Informações

REGULATION

ACISO – Associação Empresarial Ourém-Fátima organizes the International Workshops on Religious Tourism (IWRT), on March 6th and 7th, 2025, in Fátima, and in Guarda on March 8th, 2025, Portugal.

The event is organized in collaboration with the Municipalities of Ourém and Guarda, the Sanctuary of Fátima, and with the support of the Regional Program of the Center - Center 2030, Turismo de Portugal, the Regional Tourism Entity of the Center of Portugal, Regional Tourism Promotion Agencies, and other entities.

The event is aimed at all those interested in Religious Tourism, especially companies specializing in or interested in this sector, such as tour operators, tourist enterprises, tourist entertainment companies, transport companies, and catering services.

The IWRT consists of the following moments:

1)      Opening Session and Conference - This public event, taking place in Fátima on the morning of the first day, invites official entities and both national and international speakers to discuss topics related to Religious Tourism and present the guest destination. Attendance is free but requires prior registration.

2)      Contact Exchange - Held during the afternoon of the first day and throughout the second day in Fátima, this segment is exclusively for pre-registered tourism professionals. Meetings are pre-scheduled and involve interactions among Buyers, Suppliers, and Exhibitors that have access to these meetings.

3)      Exhibition - Space dedicated to Exhibitors, for the presentation of their services/products, during the two days of the event.

4)      Official Dinner of the event - This event, held on the first day, is designed for Buyers, Suppliers, Exhibitors, Speakers, and Invited Entities.

5)      Jewish Heritage Tourism Workshop – Held in Guarda, organized by the Municipality of Guarda, for those interested in this tourist segment.

6)      Buyers Dinner – Held on the second day of the event for the Buyers.

7)      Pre-tours and/or Post-tours – Organized by the Municipalities and the Regional Tourism Promotion Agencies (ARPTs). Participation is reserved for previously registered Buyers, with a limited number of places available per tour.

 

1 - FORMS OF PARTICIPATION

There are five participation modalities:

  1. Opening Session and Conference:

Open to the general public on the morning of the first day of the event. Attendance is free but requires prior registration.

  1. Buyers:

Foreign tour operators from established and emerging markets, specializing in Religious Tourism with outgoing operations, who express interest in participating in the event.

  1. Suppliers:

Tour operators, travel agents, hoteliers and entrepreneurs in the Religious Tourism sector that wish to participate in the event, to promote their products and services in One-to-One meetings. It includes operators specialized in incoming, accommodation, catering, transport, tourist entertainment and similar services.

  1. Exhibitors:

Institutional entities, sponsors, tour operators, travel agents, hoteliers and Religious Tourism entrepreneurs that wish to enhance their presence at the event, through a table to exhibit their products and/or services.

2 - REGISTRATION

Registrations are limited and can be completed under one of the four participation categories outlined above: "Opening Session and Conference," "Buyers," "Suppliers," and "Exhibitors."

  1. Registration for the Opening Session and Conference

Registration is free, but mandatory on the event's website: www.iwrt.pt/pt. Registration for the Opening Session and Conference does not include participation in the Contact Exchange, meals or visits. Registration remains open until 48 hours before the event.

  1. Registration as a Buyer

Each Entity/Company may register only one participant. Each entity/company may register only one participant. Buyers with outgoing tourism operations to Fátima/Portugal, specializing in Religious Tourism, must apply on the event's website, in www.iwrt.pt/pt. The Organization will assess applications based on criteria such as geographic diversity, market availability, participation rotation, and professional profiles. Based on this evaluation, candidates will be designated as either Hosted Buyers or Buyers, with their registration being confirmed accordingly.

Buyer Status is based on self-financing and arranging one's own flight travel, on the condition that the dates allow the Buyer to fulfil their obligation to attend One-To-One meetings during the event. Candidates who are awarded the status of Hosted Buyer will be covered by the Organization for air transport.

The organization will support the expenses related to the event, namely transfers, accommodation, meals and social program for all Buyers. Personal expenses such as communications, minibar, room service and travel insurance, or other personal expenses not related to the event are not included.

Participations as Buyers or Hosted Buyers requires thepayment of a non-refundable Participation Fee, made via PayPal, under the following terms:

  • €50 + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal) for operators based in the European Union or the Schengen area, except those registered in VIES;
  • €100 for non-EU operators.

After validation of the registration by the Organization, the payment information will be sent by email. Only registrations with payment completed will be considered valid for IWRT. It is not necessary to have a PayPal account to pay the Participation Fee.

Registration is limited and can be interrupted or resumed at any time by the Organization.

Buyers can register for the Fam-Trips organized by the ARPTs, up to the limit of available places.

Buyers are required to attend all previously scheduled One-to-One meetings. Failure to attend, or partial absence without a valid justification, will result in exclusion from future workshops. Buyers are prohibited to promote their own products or services. Violation of this rule may result in exclusion from future editions of the event.

Buyers whose companies are based in Portugal and Spain are not eligible to submit their applications.

The program does not provide for kosher food.

Registration will only be confirmed upon the explicit acceptance of the "Terms and Conditions for Buyers" document, which is available on the Registration Form.

  1. Registration as a Supplier

Each entity or company may register up to 2 participants. Registration must be completed by December 23rd, 2024, and this deadline may be brought forward if the event reaches capacity before this date. Registrations will be considered confirmed only after payment and validation by the Organization.

To ensure the quality of the event, particularly in the Contact Exchange, registrations are limited. The Organization reserves the right to pause, suspend, or resume registrations as needed.

