The international Global Destination Sustainability Index measures the sustainability of tourist destinations in four different categories, using more than 70 indicators. Over a hundred cities around the world committed to sustainability are included in the comparison. Helsinki has now topped the rankings for the third time in a row.
“This top ranking in the GDS Index reflects the strength of collaboration in Helsinki. The City itself, the tourism and events sector companies, as well as their numerous partners, have been working together for years to promote sustainable tourism in Helsinki,” says Nina Vesterinen, Tourism Director at the City of Helsinki.
The top ranking reinforces Helsinki’s position as an internationally attractive tourism and event destination.
“This ranking proves that Helsinki can combine ambitious climate and sustainability targets with growth in tourism and events. At the same time, it encourages us to continue investing in sustainable tourism – measures that strengthen the positive impacts of tourism on the city, its residents and the environment,” says Vesterinen.
New solutions driving tourism sector forward
Over the past year, the City and its stakeholders in the tourism and events sector have together implemented a number of measures aimed at strengthening the sustainability of tourism in Helsinki.
The work on developing regenerative tourism was launched in collaboration with pilot companies. As an example, the City and the Governing Body of Suomenlinna have implemented pilot projects where visitors are shown what preserving a World Heritage Site means in practice and how each visitor can participate in the maintenance and protection of the site. Together with the Central Library Oodi, we have been piloting the ‘Helsinki-kaveri’ (Helsinki buddy) concept, in which a local Helsinki buddy acts as a guide at Oodi, introducing visitors to the library’s wide range of activities.
Earlier this year, Helsinki was awarded the national Sustainable Travel Finland label. As many as 98 per cent of hotels in Helsinki with more than 50 rooms have environmental certificates, while the corresponding number for Europe as a whole is around 10 per cent.
In addition, Helsinki published its first Helsinki Tourism Sustainability Report for 2024, which summarises the current state of sustainability of tourism and its objectives and monitoring.
Tourism is being developed through long-term cooperation
The GDS Index assesses not only the city’s environmental work and social sustainability, but also the sustainability measures of tourism sector operators and the management of the destination. For its part, Helsinki is actively developing tourism in cooperation with companies and producers in the tourism and events sectors, as well as with numerous other partners.
For example, the City has set up a ‘Kestävyyden tekijät’ (Makers of Sustainability) theme group as part of the Makers of Helsinki network, and this group has gotten off to an active start.
Additionally, leading travel companies from Helsinki and Tampere are working together with the City of Helsinki and Visit Tampere to pursue a trailblazing role in climate action for tourism.
Eleven companies, including Finland's largest hotel chains and most attractive travel attractions, have established the Urban Climate Leaders in Tourism cooperation group. The members of the group are committed to common goals and actions to accelerate the transition towards a climate-neutral tourism industry.
Helsinki has also been involved in an international project to create an AI assistant to support businesses in developing climate-smart tourism.
“We are once again delighted with Helsinki’s great ranking, but at the same time it sets us high targets to remain at the top also in the future. According to Helsinki’s new tourism and events development programme, tourism and events will be developed through approaches that support sustainability, while aiming to ensure year-round operations, enhance the city’s appeal and extend the length of stay of visitors. That is why we want to invest in this in close collaboration with companies in the tourism and events sector and other stakeholders,” Vesterinen says.
Further information on the GDS Index
The Global Destination Sustainability (GDS) Index is an international benchmark that measures various aspects of sustainability in tourism and event destinations. It assesses the sustainability of cities from the perspectives of the environment, social sustainability, the tourism sector’s operator network and the management of the tourist destination. The comparison includes more than one hundred cities all around the world.