Between 10 and 12 of May 2017, the northern Portuguese city of Vila Real will host an event dedicated to the promotion of the main wealth of the Douro region: tourism, gastronomy and wine.
The initials of the three (in Portuguese turismo, gastronomia, vinho), helped to form the name of the event: Douro TGV. The play of words, evoking the famous high-speed train is not fortuity; the event aims at giving a new speed to the tourism industry in the River Douro Valley, an area of Portugal with a great potential, yet still considerably less popular amongst tourists than the Lisbon Coast or the sunny Algarve.
The event will have a duration of three days – 10, 11 and 12 of May – and will take place at the Regia Douro Park in Vila Real and is directed to the professionals of the tourism, gastronomy an winemaking industry as well as to the general public.
The gastronomy will be the main motif of Douro TGV Day 1. Under the banner of ‘Douro Gourmet’ four specific area will be approached, namely: Douro International, Douro Integral, Douro Glocal and Douro Mundial, with the participation of renowned chefs, industry sector businessmen and entrepreneurs, mainly those working with the local specialties as apples, chestnuts and bisaro pork.
Several tastings of the local products will take place during the day.
Day 2 of Douro TGV, designated ‘Douro 3.0’ will be dedicated to the technological solutions vital for tourism. Apart from a debate about the technological challenges of the sector, it will showcase investment projects for the region.
The very wide spectrum of wine production related issues will be the theme of the third and the last day of the event, named simply ‘Vinho’, meaning wine.
An international panel of enologists and scientist within the field will present the different wine regions within the Douro Valley. The best reds and whites will be chosen from the variety of the wines submitted for the Douro TGV contests (Concurso de Vinhos Douro TGV by Regia Douro Park).
About Regia Douro Park
Regia Douro Park is a science and technology park located in Vila Real, approximately 100 km / 60 miles northeast of Porto. Co-financed by the European Union, the project focuses on research and development of agricultural, wine and food production and environmental technologies.
With support from Portuspark and the UTAD University, the Regia Douro Park facility integrates a centre of technology and innovation, a business centre and an ‘incubator’ for tech start-ups.
