Blue Tourism

The BLUE TOURISM project, is an Erasmus+ project, aiming at building a network of local advisors to put small tourism providers in watercourse regions on a more sustainable path. In this context, Water, as renewable resource is the common link between the eight countries – Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, Romania and Ireland – that integrate the project consortium. The focus in BLUE TOURISM is to look at waterways as a drive for sustainable tourism development. Almost all European cities were built along waterways and there are many small rivers and streams shaping European’s landscapes. These waterways connect cities, peoples, communities, cultures, habits, traditions, itineraries, natural and cultural heritage, all key elements in touristic attractions.

Coordinated by Comunidade Intermunicipal da Beira Baixa (Portugal), this two-year project, with the collaboration of 8 European organisations, intents to create and empower a network of future local advisors with the necessary skills and competences so they can support and advice small tourism providers in watercourse regions to be more sustainable and competitive, with a strategic focus on 1. Sustainable Tourism and SDGs; 2 Ethics and Social Responsibility; 3. Natural and Cultural Heritage; 4. Competitiveness and Sustainable Local Business Development; 5. Innovation and Digital Transformation; 6. Networking and Local Partnerships. 7. Branding and Digital Marketing; 8. Internationalisation Strategy.

The BLUE TOURISM consortium believes that there is now a huge opportunity to rethink tourism as a whole, by shifting more decisively from over tourism models to existing sustainable tourism models. In this context, “Blue Tourism” refers to all tourism activities developed around any watercourse (rivers, lakes, seas).


Project duration: 1st of January 2022 and 1st of January 2024.
Financial support: European Commission, Erasmus + Programme
Project website: https://www.bluetourism.eu/.