Despite a very impressive shortlist of candidates for both awards, the judges’ decision was unanimous. The winners of the first ever European Cities Tourism Awards, launched by European Cities Marketing (ECM) 12 months ago, are…
Despite a very impressive shortlist of candidates for both awards, the judges’ decision was unanimous. The winners of the first ever European Cities Tourism Awards, launched by European Cities Marketing (ECM) 12 months ago, are York (for European Tourism City of the Year) and Gothenburg (for European City Tourism Organisation of the Year), with a ‘special commendation’ in the second category for Reykjavik.
The Panel of Judges, chaired by Paul Dubrule, Co-founder of the Accor Group and Chairman of Maison de la France, stressed how impressed they were with all the shortlisted candidates.
“But we had no hesitation in deciding on the eventual winners,” Dubrule told the guests at the special Gala Dinner and Ceremony hosted in Athens on 13 June by the City of Athens and the Athens Tourism and Economic Development Agency, in co-operation with the Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourism Organisation.
“The success of Gothenburg as a leisure and business destination since the beginning of the 1990s is a clear reflection of the achievements of Göteborg&Co, the city’s tourism organisation,” said Richard Tibbott, Chairman of UK-based Locum Consulting, sponsors of the European City Tourism Organisation of the Year award.
“This is an excellent example of real co-operation between all stakeholders, both public and private sector,” Tibbott added, “and I’m talking about co-operation that is planned as a long-term commitment, not just a one-off event.”
“In summary, Göteborg&Co has played a major role in helping the city fulfil its goal to become ‘the preferred choice among cities in Europe by being one of Europe’s most pleasant and attractive urban regions to live in, work in and visit’.”
Because of the extremely high standard of applications, particularly among the other shortlisted city tourism organisations – Copenhagen, Liverpool, Reykjavik and Valencia – the judges also decided to make a separate Special Commendation to the city of Reykjavik – “a very young organisation in a small city that has nonetheless achieved excellent results since it was founded in 2003 thanks, largely thanks to its strong brand and sound strategy,” said Tibbott.
“In the European Tourism City of the Year, three cities were shortlisted – Gothenburg, Valencia and York,” said Thomas Gleisner from sponsor SAS.
“But York was the clear overall winner,” Gleisner added. The city has unique characteristics, such as its 2,000 years of history, a variety of world-class attractions, distinctive shopping, and festivals and events – all of which make it a destination well worth visiting, and on a year-round basis, too.
“Yet what impressed the judges most,” said Gleisner, “is that this is a powerful example of a highly successful public-private sector partnership. The public sector has invested wisely in innovative and imaginative infrastructure projects. And this in turn has helped stimulate substantial private sector investment – because developers are confident they will see a good return.”
The investments have paid off handsomely. Over the past ten years, York has achieved a 52% growth in visitor spending, a 26% increase in tourist overnight volume, a 21.5% rise in average length of stay, and 12% more employment. Even more importantly, as a result of the city’s success, the local authorities and their partners have gained the buy-in of local residents, who have a very positive attitude to tourism and recognise its economic and social impact.
The European Cities Tourism Awards, which were launched 12 months ago at City Break 2006 in Helsinki, are to be presented bi-annually. So the next Awards Ceremony will take place in June 2009.
“Interest in the Awards Programme has surpassed our expectations,” said Frank Magee, President of European Cities Marketing, “and they are surely set to become a feature of European cities tourism in the future.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
