EU’s Sustainable Tourism Plan Aims to Spread Visitors Out — With No Funding or Targets

Photo Credit: Dimitris Vetsikas from Pixabay The European Commission wants to spread tourism across more destinations and seasons, according to its tourism strategy — which does not allocate new funding or set numerical targets. The EU Sustainable Tourism Strategy released Wednesday sets out Brussels’ vision for tourism across its economic bloc: it would like tourists spread across lesser-traveled destinations throughout the whole year. The Commission said that, on average, 42% of nights spent in a destination fall in its three busiest months. The long-awaited strategy and its supporting documentation are designed to further the EU’s competitiveness, sustainability and resilience. They come against a backdrop of backlash about overtourism and a summer of extreme heat and wildfires in parts of Europe. The documents note that destination choices are changing due to the effects of climate change — for instance, the shift to traditionally cooler destinations like the Nordics — and destina