Política e Planeamento Turístico à Escala Regional o Caso da Agenda Regional de Turismo para o Norte de Portugal

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to illustrate how a Regional Tourism Policy and Strategy could contribute to promote a better coherency, integration, efficacy and efficiency in the development of public policies in the tourism area. In this context, taking into account that CCDR-N (North Regional Coordination and Development Commission) has launched, in June 2007, a process called “Pact for the Competitiveness of the North of Portugal”, which identifies a group of Priority Thematic Agendas to develop in the Region, where is included, a Regional Tourism Agenda, this paper will focus a case-study -Northern Portugal Tourism Action Plan - after a brief introduction of the theme of Regional Tourism Planning and Development. This is a regional tourism planning case study, where its process of elaboration and development is a pioneering practice in Portugal and constitutes the first global tourism strategy for the Northern Region of Portugal.