Tatiana Turra, president of the Municipal Tourism Institute of Curitiba, the model city and the biggest Christmas in Brazil

Among the categories smart cities, innovation, entrepreneurship, assistance for people with disabilities, food and nutritional security, governance and tourism. Since 2018, there have been more than 20 awards every year. And it is also the biggest Christmas in Brazil with 330 attractions.

Tourism specialist Tatiana Turra has a specialization in marketing from the FAE of Curitiba and International Tourism from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria – Spain. She served for 8 years as executive director of the Curitiba, Region and Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau (CCVB).

Read the interview below:

Travel2Latam: How many awards has Curitiba won under your administration and mayor Rafael Greca? What do you attribute it to?

Tatiana Turra: Regarding awards, Curitiba has received numerous awards and achieved references, both national and international in different areas, be it education, sustainability, food, nutritional security and urban farm projects; for example, in sustainability in different aspects, the use of solar panels, the issue of recycling itself, in short, urban solutions and innovation in general.

Curitiba is one of the seven smartest cities in the world and is a Smart City, the most sustainable city in Latin America in different areas and fronts. 

In terms of tourism, we have been achieving excellent positions, always improving our positions in different rankings as leisure destinations. This is on the national market. And the city also won 2nd place in the Arca Lua award in 2021 with the smart tourism teaching methodology, from an OMT project with the Ministry of Tourism. We are very happy with this, a recognition that later includes other advances within this area of ​​tourism education management, such as the participation in the SEBRAE Nacional project with the IDB, the approval of Curitiba in this project as well as Curitiba's membership in the Red Iberoamericana in. Smart Tourist Destinations.

Travel2Latam: Curitiba has many well-kept parks, it is a tree-lined, flowery, cold and very clean city. What campaigns are developed in front of the population?

Tatiana Turra: I think it's important to highlight that people have a motto that "the city is only good for its state when it is good for its residents", so this means that tourist activity in Curitiba is also highly valued, but also having respect and harmony in the relationship between tourists and residents. 

Travel2Latam: The artistic scene in the capital of Paraná has an annual calendar of events, tell us a little about that. What is the issue of flights for foreign tourists to arrive in the city?

Tatiana Turra: Yes, the city has a flow of business, events and conferences. Very representative scientific technicians. Large multinational and national corporations are installed in cities. They are universities, hospitals, research centers. As well as today, the city has a calendar of cultural and expressive events from January to January, in addition to the concert schedule and even appearing on the tour of major international concerts. And being on the route of these international concert tours. And this is due to the size of the city, its economic strength, as well as its connection facilities, we have easy road and air access as well. Today the city is 45 minutes from São Paulo, 1 hour and 30 minutes from Brasília and Rio, for example. 1 hour and 50 minutes from Buenos Aires with a direct connection, there is also the recently launched flight to Montevideo (Azul) which also allows this connection in less than two hours and also Santiago in Chile with a flight of approximately three and a half hours direct. 

Travel2Latam: What does Christmas in Curitiba represent within the annual calendar, what was the audience for the last edition and how much did the event generate in dollars in the city's economy? What are the expectations for the 2023 edition.

Tatiana Turra: Curitiba is 330 years old and Christmas has been a great leisure project for Curitiba, there are more than 130 attractions, it is the biggest Christmas in the country with attractions throughout the city, the vast majority of which are more than 90% in public spaces free of charge, bringing together more than 900 thousand people in 2023.

Travel2Latam: At tourist business fairs in Brazil and around the world, which itinerary do you sell in the city?

Tatiana Turra: At tourist business fairs we present a plural Curitiba with more than 40 parks and forests throughout the city. And they are present in the tourist itinerary, facilitating your visit and also a Cultural Curitiba, whether for ethnic reasons, due to its formation by immigrants, and also native peoples, who have memorials in these parks where we favor this approach. Also for its calendar, for its gastronomy. And a lot for the Curitiba people’s way of life. People, especially in the domestic market, are very curious to know how Curitiba relates to the city itself, with its urban solutions, in short. Today we have also expanded the leisure itinerary to the metropolitan region where we have several expanded ethnic itineraries, we have ecotourism, adventure tourism, even in this regard we have a radius of one hundred kilometers: the Vila Velha State Park, a private concession with various activities. We have the large Atlantic Forest reserve with a completely different structure with the possibility of bird watching, among many other ecotourism activities. We have the coast, the beach in this radius, even in this matter of the metropolitan region today there are products related to wineries, very famous and recognized with awards including and I think very different scenarios, from east to west from the Atlantic Forest to the Devonian Scarpa that allows there the appreciation of sandstones. 

Travel2Latam: What is your particular vision about smart tourism management, sustainability, innovation?

Tatiana Turra: Well, my vision about smart tourism management for us is that I consider it a watershed moment, in Curitiba, a methodology that allowed for the first organization of the official tourism body that stimulates this and this reflects on safety and performance of all our servers. Second, by articulating a strengthened governance aspect of the body internally in the city hall, especially for us who are the destination where tourist activity grows. Increasingly representative, but it is a city that has other economic sectors that are also very strong and with a lot of representation and strength. So this internal coordination at city hall was very interesting to see the positive impact in this sense. Just as in the aspect of governance with the private sector, it has been increasingly strengthened. Furthermore, on the path of information management. The fact that it stimulates analysis and data management is also beneficial in this integration with the private sector, especially and today we cannot leave aside issues such as accessibility and sustainability and innovation as a transversal aspect in any area of ​​activity. So this action is fundamental. 

Travel2Latam: Is Curitiba prepared to receive foreign tourists, are the staff bilingual in hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions?

Tatiana Turra: Yes, Curitiba is prepared, it is important to highlight that Curitiba is the 3rd destination in Brazil for receiving tourists who come for business reasons and events, that is, its structure is already suitable for the public from abroad and when we Talk about leisure pursuits, this becomes much easier.

Travel2Latam: The Serra Verde Express train, which immerses you in the nature, history and traditional gastronomy of Paraná between Curitiba and Morretes, today one of the most prominent attractions in Curitiba, to what do you attribute such success?

Tatiana Turra: The Serra Verde Express train is a great attraction in the city, not only for ecotourism, but also culturally historical, the road is centuries old with very sophisticated engineering works there at the time. So what permeates there is the Serra do Mar with an appreciation of this largest region of the preserved Atlantic Forest in Brazil. So, without a doubt, a tour is a must when in Curitiba.

Travel2Latam: What's new for 2024 in promoting the city?

Tatiana Turra: We are going to intensify our actions and promotions in the main issuing markets in 2024. And with direct air connectivity so that, especially the public from abroad, has more knowledge about our city and our region with all these possibilities for tourist activities. It is important to highlight that the coast of Paraná now hosts the weekly cruise season from December onwards. With a route to the south, that is, to Montevideo - Buenos Aires, in other words, with a new, even greater possibility of integration between these markets.

Report and photo: Mary de Aquino.