Brazil’s tourism board doesn’t cater to foreigners

A new program announced by the Brazilian Tourism Board (Embratur) has sparked criticism that the country’s tourism promotion platform is being directed at Brazilians, and not foreign tourists.

Embratur is developing a reality show project—entitled “O Rei do Rolê“—in which foreign social media users will compete to win the chance to travel around Brazil for 30 days, meeting President Jair Bolsonaro in the process.

The tourism board has let slip few details about O Rei do Rolê (translated loosely as “The King of the Party”), but the fact that the title of the show will not even have an English or Spanish translation highlights the insularity of Embratur’s agenda.

Those interested in taking part will be required to submit 1-minute videos explaining why they should be chosen, and Embratur has suggested it will consider the number of social media followers of contestants when selecting a winner.

This comes weeks after the Federal Police released data showing the number of tourists visiting Brazil fell 5.4...