City Destinations Alliance Explores Climate Change Scenarios for Urban Tourism Futures

At its recent Autumn Conference in Tórshavn, City Destinations Alliance (CityDNA) unveiled its latest Trend Room Whitepaper: Climate Change and the Future of Tourism, a forward-looking study that challenges European destinations to rethink their role in building resilient urban visitor economies.

Developed by the CityDNA Trend Room Knowledge Group in collaboration with the European Tourism Futures Institute (ETFI) part of NHL Stenden University, the whitepaper is the third in a series of future-focused publications, following analyses on the metaverse (2023) and the traveller of tomorrow (2024).

This new publication explores how extreme weather, shifting traveller behaviour, and technological innovation will transform the competitiveness of urban destinations across Europe. It presents four scenarios that imagine contrasting yet interconnected futures, urging DMOs to move from reactive responses to proactive foresight and climate-readiness.

“Climate change is the defining challenge of our time, and tourism cannot stand aside. This whitepaper reinforces the urgent need for our cities to shift from reactive crisis management to proactive foresight. By aligning our visitor economies with climate adaptation and sustainability, we can turn uncertainty into opportunity and secure tourism’s role in thriving, resilient urban futures,” said Barbara Jamison-Woods, President of City Destinations Alliance.

The study, led by Carolin Giarra and Dr. Stefan Hartman from ETFI, builds on collaborative scenario work carried out with European city DMOs earlier this year. Rather than predicting one future, it explores multiple pathways for how climate impacts and innovation could redefine tourism in European cities over the next decade.

What it means for DMOs

The whitepaper provides practical guidance for Destination Management Organisations to strengthen resilience and adapt to a changing environment. Among its key takeaways:

  • Embed climate foresight into destination strategies – plan for multiple futures, not just one.
  • Invest in adaptive infrastructure and data-driven management to mitigate risks such as heatwaves, flooding, and changing travel patterns.
  • Collaborate across sectors – from city planners to transport authorities – to build systemic resilience.
  • Embrace innovation with inclusion, ensuring digital and climate solutions remain accessible to all communities.

“The Trend Room is CityDNA’s laboratory for big-picture thinking. With this third whitepaper, we want to equip CityDNA members with the tools to imagine, debate, and shape the future of urban tourism in a world transformed by climate change. It is a call to embrace foresight not as theory, but as practice in everyday strategy,” added Claire Mertens, Chair of the CityDNA Trend Room Knowledge Group and Director of Economy and Tourism at City of Antwerp.


An invitation to move together

While the CityDNA Trend Room Whitepapers are available exclusively to CityDNA members, this latest publication is also an invitation to all European DMOs.

Through the Tórshavn Declaration, CityDNA members worked during last CityDNA conference on a shared commitment to reframe the role of Destination Marketing and Management Organisations (DMOs). Certainly, CityDNA’s message is both visionary and pragmatic: the future will not wait. Preparing for 2035 starts now, through data, dialogue, and decisive action.

“Our message is clear: adaptation is no longer optional. This whitepaper offers strategies to help DMOs act today while preparing for tomorrow,” added Barbara Jamison-Woods.

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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