Fostering sustainability and competitiveness in European tourism

Purpose This paper aims to explore sustainable tourism in Europe in economic, socio-cultural and environmental dimensions as well as discuss key challenges and necessary steps to be taken by the national tourism organisations. Design/methodology/approach The author takes a look at the evolution and importance of sustainable development for the travel and tourism industry today. Findings Last year Europe reached another record of international tourist arrivals, resulting in a 6 per cent increase on the previous year's performance. Factors that contributed to this development include the recovery of major source markets, marketing efforts in promoting travel offseason as well as themed promotional activities in third markets. However, the European tourism industry is facing increasing challenges, in particular, those related to the quest between sustainable practices and the need for increasing competitiveness as a global destination. Originality/value This paper provides a current view of how sustainable tourism in Europe became a key global challenge.