Abstract
Since January 2020, a multisectoral hub of Madeiran institutions has been involved in the INTERREG project SABOREA Mac. The main objective of this regional cluster is to put Madeira on the map of food destinations. The timing could not have been worse: a global disaster that severely affects the tourism industry within the framework of an ongoing pandemic, which no one anticipated. There have been no studies focused on this area of activity and on the impact caused by a health crisis of this magnitude that until recently was completely unthinkable. Learning from the past is a way to respond immediately to the urgent need to re-evaluate the original strategy of the SABOREA consortium, delineated in a totally different conjuncture. In this paper, we analyse the path adopted by the organizers of the 5thCentenary of Madeira’s discovery at the end of(World War 1)WW1. Facing the cumulated impact of the conflict and the Spanish flu, they successfully rebranded Madeira, a strategy that continues to shape the perception of the destination by today’s visitors. This case study serves as a starting point for considering to what extent the SABOREA project still fits into the reality of the post-pandemic era.
Abstract
Tourism and Gastronomy (T&G) was publishedin 2002. Even today, this book is an indispensable refer-ence for researchers from different disciplinary perspec-tives who study how food and beverage are linked toleisure mobility. At that time, the contributors witnesseda major shift in consumer behaviour, which would soonturn the act of eating and drinking into a first-order driverof this sector of activity. The objective of the editors wasto map the evolution of this new trend and predict thefuture of gastronomy and culinary heritage in tourism.This paper will revisit T&G to fully understand how, inonly twenty years, what was before just a ‘non-optional’part of the package became a prosperous niche, and latera primary component of recreational travels. The ‘throw-back’ approach adopted here will enable us to reflect onhow the COVID-19 crisis impacts holidaymakers’ choices,which could help in the design of more efficient recovery plans.
Enquadrado no “Programa de Cooperação INTERREG V A Espanha-Portugal, MAC 2014-2020, o projecto nº.MAC2/4.6c/365, sob o título “Destinos Turísticos Gastronómicos e Sustentáveis” conhecido apenas por SABOREA, este e-book é o resultado de um trabalho que tem por objetivo contribuir para o desenvolvimento do turismo gastronómico sustentável, não apenas na Madeira como na Região da Macaronésia.
