park (PNVG), southern Portugal. To maximize the sample size, a questionnaire survey was distributed among 35 entities with activities in tourism, hunting, and agriculture, as well as among members of PNVG’s co-management commission. For data analysis and interpretation, quantitative and qualitative analyses were used. Survey responses revealed that the entities expressed concern about and made efforts toward the search for and improvement in mitigation strategies in the occurrence of fires. A total of 69.6% of the respondents have knowledge of the occurrence of fires in the region. The qualitative analysis highlights the concern with biodiversity, as well as with the maintenance and cleaning of the PNVG. This study verifies the degree of importance that the tourism sector should give to the impacts caused by fires. The impact of climate change favoring fires was recognized by the entities, as well as the fact that the loss of biodiversity due to fires may have a direct impact on the attractiveness of this tourist destination, indicating the importance of environmental conservation strategies for the region.