On 21 April, the European Network for Sustainable Travel with the support of Turismo de Portugal, the national tourism board, organized an international e-conference on “Promoting Sustainable and Social Travel in Europe” in the context of the European Year of Rail. 480 individual spectators as well as 40 university researchers and travel agencies had the opportunity to discuss different approaches to sustainable tourism with representatives of the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Council of Europe and Turismo de Portugal.

The Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme and its contributions to the development of sustainable tourism initiatives through examples of good practices implemented by certified Cultural Routes in the field of “Cultural Tourism and Sustainable Cultural Development” were presented by Ms Carolina CLARK, Project Manager at the European Institute of Cultural Routes.

Culture is a main tourism motivation for visitors. It should therefore be an integral part of every tourism strategy, not only for visitor attraction, but also with the well-being of local communities and the preservation of cultural heritage in mind.

The European Commission has designated 2021 as the European Year of Rail. A year-long programme of activities will highlight the sustainability, innovation and safety benefits of rail travel as a contribution to the EU Green Deal goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050. In line with this idea, the Secretariat already organised a coordination meeting in January with Eurail, the European Youth Card Association (EYCA) and two certified Cultural Routes to discuss possible activities for the European Year of Rail.