Sun&Blue Congress 2025 strengthens European cooperation in tourism and the blue economy
Sun&Blue Congress 2025 has reaffirmed its role as a European meeting point for tourism and the blue economy during its celebration on November 19 and 20 in Almería.
Published at 3 weeks ago
The third edition brought together representatives from 37 countries and hosted 11 side events, nearly half of them international in scope, confirming the congress’s growing global projection.
Sun&Blue 2025 convened one of the largest concentrations of European institutions linked to tourism and the blue economy. Among the participating EU bodies were the European Commission (through CINEA, DG MARE and DG MOVE), the Interreg MED, Interreg NEXT MED, WestMED Initiative, and the Community4Tourism platform, along with European networks such as EMODnet, Interact Programme, Plan Bleu, and organisations such as IUCN.
The European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, conveyed his institutional support to Sun&Blue through a remote intervention, as did Elena Kountoura, Vice-President of the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism, and Christos Economou, Head of Unit at DG MARE of the European Commission.
The side events were consolidated as strategic spaces for sharing knowledge, presenting European projects and building multilateral alliances. One of the highlights was “Blue Tourism Indicators: Sailing towards common approaches”, promoted by the WestMED Initiative, which focused on developing common indicators to measure tourism sustainability in coastal destinations. Meanwhile, the session “Designing the Blue Future Together”, organised by AZA4ICE and IFAPA, advanced work on circular and inclusive aquaculture models compatible with tourism.
Digital transition also played a central role through CINEA’s meeting “Sharing Data to Empower Sustainable Maritime Tourism”, featuring contributions from EMODnet and the SEADITO project. The panel addressed the importance of environmental data exchange in line with the EU Transition Pathway for Tourism and the European Data Strategy. Shared governance of blue destinations was also analysed in the session organised by Community4Tourism, in collaboration with TOURISMO, PORT CREW and ECOSEAROUTES from the Interreg Euro-MED programme.
European institutions also had a strong presence in “Europe’s Advances Towards Sustainability in Tourism”, with participation from DG MARE, DG MOVE, the European Parliament, and Turismo Andaluz. The debate highlighted alignment with the European Green Deal and Next Generation EU funds. Another notable meeting was the “Mediterranean High-Level Event”, coordinated by ESPO and the Port Authority of Algeciras, which examined the challenges faced by Mediterranean ports within the framework of the EU Global Gateway strategy.
The European perspective on water resilience was featured in the event organised by the Regional Government of Andalusia with Water Europe, reviewing progress toward an integrated water strategy under the Green Deal. The internationalisation of Andalusia’s blue economy was addressed through projects such as B-Blue, Bluefasma-AZA4ICE and BlueShuttle, while Interreg NEXT MED brought together initiatives focused on sustainable solutions for the Mediterranean.
The scientific ecosystem was represented by IFAPA, the International Marine Centre Foundation, ILVO, and universities including Ca’ Foscari, Iuav di Venezia, Murcia and Patras.
The territorial and port dimension included the participation of EPG Turismo y Deporte de Andalucía, AGAPA, the Valencian Regional Government, the Catalan Tourism Agency, the Autonomous City of Melilla, and the port authorities of Algeciras, Barcelona and Marseille, along with Puertos del Estado. Innovation and entrepreneurship were represented by Málaga TechPark and CEEI Bahía de Cádiz, while the cultural dimension was led by the Phoenicians’ Route, a Cultural Itinerary of the Council of Europe.
With this broad institutional, academic and business presence, Sun&Blue Congress 2025 is consolidated as a unique platform where Europe collectively advances towards a model of blue tourism based on sustainability, digitalisation and multilevel cooperation, strengthening coastal governance and the blue economy across the Mediterranean region.
