Holiday News and Tourist Information about Porto Santo
This isthe latest information on what is going on in Porto Santo - some issued by the Tourist Board of Portugal. Here you will find some small information what you should think about in order to make you holiday dream come true.For a very long time now, it is a tradition in Porto Santo to celebrate the summer month with extensive programmes such as water-sports, volleyball and other tournaments on the beach and this makes the period middle of July to end of Augusta very busy and enjoyable season.If you wish to take part of this party season, you really need to make your reservations in good time because all tickets go very fast, making it impossible for late booking. If, instead, you wish to have vacation on the beach in more normal circumstances, you shoud make reservations to visit the island during the rest of the season between September 1 andJuly 20. Porto Santo is also concentrating its efforts on greater development in order to obtain more hotels and better communications between the island and the mainland.Today, Tap-Air goesbetween these destinations directly once a week - or daily -however the latterthrough Funchal, Madeira, and this takes between 2 and half to 5 hours from Lisbon.Porto Santo currently has appoximately 1,600 tourist-beds and is expecting to have 4,000 tourist-beds before year 2010 and, of course, by that time there will be more opportunitiesto spend holidays on the island.
Madeiraweb.Info can only recieve reservations for 180 days ahead, but you are always welcome to state your requirements earlier than 180 days.Do not forget to check that you have filled in your e-mail address as well other specifications correctly.Wetry to keep to the policy of answering within 72 hours, but sometimes it can take longer and in the case of those who have made spelling mistakes or missed a letter, we can never reply-so check your requirements before mailing them. Welcome with your requirement and reservation.
Porto Santo and Vila Baleira a medicinal destination
The island of Porto Santo may soon start to be promoted as a health care resort due to the discovered therapeutic potential of its sand and clay. In 1999 a pilot project was born in a local Hotel in this area and two teams were established for this purpose: a clinical team of Norwegian physicians from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Oslo, and another team of technicians, comprised of researchers from the University of Aveiro. Based on their initial experiments, spectacular results were reported for the treatments carried out on groups of patients. These experiments in some part came to foster investment in this area, seeing that the islands sand constitutes a unique product at the international level. The research put into effect, demonstrated the importance of the physical properties of the carbonated sand, as well as its thermal and chemical properties in the treatment of pathologies to do with rheumatism, orthopaedics and physiatrics. As a result of the joint interest between the Danish Ministry of Health, insurance companies and a tourist operator, there is a multifactor health programme planned for the year 2003 starting out from that country and having the Hotel which started the research in this area, as it s destination. A special programme for Porto Santo is to be published in a promotional brochure on the destination. Based on these discoveries, Porto Santo tends to be known as a medicinal destination that could operate all year round, seeing that one of the added values of this sand treatment resides in the fact that it is possible to create in an artificial environment, that which takes place in the natural geo environment.
New ferry sea link between Madeira and Porto Santo islands. Porto Santo Line, the firm responsible for the regular boat trips transporting goods and passengers by sea between the two islands, believes that the building of a new boat is justified by the specific requirements of this sea link. In April 2001, the firm opened a public international tender for the construction of a new boat, which was awarded to the shipbuilding yards Estaleiros Navais de Viana do Castelo. The shipbuilders have chosen to sub-contract out to specialized international firms the construction and erection of steel blocks (S. Petersburg), the interiors (Greece) and the main engines (Germany). The boat is at present in Viana do Castelo where the interior and engines are already being fitted. This will mean a two hour trip between the two islands in the new ferry (3/4 of an hour shorter than the present trip), at a speed of 21 knots and the new boat will have the capacity to transport 1 150 passengers and 160 automobiles. Expected delivery date for the boat in the Port of Funchal, is 31 March 2003.
