Climate Action

The stark warning provided by this week’s IPCC report and its accompanying press release continues to be amplified by extreme weather: our thoughts are with friends in Greece, Germany and other parts of Europe where exceptional heat events and floods have caused much misery. Following the EU’s formal adoption of Climate Law the political positioning continues ahead of COP26: it is increasingly likely that policy will become more coercive to achieve the emissions reductions necessary. Whether it is the development of LEZ cities (only Euro6 coaches will be allowed in Amsterdam from January 2022) or global accords, change to the business environment for travel and tourism will accelerate.

Balancing interests is complex: long-haul visitors typically spend more, their flights account for greater emissions, and there isn’t yet a viable low-carbon alternative for intercontinental aviation. Every industry will argue its corner, and tourism is no exception.  Done well, it can deliver sustained socio-economic benefit that is geographically and seasonally spread. It employs a wide range of people engaged in activity that maintains the natural and cultural diversity that makes life more enjoyable and travel worthwhile. Effective action to manage down emissions is necessary to be a credible stakeholder in devising policy that will retain a sustainable space in which tourism will thrive. ETOA is here to support both efforts.

For our most recent statement, click here. For more on ETOA and climate, click here.

European Policy

Health Credentials and Borders

We have updated our Covid-19 border protocols database with more links to official websites to help members verify in-destination and cross-border requirements. Given the operational necessity of this information we intend to develop more user-friendly search of these resources. Meanwhile, the information is available here.

Despite reports that epidemiological numbers in the US might cause its removal from the EU’s ‘white list‘ this has not happened: the situation remains as published on 15th July. For more information see EU press release here. The next review is now reported to be the week beginning 23rd August. It is important to note that even if the white list changes, European states retain discretion on admissions: the ‘common approach‘ agreed by the EU is not binding.

Buyer barometer survey

ETOA wants to maintain a solid evidential base for discussion with policymakers demonstrating the tourism industry’s value to Europe. We therefore invite our member buyers to share their current business outlook. The survey is anonymous and will only take a few minutes to complete. Thank you in advance – every response counts!

Take the survey

ETOA Member Drop-In: 24th August 14:00 BST/15:00 CEST

Members are encouraged to share this opportunity with colleagues to help raise awareness of ETOA services. Dop-Ins are a chance to​​ meet some of the ETOA team and other ETOA members and discuss issues affecting your business and ask questions. We will also provide an update on activities, including the build-up to The Global European Marketplace 2021 in October.

For more information, the dates of other Member-Drop Ins and registration please follow this link.

ETOA Travel Trade Masterclass

On 13th July, three ETOA operator members shared their insights among Italian suppliers at our first one-hour masterclass delivered in Italian and co-marketed by regional DMOs to their supply chains. The purpose is to raise awareness of the range of business the travel trade brings, and explore mutual benefit. The initial feedback was very positive. To view the webinar click here.

For DMOs and NTOs interested in collaborating with ETOA to develop the supply-chain’s industry knowledge and encourage product diversification, please contact us at policy@etoa.org  Any contractors, product development specialists or others willing to add their insight on behalf of the wider buyer membership (and potentially have exposure to a new range of suppliers) are also invited to get in touch.

Upcoming Events

Registration for the Global European Marketplace + Relaunch ’22 is open, combining our flagship in-person event in London on 29th October with an online workshop on 30th November to maximise opportunity for member suppliers and buyers alike.

Partner event: Travel Tech Show

Are you ready to learn something new? The fully virtual conference programme for TravelTech Show, taking place on 14-15 September is now online. To provide you with the right content and as much value as possible, the sessions are split in three streams to reflect the unique challenges you face.

Insight Hub

Check our latest statistics, opinion and research pieces on the Insight Hub.

ALVA tracker wave 9
The 9th wave of sentiment tracker looking at the views of the attractions-going population in the UK.

Eurostat short stay accommodation bookings
Headline results from newly available data on bookings made in 2018 and 2019 across four major Collaborative Economy booking platforms within the EU, revealing that in 2019 the number of nights booked was 14% up on the year before at 554 million.  Spain, France and Italy are shown to be the countries within the EU27 seeing the largest volume of nights booked via these platforms.

ETC Sentiment Wave 7
The seventh wave of online research looking at the extent to which Europeans are planning travel, their concerns and what factors are likely to influence behaviour.  With fieldwork during May, the study found sentiment to have improved markedly compared with the previous wave, continuing the trend from the most recent survey waves.

Member information with ETOA

If you have not done so already, please review your company information via this link. To see whom ETOA currently holds as the ‘main contact’ check your listing via this link (you will need to be logged in to see all the information).

Meanwhile, please continue to send any comments you may have about the website to: policy@etoa.org