Cost of registration as a Supplier (full program):

  1. First representative (with access to One-to-One meetings): €300 + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal);
  2. Second representative (with access to One-to-One meetings): €250, + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal);
  3. ACISO Members, without overdue dues, benefit from a discount of €30 on the total amount, before the addition of VAT;
  4. The registration fee must be paid within 48 hours after the registration confirmation by the Organization;
  5. VAT exemption is applied to companies/entities registered in VIES (VAT- Information Exchange System) or in non-EU countries.

Services included as Supplier:

  • Participation in the Opening Session and Conference;
  • Participation in the Contact Exchange (maximum 2 participants);
  • Database with complete profile of Buyers and calendar with prior scheduling of One-to-One meetings;
  • Meals included: Lunches at the Workshop (first and second day of the event) and Official Dinner of the event (first day of the event).
  1. Registration as an Exhibitor:

Registration must be made by the day December 23rd, 2024, and this date can be brought forward if the event reaches its maximum capacity. Registrations will be considered confirmed only after payment and validation by the Organization.

Modalities for Exhibitors:

  1. Exhibitor (with meetings): Includes the presence of two people. One person to participate in the One-to-One meetings and one person to supervise/take care of the Exhibition Table, ensuring that the presentation of the exhibited product/service is ensured. This second person does not have access to One-to-One meetings. There is the possibility for the company/entity to register a third participant to participate in the One-to-One meetings, upon payment of an additional fee.
  2. Institutional Exhibitor (no meetings): Includes the presence of a single person to supervise/take care of the Exhibition Table, ensuring that the presentation of the product/service exhibited is ensured. This person does not have access to One-to-One meetings.

This space will work in parallel with the Contact Exchange.

The Organization reserves the right to assign an Exhibitor Table to sponsors and national and/or international entities that, due to their involvement and collaboration in the event, are relevant.

Cost of registration as an Exhibitor with access to One-to-One Meetings:

  1. Registration fee of €600 + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal) – includes two participants: one with access to the One-to-One meetings and the other without access to the One-to-One meetings, which will be at the Exhibition Table;
  2. Possibility of registration of a third participant, to participate in the One-to-One meetings, for the additional amount of €250 + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal);
  3. ACISO Members, without overdue dues, benefit from a discount of €30 on the total amount, before the addition of VAT;
  4. VAT exemption is applied to companies/entities registered in VIES (VAT- Information Exchange System) or in non-EU countries.

Registration as an Exhibitor with access to One-To-One Meetings includes:

  • Participation in the Opening Session and Conference;
  • Participation in the Contact Exchange for 2 or 3 participants (maximum);
  • Exhibition Table (approximate dimension of 0.80m x 1.20m);
  • 3 chairs;
  • Possibility of placing a roll-up (maximum approximate dimension of 2m x 1.20m) that does not exceed the width of the table;
  • Possibility of distributing an advertising flyer in the Participant's Folder, which must be delivered to the Organization up to 15 days before the event;
  • Offer of meals: Lunches at the Workshop (first and second day of the event) and Official Dinner of the event (first day of the event);
  • Database with complete profile of Buyers and calendar with prior scheduling of One-to-One meetings.

Cost of registration as an Institutional Exhibitor without access to One-To-One Meetings:

  1. Registration fee: €300 + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal) – includes one participant without access to meetings, to stay at the Exhibition Table;
  2. Possibility of registration of a second participant for the amount of €150 + VAT (at the legal rate in Portugal), without access to meetings, to stay at the Exhibition Table;
  3. ACISO Members, without overdue dues, benefit from a discount of €30 on the total amount, before the addition of VAT;
  4. VAT exemption is for companies/entities that are registered in VIES (VAT- Information Exchange System) or in non-EU countries.

Registration as an Institutional Exhibitor without access to One-To-One Meetings includes:

  • Participation in the Opening Session and Conference;
  • Participation in the exhibitor space for 1 or 2 participants (maximum), depending on whether 1 or 2 participants are registered;
  • Exhibition Table (approximate dimension of 0.80m x 1.20m);
  • 3 chairs;
  • Possibility of placing a roll-up (maximum approximate dimension of 2m x 1.20m) that does not exceed the width of the table;
  • Possibility of distributing an advertising flyer in the Participant's Folder (deliver to the Organization up to fifteen days before the event);
  • Meals included: Lunches at the Workshop (first and second day of the event) and Official Dinner of the Event (first day of the event);
  • Database with complete profile of Buyers.

CONTACT EXCHANGE OPERATING MODEL

The Contact Exchange will be exclusively for professionals registered as Buyers, Suppliers, and Exhibitors with access to One-To-One Meetings. It will take place during the afternoon of the first day and the second day of the event, with Buyers meeting Suppliers and Exhibitors.

Each Buyer will have their seat assigned at a table where they will meet with the Suppliers and Exhibitors with access to meetings.

Buyers are required to attend all pre-scheduled meetings on the first and last day of the event. If they are also involved in incoming activities, they must not promote these activities or distribute related promotional materials during the meetings. Failure to attend all scheduled meetings or not presenting themselves as outgoing operators will result in exclusion from participation in future editions.

The meetings will all be pre-scheduled.

Each meeting will last 15 minutes. This time must be respected by all Buyers, Suppliers and Exhibitors with access to meetings.

Each participant will receive a username and password to access the event platform, where they can select their preferred Buyers for meetings in order of priority. This selection must be completed by a date specified by the Organization.

The schedule will be generated by an algorithm based on the preferences selected by the participants via the event platform. Afterwards, this schedule will be sent to each participant via email.

The Organization does not guarantee that all meetings selected by participants will be scheduled by the algorithm.

The Organization does not guarantee that Suppliers/Exhibitors with access to meetings or Buyers will attend to the entire meeting schedule. However, Buyers who fail to attend their scheduled meetings will suffer penalties.

 

 Fatima, October 1st, 2024