(05.03.2021) – The 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism Gothenburg and Málaga will be taking part in this year’s virtual ITB Berlin NOW, the world’s leading travel trade show taking place on 9 – 12 March 2021. Participants of the ITB will have the opportunity to hear more about the European Capital of Smart Tourism initiative, learn what made Gothenburg and Málaga stand out to become 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism and what are their strategies for the recovery of tourism from the COVID-19 pandemic. Join the virtual live presentation “European Capitals of Smart Tourism – The Road to Recovery”, taking place on 11 March 2021 at 17:00 – 17:30 CET.

Redeem the voucher ITBNOW-T9FH6H93CPF67FHF here: www.itb.com/ITBBerlinNOW/Tickets/ and follow the event here: https://bit.ly/3re1fgx

Read more about the event here

(11.02.2021) – Málaga, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism, has launched the new initiative ‘Málaga WorkBay’ to incentivise remote working in the city, attract new businesses and employees but also to support its tourism and hospitality ecosystem. Read more about it here.

(14.01.2021) – Canal Málaga, the biggest local TV station in Málaga, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism, recently aired a show dedicated to the city’s cultural heritage and creativity. Read more about it here.

(09.12.2020) – On 4 December 2020, representatives of Gothenburg and Málaga, 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, participated in a roundtable discussion on the theme of “Reviving Urban Tourism“. The online event was organised by the Digital Tourism Think Tank (DTTT) as part of the X Festival. Marc Sanderson, Director of International Economic Development at the City of Málaga and Andrea Jovell, Marketing and Communications Manager at Göteborg & Co discussed with other panelists, the skills and strategies that are needed to become a driving force in a sustainable recovery, the future of the city break market and the impact of global tourism and business travel. Giacomo Costantini, Deputy Mayor of Ravenna and Maria Grazia Marini, manager of the tourism service of the Municipality of Ravenna, a city shortlisted in the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism competition, participated in the discussion too. More information about the event can be found here.

(02.12.2020) – On 26 November 2020, representatives of Gothenburg and Málaga, 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, and Helsinki, 2019 European Capital of Smart Tourism, participated in the online event “Smart Tourism and the Global Challenge” organised by Ravenna, a city shortlisted in the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism competition. See below the list of participants to the roundtable “Being a capital: smart technologies for tourism and the experience of the city”:

– Helena Lindqvist, Project Manager European Capital of Smart Tourism 2020,
– Marc Sanderson, Director of International Economic Development at the City of Málaga,
– Jenny Taipale, Director of Partnerships and Development in Helsinki Marketing and
– Maria Grazia Marini, manager of the tourism service of the Municipality of Ravenna.

You may watch the event here.

(26.11.2020) – On 20 November, Gothenburg – 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism – hosted a virtual conference for the cities that were shortlisted in both the 2019 and 2020 competitions. Read more about it here.

(13.11.2020) – Gothenburg, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism, has launched a new website:  www.101sustainableideas.com aimed at gathering innovative and sustainable ideas to improve the tourism experience in cities around the world. Read more about it here.

(13.11.2020) – On 1-3 November 2020, Málaga, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism, co-hosted the 59^th International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) World Congress, which was held in parallel in five cities around the world. Read more about it here.

(23.10.2020) – Málaga, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism, hosted the GreenCities event, a Forum on Urban Intelligence and Sustainability on 1 October 2020. Read more about it here.

(29.09.2020) – On 22 September representatives of Gothenburg and Málaga, the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, took part in the live Travel Massive webinar ‘How Smart Tourism Can Support the Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic‘. They gave key insights on how smart and innovative measures support the re-opening and recovery of tourism in their cities. You can replay the entire session here.

(16.09.2020) – To learn how smart tourism can support the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic join the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, Gothenburg and Málaga, in our live webinar on 22 September at 15:00 CET with Travel Massive – the community for travel industry founders, leaders and creators.

Katarina Thorstensson, Smart Tourism & Sustainability Strategist at Göteborg & Co, and Marc Sanderson, Director of International Economic Development at the City of Málaga, will talk about their tourism destinations’ innovative responses to the pandemic, best practices, reflections and take-aways. You may register and watch the event here: https://bit.ly/2Rcye4q

(07.09.2020) – A new application designed to facilitate safe and seamless travel in the wake of COVID-19 will be launched in Málaga, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism. Read more about it here.

