While scientists are still trying to determine the origin of the gastroenterocolitis epidemic that has been affecting the Santa Catarina coast for three weeks,
Argentine tourists
do not stop arriving at the different resorts in southern Brazil.
From the
Florianópolis Superintendence of Tourism
they said that since 2012 there has not been a start to the season with such an influx of travelers from Argentina.
If you take last year's figures,
the growth is explosive
.
According to the records, in the first half of January 2022 only about 17,500 Argentines had arrived on the island, while this season the number rose to
almost 76,500
.
The Superintendency said that these figures will drop in the coming weeks, but they estimate that
some 120,000 Argentines will have enjoyed the beaches
of the state capital when the season comes to an end.
Vinicius de Luca, professor of Tourism at the Federal Institute of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, stated that “the number of Argentines on the island is very high.
Most arrive by car, but also by air.
We have
12 daily flights
that arrive from Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Rosario”.
Tourists in Florianopolis.
This year there are 12 daily flights from Argentina.
Photo: Andrés D'Elia
De Luca provided another significant piece of information.
"In recent years
, Argentines spent half
as much as a Brazilian tourist, but this year the figures are very similar according to the preliminary data we have," he said.
The teacher argued that each Argentine "
spends an average of 160 reais per day
and the average stay is between seven and ten days" in the tourist destination.
If the estimate of travelers, the number of overnight stays and daily spending is taken into account, in the summer season
Argentines will have left almost 9,000 million pesos on the island
.
The sharp
devaluation of the Argentine peso
did not prevent thousands of tourists from leaving for the Brazilian beaches.
Some looked for the “little trees” at the border to avoid spending with cards, while others clung to the plastic ones,
taking care not to exceed 300 dollars
so as not to have to pay another tax.
Vinicus has an explanation for the
boom in Argentine tourists
.
“We have a relationship with Argentines for almost 50 years.
They are the ones who visit us the most and although the change is not good, Florianópolis is a destination that is very present in the minds of our brothers, whether they are from Buenos Aires, Rosario, Córdoba or Salta”, he explained.
The state of the beaches
De Luca said that in recent days there has been
an improvement in the conditions of the island's beaches
.
This data is reflected in the weekly report of the Institute of the Environment of Santa Catarina (IMA): for the first time there are
more suitable places than not suitable
for bathing on the sea coast.
The teacher said that despite the
diarrhea epidemic
that has been hitting the entire coast of Santa Catarina for more than three weeks, no changes were generated in the habits of Argentines.
"We do not notice an exodus to other points or changes in consumption," he explained.
Many of the beaches in Florianópolis are not suitable.
Photo: Andrés D'Elia
The latest IMA report details that of the 237 points where water samples were taken, 121 are suitable for recreational use.
In Florianópolis, meanwhile, 87 places were tested and
only 41 passed the test
.
A team from the Applied Virology Laboratory of the Federal University of Santa Catarina is working on samples to determine what is causing the cases of diarrhea, which
reach almost 3,000 only in the month of January
.
The results of those studies could be known this week.
Inns. Correspondent
ACE
look too
Florianópolis: there is an alert for an "epidemic" of diarrhea and half of the beaches are not suitable for getting into the water
Despite the change, more tourists have already traveled to Brazil by car than before the pandemic
