Bled Strategic Forum 2021: the future of European tourism

On 1 September 2021, the Bled Strategic Forum took place in Slovenia: a well-known tourism-focused event that every year gathers international experts.

This year’s tourism panel discussed “What will the future bring?” for the industry across Europe. Amongst the panellists, high-level personalists were present, including Mr. Zdravko Počivalšek, Minister of Economic Development and Technology of Slovenia; Ms. Kerstin Jorna, Director-General for the Internal Market at the European Commission; Prof. Alessandra Priante, Director of Regional Department for Europe at the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and Luis Araújo, Director of the Portugal National Tourist Board and President of the European Travel Commission (ETC).

HOTREC Director-General, Marie Audren, addressed the audience at a panel discussion on the challenges and opportunities of European tourism: the possibility for companies to have access to funding for as long as needed; the need to train the workforce in the sector and the necessity of building a more sustainable and digital hospitality sector for the future were key messages passed on behalf of the hospitality sector.