The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has selected Berchtesgaden, Germany as the venue for the 4th UNWTO Euro-Asian Mountain Tourism Conference on 2-5 March 2019. The event is being organized jointly with the Berchtesgadener Land Region, and supported by the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy of Germany.
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The conference takes place every two years. A particular focus is placed on the vision of promoting sustainable tourism in mountain destinations by advancing the links between Europe and Asia.
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The Theme: The Future of Mountain Tourism
The Future of Mountain Tourism is the theme of the 4th UNWTO Euro-Asian Mountain Tourism Conference.
Europe and Asia are two main world tourism regions. They are in diverse moments of development in many areas but especially in what refers to Mountain tourism which is today competing with many other tourism products and experiences.
The 4th UNWTO Euro-Asian Mountain Tourism Conference will look into the future of mountain tourism from the perspective of mature destinations in Europe and new emerging ones in Asia. It will further discuss how to promote increased tourism between Europe and Asia in terms of Mountain tourism, looking into the profile of tomorrow’s tourist, new segments, innovation and technological transformation and new business models.
Lectures and Issues for debate:
• Mountain Tourism and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• The United Nations One Planet Initiative
• The global tourist
• The impacts economic aspect of demographic change for the tourism sector
• Exiting experiences as a new way of recreation of the thrill-seeking-society
• Innovation and digitalization
• Future mobility
• Euro-Asian Mountain Tourism: how to foster mutual flows
• If mountain destinations run out of snow, they need 4 seasons strategies
• Technological advancement
• Health Tourism
• Investing in mountain tourism
World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) – A Specialized Agency of the United Nations
Poeta Joan Maragall 42, 28020 Madrid, Spain. Tel: (34) 91 567 81 00 – [email protected] / unwto.org
The conference will be a think tank from which the participants from European and Asian Countries draw inspiration and take back home ideas and thoughts, from which innovations, new solutions and turn out values and strengths mountain destinations can offer already.
The Destination: Berchtesgadener Land (BGL)
BGL, a popular destination in the European Alps and well known worldwide since the 19th century, embodies the spirit of sustainable mountain tourism and is a perfect fit for this event.
BGL is a perfect exemplification of the UNWTO message on sustainable mountain tourism.
Nature tourism and an environment preserved by farmers serve as our landscape. The BGL National Park, the unparalleled Lake Königssee, the picturesque mountaineering village Ramsau, a culture influenced by royalty and the world-famous spa town Bad Reichenhall are compelling examples of the spirit of BGL.
BGL is a brand with seven elements: heritage, history, profile, positioning, image, awareness and a distinctive identity for a holistic mainstream, premium and excellence/high-end tourism offer in the four areas of nature, culture, health and sports.
The Berchtesgadener Land is one of the birthplaces of Bavarian tourism in the 19th century while the visits of “out-of-towners” developed modern tourism into the area. Berchtesgaden and the Berchtesgadener Land today are one of the most successful tourist regions of Bavaria today, where tourism is characterized by special protection and the preservation of nature.
In order to compete in today’s ever stronger-growing competition, tourism destinations in the Alps are focusing increasingly on their DNA and the particular characteristics of their Unique Selling Proposition. In order to seize their opportunities and brave the manifold challenges, they are working on expedient future-oriented marketing and communication strategies. The BGL is exemplary for this.
Although located in the midst of a highly industrialized Europe, the Alps have preserved their values ever since their creation and are committed to maintain them. Agriculture contributes to landscape conservation and protection, thus securing the European Alps as a classic holiday destination and local recreation area for people living on the outskirts of the Alps.
Exemplary are also the cultural values of the Alps, which are so varied and magnificent that there are still many opportunities to attract the new tourist, especially in the premium and high-end segments. In addition, health tourism, deeply rooted in the Alpine history of the 19th and 20th centuries, leaves the Alps unrivaled even today. The Alps are incomparable when it comes to top-tier sports in all four seasons.
Last but not least, the European Alps offer a variety of venues for congresses and conferences in an environment that opens possibilities for creative work, alternating between activity and relaxation. Highest-level think tanks won’t find a better ‘climate’ for innovative work.
The hosts
The Conference will be organized by UNWTO, represented by the Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, the Bavarian State Government represented by the Minister of Economic Affairs Hubert Aiwanger MdL, the District Administrator of the Berchtesgadener Land Georg Grabner, Mayor Franz Rasp and the municipal council of the market town of Berchtesgaden, the mayors and local councils of the remaining regional district’s 14 tourist destinations, the political representatives of Bavaria in Berlin, as well as the managing directors of the Berchtesgadener Land Tourism GmbH, Peter Nagel and Dr. Brigitte Schlögl.
