The tourism sector has experienced and continues to experience continuous growth until it becomes one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world, and, at present, it is finally recognized as a key engine of socioeconomic progress that benefits communities across the globe.
In fact, the World Tourism Organization confirms that, today, tourism represents 10% of world GDP, 7% of global trade and provides one in every 11 jobs worldwide. Likewise, the fact that more than 1.3 million people travel to other countries in just one year means that tourism has become a force for intercultural dialogue, social inclusion, peace and reconciliation and sustainable development (UNWTO, 2017).
As any other strong economic sector, tourism must be managed with an orderly, sustainable and innovative planning. And in order for this message to spread throughout society, managers of destinations and companies at a global-local level, the celebration of World Tourism Day is essential.
In fact, this was the case, at the request of the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), World Tourism Day was established in 1979, specifically on September 27. The date was chosen to promote awareness among the international community regarding the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value due to, on the one hand, coinciding with the anniversary of the approval of the UNWTO Statutes in the year 1970 and on the other, for being the time of the year in which tourism occupies a leading place in the activities of millions of people, given that the date coincides with the end of the peak travel season for the northern hemisphere and the beginning of it for the southern hemisphere.
The event has tried to contribute over the years to address the global challenges identified in the United Nations Development Goals for the Millennium (MDG) in 2000 and the current 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 and to influence the contribution that the tourism sector can make to achieve all the aforementioned objectives.
The World Tourism Day in 2018 will be celebrated by the international community in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, and the thematic focus of this year will be innovation and digital transformation. Therefore, this September 27, will try to help to highlight the opportunities for sustainable tourism development provided by technological advances.
Like every year, in2destination will join the celebration of World Tourism Day, but this time, it will do so with more enthusiasm than ever, if possible, given that the slogan ”Tourism and Digital Transformation” is closely linked to the company’s activity.
In2destination team is committed to digitalization and the incorporation of technological advances since we believe that it allows companies and destinations to make data-driven decisions for a more sustainable, inclusive and smarter tourism management.
At in2destination, we believe it is important to point out that innovation is not only technological, we also have to innovate to improve the inclusion of the growing senior population, of the diverse abilities collective, and of the LGBT + collective, among others, and non-technological innovations are required as well.
In this line, the in2destination team is committed to raising awareness of the importance of measuring to make an efficient use of resources, to be aware of the impacts that are generated and to take measures to move steadily and firmly towards sustainability and inclusion.
Happy World Tourism Day for all of us who belong to this exciting sector!
Let’s keep it up! 🙂
