CHALLENGES AND CONCEPTS FOR THE PROMOTION OF TOURISM IN EUROPE

Tourism is a key sector of the European economy, which generates 10 % of the EU’s GDP and is responsible for at least 12 % of jobs if sectors linked to tourism are taken into account. Forecasts see numbers of international tourists arriving in the EU increasing by 140 million each year until 2025.

Key Areas (as recommended by the EP)

Branding/joint promotion of Europe as a tourism destination

• Further contribute in cooperation with the European Travel Commission (ECT) to the joint promotion of Europe as the world’s top tourist destination under the umbrella of a common European approach and positioning;
• Create a ‘Brand Destination Europe’ with the aim of complementing and enhancing the promotional activities of Member States, national tourism organisations and the European tourism industry for the benefit of the visibility of European tourism destinations at national, regional and local level;
• Define clearly and further develop the potential of a Brand Destination Europe;
• Set up a Brand manual, which should specify agreed promotion modalities ( Member States to cooperate constructively in order to achieve this objective).

 Pan-European and Transnational Tourism Products

• Public and private stakeholders should strengthen their efforts to develop new transnational European products, while taking full account of macro-regional strategies;
• European Commission and members of the ETC should support the existing mandate of the ETC for the purpose of assisting in the development and promotion of targeted transnational and pan-European tourism products, inter alia by means of an advanced Visiteurope.com portal;
• Targeted tourist products which offer a specific tourism experience are more promising in helping to overcome seasonality in Europe than tourism products targeting specific age groups (e.g. seniors and young people);
• European Commission should review the objectives for action under the COSME programme.

Quality

• Transition must be made in European tourism from a model of quantitative growth to a qualitative model that points to steady and sustainable development,and the need to build a tourist industry that allows more qualified jobs to be created;
• Quality standards are important as a means of levelling the playing field for operators and increasing transparency for the consumer; stakeholders to take further the discussion of how the EU can promote quality standards of services in tourism;
• High-quality tourism services are guaranteed if combined with decent work conditions and the disregard for, and weakening of, social achievements in the sector are counterproductive.

Sustainable and Responsible Tourism

• European Commission to continue promoting sustainable tourism in cooperation with the ETC by establishing a European network, developing new specific products and setting up a Europe-wide web platform that brings together information on products and destinations in one database with access through the Visiteurope.com portal;
• European Commission to finalise the European Charter for Sustainable and Responsible Tourism and to continue giving financial support to important initiatives and networks such as EDEN (European Destinations of Excellence);
• Importance of ensuring the development of sustainable, responsible tourism where the concept of the ‘smart destination’ is central to destination development, combining the aspects of sustainability, experiential tourism and appropriate use of natural resources, together with the new technologies;
• Natural heritage and biodiversity protection are a precious capital for the tourism sector, and therefore supports the Member States and the regional authorities in promoting eco-tourism and respecting EU environmental legislation when deciding on and executing infrastructure projects;
• Sensitive regions such as islands, coasts and mountains often depend strongly on tourism business and are the first affected by climate change. Climate protection should be more strongly integrated into European, national and regional tourism and transport policies;
• Responsible authorities and operators need to make a stronger effort to promote the European cycling networks, such as the Iron Curtain Trail, in combination with all cross- border rail services, including high-speed and night trains;
• Accessibility in tourism is an integral part of its sustainability and the ‘tourism for all’ principle needs to be the reference for any national, regional, local or European tourism-related action;

Sharing Economy

• Current legislation is predicated upon the ownership-based economy and less suited to governing the sharing economy, and local governments have started to investigate platforms and are trying to regulate their effects;
• Reaction to the rise of the ‘sharing economy’ needs to be measured and appropriate, in particular on the part of public authorities in the area of tax and regulation;
• Activities of providers need to be correctly categorised in order to distinguish clearly between informal, ad-hoc sharing and professional services, where appropriate regulations apply;
• Consumers using sites must be correctly informed and not misled, and that companies need to take the necessary steps to protect consumers and hosts with regard to safety and security;
• Technology companies acting as facilitators need to inform their providers about their obligations and how to remain fully compliant with local laws;
• European Commission to undertake a research study measuring the economic impact of the sharing economy and its implications for the tourism industry, consumers, technology companies and public authorities.

Digitalisation

• European Commission to define jointly with industry a roadmap of initiatives to encourage travel and tourism companies to adopt and use digital tools more efficiently;
• SMEs in the tourism sector face considerable difficulties in adapting to the fast-changing market conditions. New IT tools such as the Tourism-IT business support portal and the TourismLink platform will help them take advantage of the digital opportunities;
• European Commission to foster collaboration between public and private travel and tourism stakeholders in order to facilitate the researching and adoption of digital solutions by European companies; and in particular the need for better coordination between tourist boards, tour operators, the hospitality sector and digital businesses;
• European Commission to undertake a research study on the evolution of the digital travel marketplace with a view to identifying policies to ensure a level playing field for travel companies and protecting consumers by providing for transparency and neutrality when they search for, plan and book travel products and services;
• European Commission to refocus funds and programmes in order to better support digitisation of European tourism companies;
• European Commission to ensure that service providers are given fair and equal access to relevant data by travel and transport operators in order to facilitate the deployment of digital multimodal information and ticketing services;
• Member States to identify and support EU-wide initiatives that foster the use of the digital infrastructure (such as the elimination of roaming charges and access to Wi-Fi) and interoperability among different platforms;
• Member States to consider the development of access to high-speed broadband a priority for remote and mountainous areas;
• European governments should do more to empower entrepreneurship and, in particular, technology-oriented solutions in Europe;