Candidatura Reserva da Biosfera - Santana Madeira Biosfera

Restaurante Cabanas
Restaurante Casa de Palha
Restaurants
Posto Florestal do Cascalho Logistic support unit
Complexo B. Foz da Ribeira de S. Jorge
Bathing complex
14.2.3 Indicate positive and/or negative impacts of tourism at
present or foreseen
The Tourism Management Plan of the Autonomous Region of Madeira is an indicator
of careful planning by the government in regional tourism development, which is the
main economic activity in the region. This plan sets the strategic lines of development
activity taking into account the basic principles of sustainable development, highlighting
the main lines of development of complementary products related to rural tourism,
nature tourism, ecotourism, adventure tourism and scientific tourism.
Tourism projects developed in the municipality of Santana are mostly rural tourism
accommodation units that have been adapted to this type of housing being careful to
keep the typological characteristics of buildings and their architectural and landscape
integration, in Santana’s typical rural mosaic.
Santana is a municipality without large hotel units and the existing ones, by their
size, have similar impacts to a family home. The promotion and integration of Santana’s
main touristic assets, related to culture, heritage, gastronomy and natural resources, has
a positive effect in the municipality, either by creating new business opportunities and
jobs as well as for maintaining the population balance, by settling the youngest
population in the county.
The recognition of the importance of sustainable tourism as a key factor for the
development and success of the tourism product "Santana", causes positive impacts as it
leads to evaluation, rehabilitation and preservation of built heritage, which instead would
probably fall into abandonment, either by migration of the younger generation, lack of
financial resources to undertake their recovery or even low socio-economic interest by
the lack of tourist flow, which would justify the investment.
The growing effort emprehended by the local authority in the recovery and
revitalization of cultural values and traditions of the county, of which a good example is
the international touristic event "48 hours dancing" dedicated to folklore, which
136 Application of Santana, Madeira to Biosphere Reserve – UNESCO - MAB