(15.07.2020) – The University of Málaga and Costa del Sol Tourism launched a new app which allows visitors to monitor how crowded beaches are, from Marbella all the way to Málaga, the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism, from their smartphones. Read more about it here.

(17.04.2020) – European tourism destinations have adapted to the COVID-19 outbreak and impossibility to travel with smart initiatives and solutions, offering a wide variety of cultural experiences to be enjoyed digitally by everyone from home.

Málaga and Gothenburg – the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, Karlsruhe – the 2020 European Smart Tourism Award winner in Cultural Heritage and Creativity, Breda – the 2020 European Smart Tourism Award winner in Accessibility and Ljubljana – the 2020 European Smart Tourism Award winner in Digitalisation, have made cultural experiences from virtual reality museum tours to plays and concerts available online.

Experience Gothenburg, Málaga, Karlsruhe, Breda and Ljubljana digitally while staying home!

(11.03.2020) – The updated Compendium of Best Practices, the go-to guide to smart tourism in the EU, is now available online. The Compendium of Best Practices is a selection of the most innovative projects, ideas and initiatives, derived from applications submitted to the 2019 and 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism competitions. The report showcases a selection of 145 best practices by cities as tourism destinations in: Accessibility, Sustainability, Digitalisation, Cultural heritage and creativity and solely presents and relies on the data that the cities submitted in their applications.

The Compendium aims to raise awareness about smart tourism tools, initiatives and projects, sharing the best practices in tourism implemented by cities and strengthening peer-to-peer learning and innovative development of tourism in the EU.

Read the report and get inspired here: www.smarttourismcapital.eu/best-practices/

(11.03.2020) – Gothenburg (Sweden) and Málaga (Spain) are the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism. Both cities won for their overall commitment to smart tourism and for their achievements across all four competition categories (Accessibility, Sustainability, Digitalisation and Cultural Heritage & Creativity). Discover some of the smart tourism measures in both cities in the recent Travel Massive blog.

(05.03.2020) – Watch the videos for the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, Gothenburg and Málaga, and find out how the two cities offer their visitors excellence in accessibility, sustainability, digitalisation, cultural heritage and creativity.

(26.01.2020) – The 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism Gothenburg and Málaga will be taking part in this year’s ITB in Berlin, the world’s leading travel trade show. On 4 – 8 March 2020, the two cities will be showcasing their smart tourism initiatives and best practices at the European Capital of Smart Tourism stand (Hall 1.1, Stand 222) supported by the EU. Read more about the event here.

To be noted that ITB Berlin 2020 was cancelled on 28 February 2020.

(23.01.2020) – The 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism Gothenburg and Málaga, together with the 2020 European Smart Tourism Awards winners Breda, Ljubljana, Karlsruhe, as well as Gothenburg itself, took part in the FITUR Know-How event “Developing Smart Tourism Destinations” on 23 January 2020. It was an interesting discussion, in which the cities explained how they each address the current challenges in the tourism sector and how they became smart tourism destinations. The public had the opportunity to learn about the European Capital of Smart Tourism initiative also at the stand – getting an insight into how the EU is supporting cities in promoting their good practices and working together on smart tourism.

See more photos from FITUR Madrid 2020 here and watch the recorded event “Developing Smart Tourism Destinations” here

The 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism – Gothenburg (Sweden) and Málaga (Spain) – will be taking part in this year’s Fitur travel trade fair in Madrid. At the event, one of Europe’s largest travel fairs, the two cities will be joined by the cities that were recognised with 2020 European Smart Tourism Awards in individual categories: Breda (in Accessibility), Ljubljana (in Digitalisation), Karlsruhe (in Cultural Heritage & Creativity), and also Gothenburg (in Sustainability).

During Fitur Madrid 2020, representatives of the five cities will be showcasing their smart tourism initiatives at Pabellón 4, Stand 4F26. At the FITUR Know-How event “Developing smart tourism destinations” on 23 January, representatives of both capitals and other awarded cities will explain how they are addressing the current challenges in the tourism sector and how they became smart tourism destinations.

