Trade and coverage leaders accrued on the Vacation spot Europe Summit – a collaborative tournament organised via the Ecu Shuttle Fee, Reserving.com and Euronews, hosted via Euronews anchor Meabh McMahon.
Visitors on the summit mentioned the way forward for the tourism business – balancing expansion, law and sustainability funding.
Miguel Sanz, president of the Ecu Shuttle Fee, took to the degree in Brussels after an advent from Euronews’ Meabh McMahon – stressing the significance of commute to Europe’s “way of life, tradition and connectivity”.
He spoke of the impact of digitalisation of the commute sector and argued that extra sights and locations should be to be had to guide on-line.
Presenting Europe as “the sector’s favorite vacation spot”, Sanz mentioned the area should try to retain its aggressive edge.
Sanz however highlighted the hazards that include huge numbers of holiday makers:
“Overtourism is placing pressure on infrastructure, housing prices, and native communities.”
Tourism funding and technique for 2026
Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the Ecu commissioner for sustainable delivery and tourism, reasserted the significance of tourism for Europe, calling it a “powerhouse for financial expansion, for task introduction, for social construction”.
He defined the EU’s new tourism technique for 2026, which can come with a focal point on:
• Local weather adaptation and sustainability investment
• SME virtual transformation, together with AI adoption
• Infrastructure funding and customer control
He emphasized that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)—which shape the spine of Europe’s tourism sector—should know the way to get right of entry to investment alternatives to stay aggressive. Additionally, he famous how the Ecu Fee has pledged to simplify financing techniques.
“We want to make issues more practical, and we will be able to,” he mentioned.
Reserving.com CEO warns of overregulation hindering competitiveness
Glenn Fogel, CEO of Reserving.com, raised issues about regulatory hurdles slowing down Europe’s competitiveness.
Fogel additionally addressed overtourism, suggesting that some locations would possibly want to discover pricing mechanisms to regulate customer numbers, however he wired that governments—no longer non-public firms—will have to lead in this factor.
“As economies develop, overtourism is most effective going to worsen,” he warned, highlighting locations corresponding to Paris, Amsterdam and Venice.
New industry fashions and earnings methods
A panel that includes business executives and policymakers explored choice earnings fashions for tourism control:
Nikolina Brnjac, member of the Ecu Parliament, highlighted the will for higher vacation spot control plans, mentioning housing shortages and infrastructure pressures from momentary leases. She highlighted how Croatia has offered a tourism tax on day guests to ease congestion.
Daniel Attard, member of the Ecu Parliament, wired that native communities should be a part of tourism decision-making, as no longer each and every area welcomes mass tourism.
Magda Kopczynska, EU Fee director normal for mobility and delivery, mentioned aviation’s shift to sustainable fuels, noting that whilst choice fuels exist, top prices and manufacturing boundaries are slowing adoption.
Olivier Jankovec, director normal at ACI EUROPE, in the meantime, referred to as for higher EU enhance in scaling up sustainable aviation gasoline adoption to make sure Europe isn’t reliant on power imports.
Shuttle call for at listing highs
George Simon, EVP marketplace construction head for Europe at Mastercard, highlighted in a presentation that 2024 was once a record-breaking yr for commute, with 7.4 billion shoppers travelling globally. Particularly, 83% of surveyed Chinese language vacationers expressed a want to talk over with Europe, reinforcing the continent’s enduring enchantment but additionally elevating issues about force on vacationer hotspots.
Rising commute developments point out that recreational remains are lengthening, with the typical shuttle extending via two additional days, benefitting native economies.
Moreover, the chief highlighted the “swift elevate” impact, the place occasions, just like the Taylor Swift live performance, boosted economies throughout Europe and therefore underscored the ability of establishing such occasions in numerous locations.
Managing tourism expansion responsibly
The general panel dialogue focused on tourism control methods. A director from UN Tourism, Sandra Carvao, answerable for marketplace intelligence, insurance policies and competitiveness, wired the significance of measuring group perceptions, noting that benchmarking knowledge is the most important to addressing seasonality problems and making sure tourism stays a internet sure for native populations too.
Paul Kelly, CEO of Fáilte Eire, pointed to Eire’s top tourism approval scores, with each locals and nationwide stakeholders keeping up a good outlook at the sector. He emphasized the will for ongoing engagement with communities to stay tourism construction aligned with native pursuits.
Talking on demographic shifts, Kelly referenced “silver tourism”, highlighting the rising marketplace of travellers over 55 and the business’s want to adapt infrastructure and products and services accordingly.
Coverage and infrastructure demanding situations
Sérgio Gonçalves, member of the Ecu Parliament (S&D), echoed overtourism and sustainability issues, noting how Madeira faces an identical demanding situations to different standard locations.
“A perfect vacation spot is most effective nice if it additionally supplies a prime quality of existence for locals,” Gonçalves mentioned, emphasising the will for powerful infrastructure and tourism insurance policies. He proposed decreasing airport fees and increasing low season occasions as possible methods to unfold customer visitors extra calmly during the yr.
Sustainable aviation gasoline (SAF) was once every other key problem for island locations, with Gonçalves stressing the will for higher power garage answers and the significance of EU enhance in scaling up SAF manufacturing.
Marlène Bartès, coverage officer for tourism on the Ecu Fee, warned towards the usage of tourism as a scapegoat for broader problems, corresponding to housing shortages, urging a balanced method that learns from areas experiencing overtourism.
Non-public sector’s name for trade
Zina Bencheikh, EMEA managing director at Intrepid Shuttle, argued that Europe’s tourism infrastructure isn’t lately aligned with sustainable industry fashions. She wired the will for structural adjustments to make sure long-term viability, specifically for SMEs that depend on peak-season profits to continue to exist throughout the low season.
“The Ecu tourism construction has been inbuilt some way that doesn’t have compatibility our taste,” she mentioned.
Bencheikh additionally famous that catering for travellers over 55 is the quickest rising section for Intrepid commute.
Taking a look forward: A extra sustainable long run
In his ultimate remarks, Eduardo Santander, the CEO of the Ecu Shuttle Fee, thanked attendees for his or her insights, underscoring the significance of collaboration in shaping the way forward for tourism.
“This momentum can’t be wasted. It should pressure us ahead to create a extra sustainable tourism panorama,” he mentioned. “We wish to be the most productive—no longer simply in sustainability, however in accessibility and each and every facet of tourism.”