Highway Brazil, traveling knowing the Brazilian reality

July 17, 2017

Ludo

Real favourite here in My Little Brasil/Speak Portuguese Brazil team, the Highway Brazil project is THE media of reference to whom pretends to travel in Brazil. We discussed about this project with Claudio Almeida, one of its founders; he explains us their approach of Brazil.

The Highway Brazil project

Highway Brazil is a Brazilian project, aiming to diffuse a "clean information" of Brazilian reality to foreigners willing to discover this country-continent, remaining far from media lobbies. Currently, Juliano Queiroz, Filipe Soares and Claudio Almeida are the members of the project. They have received the collaboration of several contributors, partners and fans, each bringing his help in his field of competence.

Graduated in information and communication sciences and travel lovers, the three friends have launched the project in Brasília, mid-2015. They have gathered right after the end of Football World Cup 2014, organized by Brazil, after having noticed the huge gap between information given by media to foreigners and reality. This event and the upcoming Olympic Games of Rio de Janeiro in 2016 were sending Brazil right in the limelight of the international scene, and the Highway Brazil project was born as an information platform done for and by travelers/artists/photographs/bloggers interested in Brazil and South America.

Launched in 2015 on the Internet with a website-blog, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Youtube accounts, the project is constantly growing up. The English language, chosen for its large diffusion power, will be in the future translate in other languages to deepen the influence of the project on the different platforms. The aim is to offer a qualified information, to foreigners who do not speak neither understand Portuguese, but who want to be active tourists during their travel in Brazil and Latin America.

Thus, Highway Brazil is a platform where everyone can share his travel experience in Brazil, to give everybody the good information, and help everybody to better know the country.

The Highway Brazil project contributors

On www.highwaybrazil.com, you will find traveling stories of the three founders, accumulated over the years. Over the information about Brazil in literal meaning, you will find all the interesting destinations to discover, the activities to experiment. On the whole, all the best things to do, where to eat, the great places to stay. The hope, through offering a relevant information over the spectrum of media, is to help the traveler to make a safe and conscious choice about where to go and what to do.

The goal, through this project, is to offer the traveler a real experience of the country and of the continent. The message has to be accessible, and the sought information easily reachable. Thanks to new technologies development, they hope to become an influent informative hub welcoming the international traveler visiting Brazil and South America, which could boost the touristic economy.

Highway Brazil is in constant growth, by the innumerous number of contributors, through either their tags, their tips or information about destinations. Some of them contribute by writing articles, other with web-design or videos. Highway Brazil, with its willing to always involve more people, has recently done a partnership with @xplorebrazil and Gabriel Roso and his motorcycle expedition team. They also work with people who work or are interested in travel-info/art/video/... to create some meaningful and interesting information on culture and travel on the continent. The field is open!

Their favourite places in Brazil

We have asked to Claudio what were their favourite places in Brazil. He has recognized being with difficulties doing a selection of a few places only, among all they have visited.

Bahia: it can be the 1000 km from East to West or the 1000km of the coast with paradisiac and infinite beaches; everything seems incredible to them in this State as large as France. Their favourite place there : Porto Seguro, in the South.
The Amazon forest: a mind changing experience, being close to animals and inhabitants, in this forest covering near 50% of the Brazilian territory.
Chapada dos Veadeiros, in Goias State: an indescriptible energy and a variety of waterfalls, each one being unique.
Iguazu falls: it "isn't really fair. I mean it's juste redundant to talk about, truly a work of art in nature and something to cherish for all your life. You just can't forget the experience of coming up close to such an awe inspiring natural power. It makes you feel so that much small in the scale of things."
Jericoacoara: an incredible atmosphere, dunes, beaches and nature that remain in memories for a whole life.

But, what you must experiment before all: the people, the food specialities, the culture, the music.

The Brazilian experience for foreigners

According to them, Brazil has made considerable efforts to improve its infrastructures in the tourism industry, and travelers already benefit from it, by better services and a new atmosphere through new technologies. But the work to complete remain important.

"Good luck to those coming to work."

The current Brazilian economy is not in its easiest state. It can appear as a burden or an opportunity to whom is seeking success. What you have to remind of is that there is still a deficit in qualified labour, and that talents still have the place to express themselves. Moreover, the current restructure of labour and pension laws due to the economic crisis seem to leads towards the rise of a more flexible market in the years to come. Besides, the tourism industry being mainly based on individual initiatives, this means that the opportunity can be given to small entrepreneurs.

Well it was known the bonanza days of the big sportive events would come to an end and that it would be much harder "to sale the waters without those winds", the positive point is that those that have visited the country during these occasions have enjoyed and will com back or will recommend it to their families and friends. Here is the interest for Highway Brazil to continue to extend their work and influence, developing new partnerships and involving always more sponsors and collaborators.

Finally, everyone can find in South America what he hopes for in term of trip: the continent is very rich! Also, the new infrastructures, that were not available 10 years ago, allow new kinds of explorations and experiences.