The event will take place on Thursday 23 January at 11:30 at the Auditorium (Hall 10, Fitur Know-How & Export space).

Read more:
Media Alert

Helsinki, the 2019 European Capital of Smart Tourism, hosted the Digital Tourism Think Tank (DTTT) Global on 4 & 5 December 2019, with their main topic being Sustainability. The DTTT Global is an annual event that hosts high-ranking speakers, discussions and workshops, all with the aim of shaping a sustainable future for tourism and the overall travel industry. Lyon attended the event and talked about their significant win and becoming the 2019 European Capital of Smart Tourism. Helsinki too shared their best practices as tourism destination in Sustainability, Digitalisation, Accessibility and Cultural Heritage & Creativity. Find out more about the DTTT Global here.

On 13 November representatives from some of the smartest tourism destinations in Europe convened for a Travel Massive webinar, giving participants key insights into the best practices that have helped them to become leaders in Europe.

If you couldn’t make the live webinar, you can replay the entire session here.

Click on the embedded videos and find out how Helsinki, Málaga and Ljubljana transformed into smart and sustainable tourism destinations.

At the award ceremony, representatives from the European Commission and European Parliament explained why developing tourism in a smart and sustainable way is of such importance to the European Union. Meanwhile, Gothenburg and Málaga, the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism, shared their first impressions of winning the 2020 title.

Watch the highlights in the video below.

(09.10.2019) – We are pleased to announce that Gothenburg (Sweden) and Málaga (Spain) were selected as the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism by a European Jury, comprising representatives from the European Commission, European Parliament, European Committee of the Regions and the EU Member States: Finland and France.

The winners of the European Capital of Smart Tourism 2020 competition were awarded on 9 October at a gala event in Helsinki, held as part of the European Tourism Forum. In addition, four cities have been recognised with 2020 European Smart Tourism Awards for their outstanding achievements in the four categories of the competition. These four cities received the highest scores in individual categories among all 35 applicant cities during a preselection phase, carried out by independent experts.

The 2020 European Smart Tourism Award in Accessibility goes to: Breda (Netherlands)

The 2020 European Smart Tourism Award in Sustainability goes to: Gothenburg (Sweden)

The 2020 European Smart Tourism Award in Digitalisation goes to: Ljubljana (Slovenia)

The 2020 European Smart Tourism Award in Cultural heritage and creativity goes to: Karlsruhe (Germany)

Read more:
Press announcement

See photos from the award ceremony

(08.10.2019) – Today the European Jury, comprising representatives from the　European Commission, European Parliament, European Committee of the　Regions and the EU Member States Finland and France (the countries of the 2019 European Capitals of Smart Tourism: Helsinki and Lyon) are meeting in Helsinki to select the 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism.

The 2020 Shortlisted Cities have been invited to the Finnish capital to present the activity programmes that they plan on implementing in 2020 if they win the title, as well as their overall commitment to developing as smart tourism destinations, while acting as role models for others. The announcement of both the winners – 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism and cities that have been recognised with 2020 European Smart Tourism Awards in the individual categories (Accessibility, Sustainability,　Digitalisation, Cultural Heritage and Creativity) will be made tomorrow at a Gala Dinner, which is being held on the occasion of the European Tourism Forum, an annual event where travel industry representatives and associations, as well as other stakeholders have the chance to discuss policy with public authorities at EU, national and regional level.

(05.08.2019) – Ten European cities have been shortlisted for the 2020 European Capital of Smart Tourism:

Read more here.

(09.07.2019) – The Compendium of Best Practices presents a selection of smart and innovative measures put forward by cities in their applications to become the inaugural European Capitals of Smart Tourism.

The Compendium is your go-to guide to smart tourism in the EU. A total of 85 best practices have been compiled. These give descriptions of how smart measures have benefited tourism in cities and provide links for readers to find out more.  Practices are divided between the individual award categories (Accessibility, Sustainability, Digitalisation, Cultural Heritage and Creativity).

See the Compendium in full, here.

