The International Cruise Lines Association (CLIA) has positively assessed the new European Sustainable Tourism Strategy presented yesterday by the European Commission, stressing that it reinforces the commitment to a more balanced tourism model and to more efficient management of visitor flows.
In a statement, the industry employers’ organization highlighted that the initiative to create a 'Cruise Cooperation Dialogue' represents "a key opportunity" to deepen cooperation with destinations and local communities, incorporating the experience accumulated and the practical solutions of the industry, as set out in the final report of the Commission Good Practices for Sustainable Cruise Tourism.
CLIA also emphasized that the Strategy helps support the sector’s efforts to cut its emissions and reduce its environmental footprint, including maintaining investment in infrastructure that enables ships to be connected to the shore-side electrical grid while berthed, as well as promoting the large-scale availability of zero or low-emission fuels.
The association also recalled the significant economic weight of cruises in Europe, noting that the activity generates more than 64,000 million euros and sustains 445,000 jobs across the whole continent.
"Tourism is one of Europe’s biggest opportunities for territorial development," the vice president of the European Executive responsible for Cohesion, Raffaele Fitto, argued yesterday during the presentation of the new EU roadmap, with which Brussels aims to "unlock" the sector’s full potential to "create growth and prosperity in all regions, while protecting the diversity and unique identity of territories.
"Our goal is not simply to attract more tourists to the same destinations; it is about generating more value and distributing the benefits of tourism more broadly," he said at the press conference, subsequently highlighting the importance of having a common European approach for "stronger coordination and greater flexibility to respond to the different territorial needs".