World Tourism Day has been held on 27 September each year since 1980. This year, World Tourism Day 2025 aims to highlight tourism’s transformative potential as an agent of positive change. Realizing this potential, however, demands more than growth alone. It requires good governance, strategic planning, robust monitoring, and clear priority setting that align with long-term sustainability goals.
“World Tourism Day reminds us that the choices we make today will shape the future of our sector, impacting both people and the planet. As we celebrate tourism’s capacity to connect cultures and create opportunities, we must also acknowledge our shared responsibility to ensure that growth goes hand in hand with sustainability. Only then can tourism truly deliver on its promise as a force for good,” said Luigi Cabrini, GSTC Chair.
Tourism is more than an economic sector, it is a catalyst for social progress, delivering education, employment, and creating new opportunities for all. To unlock these benefits, a deliberate and inclusive approach is essential, one that places sustainability, resilience, and social equity at the core of tourism development and decision-making. Continue reading the UN Tourism Concept note here.
As part of our ongoing mission to advance sustainable tourism worldwide, GSTC also seeks to inspire through storytelling and shared knowledge. In this spirit, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) and Content With Purpose (CWP) have partnered to launch Travel Redefined: Tourism for People and Planet, a landmark digital series showcasing innovative examples of sustainability in action across the tourism sector. We invite you to watch the series and discover how destinations, businesses, and communities are redefining tourism for a better future.
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If you want to learn more about sustainable tourism, explore GSTC’s Sustainable Tourism Training Program, which offers a series of professional courses designed for different sectors of the industry, including destinations, hospitality, and tour operations, providing participants with the knowledge, tools, and global best practices needed to implement and advance sustainability strategies effectively.