(08.06.2019) – On 5-8 June 2019, representatives of the 2019 Capitals, Helsinki and Lyon, and of Ljubljana – recognised with the 2019 European Smart Tourism Award in Sustainability – participated in the 2019 European Cities Marketing International Conference and General Assembly. During the dedicated session “The Art of Smart”, the 2019 European Capitals of Smart Tourism shared their exemplary smart tourism practices with other cities and discussed about the future of the sector. More information on the event can be found here.

(15.05.2019) – Helsinki and Lyon took part in the IMEX tourism fair in Frankfurt, Germany (12-14 May). There, the 2019 European Capitals of Smart Tourism made sure to present themselves as smart tourism destinations, also in terms of hosting congresses, corporate meetings, events and seminars in the cities. At the IMEX fair, stakeholders have the chance to network with other attendees from the industry and further get involved in the latest trends of the sector.

(07.03.2019) – ITB Berlin is the world’s leading travel trade show – so naturally the European Capital of Smart Tourism is taking centre stage. On Thursday morning representatives from Helsinki and Lyon were on the eTravel stage to showcase the smart tourism measures that are in place in the two cities. An audience of technology journalists and stakeholders from the travel tech sector were clearly impressed by the cutting edge solutions presented by Blandine Thenet from Lyon and Jukka Punamäki from Helsinki.

Read more here.

(26.02.2019) – Today, the European Commission launched the competition for the European Capital of Smart Tourism 2020. This initiative rewards European cities for outstanding, innovative and sustainable tourism practices.

Read more:

Press announcement

(7.12.2018) – Check out the latest European Capital of Smart Tourism video to see highlights of the event and find out from the winning cities, as well as representatives of the European Parliament and Commission why this initiative is playing such an important role in preparing destinations to face a smart future in tourism.

(07.11.2018) – The winners of the first edition of the European Capital of Smart Tourism competition were awarded on 7 November at a ceremony in Brussels, on the occasion of the European Tourism Day, the largest annual meeting on European tourism.

Pia Pakarinen, Helsinki’s Deputy Mayor, Alain Galliano, Vice-President of Lyon Métropole and Jean-Michel Daclin, President of ONLYLYON Tourism and Congress, received European Capitals of Smart Tourism 2019 trophies on behalf of their cities and were delighted that long-term efforts in creating smart environments for tourists in their cities have been recognised at EU-level.

Additionally, four further cities were  recognised with European Smart Tourism Awards in Sustainability (Ljubljana), Accessibility (Málaga), Digitalisation (Copenhagen), Cultural Heritage and Creativity (Linz).

Read more:

Press announcement

Watch the videos:

Helsinki – European Capital of Smart Tourism 2019

Lyon – European Capital of Smart Tourism 2019

See Photos from the Award Ceremony:

Award Ceremony and Exhibition during European Tourism Day

(25.09.2018) – We are pleased to announce that Helsinki (Finland) and Lyon (France) were selected as the 2019 European Capitals of Smart Tourism by a seven-member European Jury, comprising representatives from the European Commission, European Parliament, European Committee of Regions and the EU Member States: Bulgaria and Austria (holders of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union during 2018), at a meeting in Brussels, on 24 September.

In addition, four other cities have been recognised with European Smart Tourism Awards for their outstanding achievements in the four categories of the competition. These four cities received the highest scores in individual categories among all 38 applicant cities during the preselection phase done by the independent experts.

2019 European Smart Tourism Award in Accessibility goes to:

Málaga (Spain)

2019 European Smart Tourism Award in Sustainability goes to:

Ljubljana (Slovenia)

Read more:

Press announcement

Helsinki smart tourism city profile

Lyon smart tourism city profile

(24.09.2018) – “Helsinki strongly believes in collaboration and I think the European Capital of Smart Tourism is exactly the kind of network that we need in Europe – and globally in fact. We all face the same problems and we can all find solutions for the future together”, said Laura Aalto, one of Helsinki’s two representatives at the Jury meeting in Brussels.

To view the interview in full, please click on the following link.

Her counterpart from the Lyon delegation, Blandine Thenet  was equally pleased; “We are so happy and honoured to be the first holders of the title of European Capital of Smart Tourism; for Lyon it’s a great privilege.”

To view the interview in full, please click on the following link.