The focus is on supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the tourism industry so that they can develop their competitive position and realise their potential for growth and employment.
Competition for skilled professionals has intensified across the entire economy and is impacting the continued development of tourism. The tourism industry reports declining numbers of trainees, comparatively high drop-out rates, and high staff turnover levels. It is a challenge to make the industry attractive to the next generation.
The German government’s tourism policy focuses not only on economic goals, but also on social and structural aspects. One of the biggest challenges is to enable the rural regions, especially economically weak regions, to reap greater benefits from tourism and to provide opportunities for rural enterprises to benefit from the growing tourism sector. Through strengthening local retail demand and using public facilities, tourists help to maintain local infrastructure and income in rural areas, and contribute to the development of entire regions.
Cultural tourism is a hallmark of tourism in Germany and many cultural destinations, mainly cities, attract tourists based on their museums, theatres, castles and palaces. Yet there is untapped potential in more remote regions, where traditions and customs provide variety in travel experiences.
BMWi is taking a fresh approach with its project The Destination as a Stage: How can Cultural Tourism Make Rural Areas Successful?. Five rural regions, each with a different level of tourism sophistication, are being coached to function as role models for other regions by demonstrating the benefits of the connection between culture and tourism, inspiring other destinations to develop their own initiatives. This work will continue into 2018.
Accessibility for all remains a tourism policy priority in Germany, including the provision of comprehensive and reliable information concerning barrier-free offers along the tourism service chain for people with disabilities. The “Tourism for All” project is funded by BMWi to support the creation of a nation-wide labelling and certification system (Box 1.17).
Digitisation is an increasingly important issue and smaller businesses especially are struggling to keep up. BMWi is conducting a study on the role of the sharing economy, analysing the market for sharing business models and their macroeconomic effects. The study will consider the need for regulatory action for private accommodation booking platform, with final results available in the first half of 2018.
In addition to a broad approach to sustainability, measures are in place with a strong focus on environmental sustainability. As part of a project on energy-efficient buildings conducted by BMWi in co-operation with the German Energy Agency (dena), the Check-in Energy Efficiency pilot project was initiated in 2015 to demonstrate an economic, ecological and socially acceptable strategy for hotels and hostels of the future. 30 participating hotels and hostels have been given expert energy-efficiency advice.
