20 Years of TourMIS Workshop: City Destinations Alliance, the European Travel Commission and Modul University Vienna Celebrate Milestone in Vienna
The 20th TourMIS Workshop & International Seminar took place on September 11-12, 2025 in Vienna, with participants joining both onsite and online. Co-organised by City Destinations Alliance (CityDNA), the European Travel Commission (ETC), and Modul University Vienna, this landmark edition focused on “Positive Social Impact of Tourism”.
The event gathered 96 attendees from 26 countries, reflecting TourMIS status as one of Europe’s most relevant platforms for tourism managers, researchers, and industry leaders. For two decades, the TourMIS Workshop & International Seminar has brought together the tourism community for data-driven learning, collaborative exchange, and forward-looking discussions on the future of tourism.
Collaboration in Action
The programme featured two distinctive parts:
- Day 1 – TourMIS Users’ Workshop, led by Prof. Karl Wöber, Founder of TourMIS and Full Professor and Founding President of Modul University Vienna. Participants gained hands-on training on how to leverage TourMIS for market analysis, benchmarking, and evidence-based tourism strategies.
- Day 2 – International Seminar, hosted alternately each year by ETC and CityDNA. In 2025, CityDNA curated the programme, focusing on “Positive Social Impact of Tourism”.
As supporting associations, ETC and CityDNA have been partners in this initiative since the very beginning. At that time, CityDNA was known as European Cities Tourism, later becoming European Cities Marketing, before taking on its current name. The first TourMIS Workshop took place in Brussels, followed by Budapest, before establishing a long-term home at Modul University Vienna from the third edition onwards. The workshops were created to provide the dedicated time needed to exchange knowledge on TourMIS, as general ETC and CityDNA meetings no longer allowed sufficient room for in-depth discussions. Nowadays, this event is positioned as one of CityDNA targeted events on research, alongside with other nice events targeted to specific DMO professionals.
This long-standing collaboration showcases the combined expertise of CityDNA, ETC, and Modul University Vienna in advancing evidence-based decision-making in the visitor economy. The long-term success of the TourMIS Workshop has also been made possible thanks to the support of the Austrian National Tourist Office and the Vienna Tourist Board.
TourMIS: 25 Years of Knowledge
Developed in 2000, TourMIS (Tourism Marketing Information System) has become a cornerstone for tourism professionals in Europe. Providing free access to robust data, benchmarking tools, and market insights, it empowers destinations to make informed, strategic decisions.
In recognition of its pioneering role, TourMIS received the UNWTO Ulysses Special Jury Prize for Innovation in Tourism Enterprises in 2009, underlining its status as one of the most innovative projects supporting tourism enterprises worldwide.
Today, TourMIS is used by a growing number of destinations, consultants, academics, and students, ensuring its role as a key resource for the tourism and meetings industry. One of the platform’s flagship outputs is the City Travel Report by CityDNA, now in its 21st edition. Based on TourMIS data from 128 European cities, the report delivers a unique benchmark of urban tourism, revealing major trends, source markets, and sustainability indicators shaping Europe’s visitor economy.
Key Takeaways from the 20th Edition
The International Seminar emphasised the growing importance of social value in tourism. Participants explored how tourism can enhance community well-being, inclusivity, and quality of life while addressing challenges such as overcrowding, rising living costs, and social inequality. Discussions highlighted frameworks for measuring social returns, examples of regenerative tourism in practice, and innovative approaches to integrating residents’ voices into tourism strategies.
The Seminar concluded with a strong call for collaboration, inclusivity, and community-focused tourism. Speakers underlined three essential pillars for the future: measurement of tourism’s effects on quality of life, communication of the value of travel to society, and involvement of residents and stakeholders in shaping strategies, thus enabling to celebrate not only tourism’s economic contribution but also its positive effects on communities and visitors alike.
Collaboration, Data and the Future of Tourism
Barbara Jamison-Woods, President of City Destinations Alliance, emphasised: “For two decades, the TourMIS Workshop & International Seminar has been a trusted space for city destinations to share knowledge, compare data, and learn from each other. At City Destinations Alliance, we are proud to support this platform with our long-standing partners, because robust data and peer exchange are vital to building stronger, more sustainable visitor economies. The 20th edition marks not just a milestone in the journey of TourMIS, but also a reaffirmation of our commitment to evidence-based decision-making and collaboration across Europe.”
Eduardo Santander, CEO/Executive Director of the European Travel Commission, stressed: “Reliable, comparable, and accessible data is the lifeblood of modern tourism. Over the past 25 years, TourMIS has empowered destinations and policymakers to take smarter, more informed decisions. The European Travel Commission values the deep collaboration with Modul University Vienna and City Destinations Alliance, which ensures that TourMIS continues to evolve as a unique tool for benchmarking and innovation in our sector. Together, we are not only reflecting on two decades of impact, but also looking ahead to the challenges and opportunities that lie before European tourism.”
Prof. Karl Wöber, Full Professor and Founding President of Modul University Vienna & Founder of TourMIS, observed: “When we launched TourMIS in 2000, our ambition was simple: to give tourism professionals access to accurate data and practical tools that could guide better decisions. Twenty-five years later, it is incredibly rewarding to see how the system has grown into a trusted resource for hundreds of destinations, consultants, and academics across Europe. The success of TourMIS is the result of close cooperation between academia, industry, and institutions like CityDNA and ETC — a partnership that I believe is a model for how research and practice can come together to shape the future of tourism.”
Looking Ahead
The next TourMIS Workshop & International Seminar will return to Vienna on September 10-11, 2026, continuing the legacy of collaboration, innovation, and knowledge-sharing that has defined the past two decades.
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About City Destinations Alliance (CityDNA)
We are a knowledge sharing network for cities and urban regions collaborating to maximise the potential of the visitor economy. Our vision is for all cities in Europe to flourish as great places to live, work, meet and explore. As a community of professionals, our promise to each other is to always be curious and forward thinking, share our inspiration and continued learnings.
For more information and pictures, please contact:
Bénédicte Lack, press@citydna.eu, +33 380 56 02 03
citydestinationsalliance.eu