Helsinki’s tourism grew steadily until 2019 and internationalised faster than other industries. However, the global crisis in the tourism industry caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine has severely affected the entire tourism industry. Amidst the crisis and recovering from it, the importance of cooperation and information sharing is emphasised. To meet this need, two new working groups were established in Helsinki at the beginning of 2022 to develop Helsinki’s tourism.
City Group’s Tourism Cooperation Group: cross-administrative decision-making
"The goal of the City Group’s Tourism Cooperation Group is to agilely and sustainably promote the competitiveness, renewal and growth of Helsinki’s tourism," says Nina Vesterinen, Tourist Director of Helsinki.
The City Group’s Tourism Cooperation Group and its members set out to promote the competitiveness and growth of Helsinki’s tourism and identify new opportunities. The group also participates in the preparation, implementation and monitoring of the roadmaps for tourism and events and shares and receives up-to-date information on tourism-related projects. To achieve broader discussion and communication, the Tourism Unit organises an annual tourism seminar.
"Tourism is related in one way or another to almost everything the city does. I believe that it can best be promoted through long-term and systematic cooperation across industry boundaries," Vesterinen sums up.
The City Group’s Tourism Cooperation Group has been set up for 2022–2025, and its members include the most important parties of the City Group in relation to tourism, such as the heads of the brand unit and international affairs and representatives from the Port of Helsinki, the Helsinki Events Foundation and Helsinki Partners.
Helsinki Tourism Advisory Group: businesses actively involved
"The Helsinki Tourism Advisory Group wants to make the voice of businesses heard more consistently in the promotion and development of tourism," sums up Anni
Vepsäläinen, the Group’s Chairperson and CEO of Suomen Messut Oyj.
The main tasks of the Helsinki Tourism Advisory Group are to monitor and evaluate the development of the tourism operating environment and phenomena nationally and globally and cooperate in identifying and prioritising measures to promote the competitiveness and growth of Helsinki's tourism.
"The tourism industry was already recovering from the coronavirus pandemic when the operating environment changed again with the war of aggression by Russia against Ukraine. From the business representatives of the Tourism Advisory Group, we get valuable information from the field on how the city can help the industry in the current situation and beyond," says Vepsäläinen.
The Helsinki Tourism Advisory Group will be set up for 2022–2023, and its members will include the most important actors in the tourism industry, including transport, catering, accommodation, experience and event sectors and universities. The strength of the members lies in their expertise in tourism focus areas, such as digitalisation and sustainability.
More information about the groups and other network cooperation of the Helsinki tourism industry can be found here.
News photo: Jussi Hellsten