Developing or updating comprehensive tourism strategies is essential for the sustainable growth of the tourism sector. A key practice involves engaging stakeholders in a collaborative process, as exemplified by the EU’s co-created transition pathways. This approach ensures that the strategies are inclusive and reflective of the needs of various stakeholders, including local communities, businesses, and governments. For instance, the Greek Institute SETE has implemented a comprehensive toolkit addressing sustainable tourism development, which includes 26 studies, 8 manuals, 6 videos, and 2 articles aimed at enhancing the understanding and implementation of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) principles in the tourism sector​​. Another best practice is the focus on resilience and adaptability, where strategies are continuously updated to address emerging challenges such as the impacts of COVID-19 and evolving environmental regulations. By prioritizing stakeholder engagement, continuous learning, and adaptability, tourism strategies can significantly contribute to the sustainable and resilient growth of the tourism sector​​.

Main gaps identified focused on the lack of financial and technical support for initiatives contributing to the green transition. Tourism SMEs expresses the need for state support for sustainability initiatives, as the current contribution from the state is assessed within a range of unsatisfactory to non-existent. The common obstacles were the excessive costs of green transition interventions and the lack of expertise in implementing sustainable practices. The lessons learnt highlight the need for financial incentives and technical training to facilitate green transition.

Successful examples of projects or initiatives in tourism have shown that innovative and sustainable tourism models can successfully be implemented, providing valuable lessons for future initiatives. They also highlight the importance of collaboration, the value of integrating different sectors, and the potential of new forms of tourism. A few examples:

• The InMed-Tour project (see Annex) promotes health tourism, an innovative form of tourism that combines health travel with the opportunity to enjoy the local area. This project has resulted in a cross-border effort to bring together the health and research industries with local enterprises, creating a modern e-Cluster for the exchange of medical information and good practices.
• The Sustainable Tourism project aims to enhance the development of policies and increase the coordination of strategies between territories at interregional and transnational levels regarding the development of sustainable and responsible coastal and maritime tourism. The project has successfully set up a general framework of collaboration to facilitate the creation of synergies among modular projects.
• The Med Pearls project aims to position the Mediterranean as a unique destination to experience the Med lifestyle through Slow Tourism. The project has delivered a set of 26 new Slow Tourism products created by local Destination Management Companies and ICT enterprises.

Lessons Learned:

• Innovation and Diversification: Through implemented projects, the importance of innovative strategies in tourism, such as medical tourism, becomes apparent. This diversifies tourism offerings and addresses a specific demographic, potentially increasing the number of tourists. It also highlights the importance of cross-border collaboration and usage of digital platforms for information exchange and knowledge sharing.
• Unique and Integral Destination Branding: The Med Pearls project demonstrates the potential of positioning the Mediterranean as a unique and integral destination for Slow Tourism. It shows how creating similar high-quality experiences across different areas can enhance the overall brand of the region. It also highlights the role of local Destination Management Companies (DMCs) and ICT enterprises in creating new tourism products.