Building tomorrow's cities: where does the visitor economy fit?

There is nothing more reassuring than knowing that many city leaders have been using the past year -when the city centers had gone from thriving to falling silent- to create innovative solutions for the benefit of everyone who spends time there.

It’s also impressive to consider that within only two years, our mindset on the relationship between cities and tourism has changed for good. 

Together with HOTREC, our partners since 2015, we couldn’t miss a great opportunity to highlight the most valuable lessons for our cities of tomorrow. 

What lessons can we learn from the ‘boom’ year 2019?

Our webinar with HOTREC was held on April 29, 2021. On that same date, two years ago, the term ‘overtourism’ overshadowed media reports for numerous countries such as Spain, the Netherlands, Philippines and New Zealand. What has changed since then is the decisiveness of destination authorities to test and commit to improving solutions for crowd management, sustainable cruises and the access to affordable housing.

Our webinar examples of Amsterdam, Lisbon and Dubrovnik are valuable, not because they show signs of immediate progress, but because they demonstrate stakeholders’ consensus on the need for long-term solutions. 

What lessons can we also learn from 2020?

Answering this question can be a daunting task to take on but the task itself can also be highly rewarding. From sustainable events to outdoor experiences and smart services, our webinar examples of cities such as Madrid, Vilnius and Gdansk illustrate how the pandemic has been driving the development of solutions, for the benefit of both communities and visitors. These examples are again valuable not because they introduce utterly new solutions, but because they add a fresh perspective on the positive role of visitor economy in city life. 

So, where do we stand now? 

We’ll continue monitoring the most ambitious initiatives of European cities and we’ll be ready to support your plans for enhancing the value of the visitor economy in your own destination. 

Until then, for all our partners and friends, the video of our webinar with HOTREC is available here, while we’d be glad to hear your thoughts on them at info@toposophy.com.