In this context, the Association of Hotels and Tourist Enterprises of the Algarve (AHETA) released statistical data to the press, concerning tourism in the Algarve between August and October of 2020.

Typically, the majority of visitors come from the United Kingdom who, this year, have seen the air corridor closed and the obligation to comply with a 14-day quarantine upon arrival in the United Kingdom.

This factor led the English people to not visit Portugal this year, which caused a reduction of 626 thousand guests when compared to the previous year in the same period. According to data released by AHETA, it was not only the number of overnight stays that felt a massive drop, but golf tourism also fell by 70 percent in the Algarve region.

Faro Airport received 5.3 million fewer passengers when compared to the same months in 2019. The reduction in passengers coming from foreign countries was quite marked, being evident in the main foreign markets such as Germany (-74.4 percent), Holland (- 67.3 percent), Ireland (- 94.7 percent) and France (- 73.2 percent), according to AHETA.

Between August and September, the results were more positive, due to the boost in the domestic market. In 2020, the Portuguese accounted for approximately 62 percent of the overnight stays in hotels and other similar establishments.

It is estimated that in the Algarve around 20 percent of touristic establishments were closed between August and October.