Estonia approved a new Tourism Strategy for 2022‑25 in March 2022, with the vision that in 2025 the Estonian tourism sector will be resilient and adaptable. To implement this vision, Estonia has set strategic goals in three priority areas:
Product and destination development: become a sustainable tourism destination that offers visitors a diverse and unique travel experience in all seasons (Box 3.11).
Restoration of demand: exceed pre-crisis levels in the number of tourists and the export of tourism services.
Ensuring connectivity: be well-connected to the main markets and have easily accessible tourism products and services, both physically and virtually.
Estonia aims to achieve these goals by increasing the length of stay and spending, aiming for tourism to become more sustainable and create greater added value. Every year a supporting action plan will be developed in line with the 2022‑25 Tourism Strategy. Safety, innovation, and customer orientation are cross-cutting priorities in the strategy, as is sustainability. Estonia’s approach to sustainability is defined by three principles:
We are proud of Estonia: we value the local culture, the environment and the community.
We co‑operate closely to develop, market and promote the sector, and we prefer solutions based on Estonia’s tourism as a whole and its long-term development objectives.
We contribute to the fulfilment of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
To best implement the goals set out in the strategy, a national tourism advisory council has been established to facilitate collaboration between the Ministry of Economics and Communication, the Estonian Tourist Board and related actors. In particular, the council aims to encourage partnerships with business associations, carriers, ports of arrival, destinations, other ministries (e.g. ministries covering culture, rural affairs, foreign affairs and labour) and state agencies (e.g. the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority).
Several initiatives have been launched to tackle tourism labour and skills challenges. In 2021-22, the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund together with the Estonian Hotel and Restaurants Association organised a free seminar series with the aim to swiftly train people for the restaurant and accommodation sector. Over 1 200 people attended the series which included four webinars. In December 2022, the Ministry of Economics and Communication issued a study and policy recommendations for tourism sector stakeholders to address labour and skills challenges. The study included comparative case studies, inquiries among tourism students and entrepreneurs, and interviews with all sector and related governmental stakeholders.
The tourism sector and policymakers have learned to be more flexible and reactive to the urgent policy changes needed to tackle the spread of COVID‑19 and the consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. Co‑operation between the public and private sectors has advanced as a result, with more frequent and open communication.
The main priority for inbound tourism is restoring demand in neighbouring and nearby markets as soon as possible. This will be followed by more distant European countries with a historical interest in Estonia (e.g. Germany and the United Kingdom) and new potential markets that are discovering Estonia (e.g. Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy). More distant markets will be focused on in co‑operation with neighbouring countries (e.g. the Baltic States and Finland). At an international level, Estonia works with other Baltic and Nordic countries in common marketing activities and undertakes many initiatives as part of the EU Baltic Sea Region Strategy.
