The Council of the European Union has adopted conclusions setting out strategic guidelines for building a sustainable and competitive tourism sector. Tourism currently contributes 7% of the EU’s gross value added, 10% of jobs, and supports 4.6 million businesses across the bloc.
The conclusions call for integrating economic, social, and environmental priorities across all tourism policy, with specific focus on reducing the sector’s environmental footprint through resource efficiency, decarbonisation, and biodiversity conservation.
One section addresses overtourism directly. The document calls for tackling both the negative impacts of overtourism in popular destinations and the lack of visitors in lesser-known areas, pushing member states to strengthen regional connectivity and support tourism development in peripheral, rural, island, and mountainous destinations.
The Council also flagged persistent implementation gaps across EU countries and called for stronger multi-level governance between national, regional, and local authorities. The Commission has been asked to report on progress every three years, feeding into the upcoming EU Sustainable Tourism Strategy.
Source: Council of the European Union, The Council sets strategic guidelines for a sustainable and competitive tourism sector: https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2026/05/28/the-council-sets-strategic-guidelines-for-a-sustainable-and-competitive-tourism-sector/
