Europe to Weigh New Ways to Measure Tourism Success
Photo Credit: The European Commission's tourism report confirms EU destinations have agreed to work on developing new tourism metrics. Flickr Commons / Pedro Szekely
Skift Take
A lot of talk has surfaced these past two years, but this fresh report from the European Commission affirms EU tourism boards' agreement to implement new tourism metrics, and to prioritize both residents and tourists when it comes to travel services. It seems to indicate a turning point for the future of EU tourism.
A recommendation to adopt new sustainable key performance indicators for tourism, and go “from basic statistics on trips and overnight stays to data on the social, environmental and economic impacts of tourism" has emerged from the European Commission.
It’s a groundbreaking confirmation of the need to depart from a simple and harmful arrival based analysis in measuring the performance of tourism, and instead embrace more sustainable metrics to determine the true impact of the industry on destinations.
The 57-page European Commission report on the future pathway for tourism, co-created with European Union member destinations and industry players, and released days ago, also lists the key priorities for tourism destinations and businesses to accelerate their green and digital transitions and build a more resilient, competitive tourism sector
