Sustainable Cultural Tourism development and promotion across Europe

Members Area

UN Tourism

ReInHerit Digital Hub

Sustainable Cultural Tourism is the integrated management of cultural heritage and tourism activities in conjunction with the local community, creating social, environmental and economic benefits for all stakeholders in order to achieve tangible and intangible cultural heritage conservation and sustainable tourism development. (European Commission DG EAC, OMC Report 2019).

Sustainable Tourism is tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities. (UNWTO).

ECTN welcomes the signing of the Joint Declaration "Europe for Culture - Culture for Europe" by the Presidents of the European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament!

This marks the first time in EU history that all three institutions have united behind a shared political commitment to culture. The declaration is the first flagship milestone of the Culture Compass for Europe. It formally recognises culture as central to Europe's democracy, identity, creativity and resilience. Furthermore, it signals the support of the three institutions towards key principles for cultural policies in Europe, including:

"Advancing sustainable cultural tourism, respectful of cultural heritage, landscapes and community practices, and contributing to regional and local development."

This moment belongs to the cultural tourism, culturak and creative sectors as much as it does to the EU institutions.

INSPIRES Compendium of Best Practices published

A Compendium on Best Practices on Tourism Resilience, Sustainability and Digitalisation for SMEs.

The tourism sector is undergoing significant transformations driven by sustainability, digitalization, and resilience priorities. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) play a crucial role in this transition, acting as catalysts of innovation and local development. In the framework of INSPIRES project, identifying Best Practices in these areas is a future source of inspiration for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises to help to foster innovation, enhance competitiveness, and ensure long-term viability solutions. A basis and a pool of concrete, relevant, replicable and relatable Best Practices for the next activities in the project has been compiled.

The general framework consists of three main pillars:
● Green Transition: Adoption of environmentally sustainable practices
● Digital Transition: Integration of digital tools and technologies
● Resilience: Resilience and Adaptation to External Challenges.

Identifying Best Practices helps us to better understand the real context of companies in the tourism sector, how they address the green and digital transition, and which key aspects, challenges, and opportunities they identify for their business models, paying particular attention to align with the European Commission’s Transition Pathway for Tourism (TPT), specifically with the following TPT Topics:
● Topic 8: Green transition of tourism companies and SMEs
● Topic 16: support for digitalisation of tourism SMEs and destinations
● Topic 19: Awareness raising on skills needs for twin transition in tourism
● Topic 20: Awareness raising on changes in tourism demand and the opportunities of twin transition for tourism
● Topic 25: Enhancing accessible tourism services
● Topic 26: Tourism services for visitors and residents alike.

This document aims to present the main results of the compendium of Best Practices collected, showcasing how businesses and Destination Management Organisations combine the main pillars of twin transition with community building, skills development, and accessibility to achieve both sustainable and competitive tourism models.

This document presents 31 best practices from the INSPIRES project, showcasing innovative approaches that support the sustainability, resilience and digital transition of tourism SMEs across Europe. Practices are organised by country and can be easily accessed through the Table of Contents. The document also includes a Topic Matrix and a Strength Matrix, providing an overview of key themes and strengths. It serves as a practical source of inspiration for tourism stakeholders and SMEs.

The Best Practices description is available for download here

Mont Saint-Michel – Normandy Tourism joins ECTN

ECTN welcomes new member Mont Saint-Michel – Normandy Tourism, France!

Mont Saint-Michel – Normandy Tourism represents an internationally recognised destination structured around Mont Saint-Michel and its bay, both listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The destination extends beyond the iconic site, offering a diverse territory that combines coastline, natural areas and small characterful towns. It brings together heritage discovery, outdoor activities and local experiences.

The destination is committed to a balanced and sustainable tourism development approach, with particular attention given to preserving the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel and maintaining a balance between visitor numbers, quality of welcome and year-round promotion of the area.

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ECTN celebrates Global Resilience Tourism Day 2026 !

The Global Tourism Resilience Day (17 February), proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in resolution A/RES/77/269, aims to emphasise the need to foster resilient tourism development to deal with shocks and crises, taking into account the vulnerability of the tourism sector to emergencies. It is also a call for action for Member States to develop national strategies for rehabilitation after disruptions, including through private-public cooperation and the diversification of activities and products.

Cultural Tourism is enhanced through Resilience. Furthermore, Resilient Tourism facilitates culture and heritage preservation and promotion.

ECTN celebrates the Tourism Resilience Day also as a partner of the INSPIRES Project in Single Market Programme, co-funded by the EU. Tourism Resilience is at the heart of the INSPIRES project.

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ECTN joins "Active Tourism Coalition"

ECTN has joined a new Active Tourism Coalition, bringing together 20 civil society and industry organisations representing active travel. This has formally launched with a call for stronger recognition of active tourism in Europe’s future tourism policies, with significant synergies with sustainable cultural tourism.

The coalition defines active tourism as tourism centred on accessible physical activity for mobility, recreation, and leisure. This includes activities such as cycling, walking, and hiking, allowing visitors to experience destinations at a human scale while delivering low environmental impact, high social value, and strong connections to local landscapes, cultures, and communities.

Coalition members

Coalition Proposals

ECTN Awards 2025 results announced!

The Winners and Runners-up by Category were announced at the ECTN Awards ceremony that took place in Sibiu, Romania, on 2nd October 2025, during the 18th ECTN Conference.

INSPIRES Project

Best Practice Collection Online Survey

The INSPIRES project partnership kindly invites representatives of the tourism sector to participate in a questionnaire survey that aims to collect best practices focused on tourism resilience, sustainability and digitalisation.

The submitted best practices will be analysed, included in a Best Practices Guide, disseminated through various channels, and used as examples in our "Train the Trainers" programme - all within the framework of the INSPIRES project, funded by the Single Market Programme (SMP) of the European Union.

Contribution is essential to showcase real-world experiences and promote shared learning across the tourism sector. All information will be treated with strict confidentiality and used exclusively for the purposes stated above.

Online Questionnaire Access

House of European History receives ECTN Award !

The ECTN Board has decided to award the 'House of European History' a Special Prize as a 'Destination of Sustainable Cultural Tourism 2023' at pan-European level. This special award is introduced in the framework of a specific category on 'History and Heritage' in the ECTN Awards, 10th edition. Furthermore, it is as an acknowledgement of a study visit that took place in May 2023, in the framework of the ReInHerit (Redefining the future of cultural heritage) Coordination and Support Action (CSA) in the EU Horizon 2020 programme.

The Award ceremony took place at the House of European History in Brussels on 14 March 2024. The museum director Dr. Constanze Itzel received the award from the ECTN Secretary-General, Manos Vougioukas.

The House of European History (HEH) is a history museum and cultural institution in Brussels, Belgium, focusing on the recent history of Europe. It is an initiative by the European Parliament, opened in 2017. It meets several of ECTN Awards and ReInHerit CSA criteria, such as cultural heritage management, sustainability, quality, digitalisation, accessibility and innovation. Regarding digitalisation, HEH offers highly relevant digital facilities such as multilingual and interactive tablets with audio enhancing the visitor experience, virtual tours and online collection. With additional high standards on sustainability, accessibility and creativity in special exhibitions, HEH is also meeting smart tourism destination criteria. HEH is a most important museum in Brussels, documenting and highlighting European history.

ECTN congratulates HEH for receiving this newly introduced special award at pan-European level !

ECTN supports the UNWTO

'Tourism Opens Minds' initiative

ECTN an affiliate member of UNWTO

In the framework of the 118th session of the UNWTO Executive Council in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, on 16-18 May 2023, the new candidatures for the UNWTO Affiliate Membership have been approved.

European Cultural Tourism Network (ECTN) is amongst 16 new entities that joined the Affiliate Membership, adding a wide range of profiles with different backgrounds.

We are looking forward to working together to build a more accessible, responsible and sustainable tourism industry.

ECTN a member of the Stakeholders Commitee for the EUROPEAN YEAR OF CULTURAL HERITAGE 2018, selected by the European Commission DG Education & Culture (EAC)

ECTN was the only member of the EYCH 2018 Stakeholders Committee with a tourism mandate