Five destinations from Bosnia and Herzegovina enter the world's Top 100

(Patria) - At the leading global event "Green Destinations Top 100 Stories", held last week in the Estonian capital Tallinn, five destinations from Bosnia and Herzegovina, as part of the "EU4Business Recovery" project co-financed by the EU and the German government, entered the Top 100 best destinations working on sustainable tourism development.

Alongside individual destinations from Japan, Peru, Slovenia, Italy, Serbia, Estonia, the United States, Croatia and Portugal, Bosanska Krupa, Konjic, Trebinje, the Skakavac Nature Monument in Sarajevo and Bosanski Šamac were selected for the "Green Destinations Top 100 Stories" in the world for 2023.

The ninth edition of the event in Tallinn created an inspiring collection of good practice stories from sustainable destinations around the world.

At the awards conference, it was emphasised that these good practices will be shared with managers, tour operators and visitors worldwide to facilitate knowledge exchange in the tourism sector.

Destination management organisations that have entered the world's Top 100 can serve as an example to others on how they found solutions to the challenges and problems of sustainable tourism.

The conference highlighted that the tourism sector has faced very challenging times in recent years, and their resilience and hard work is something we should all be proud of.

All selected destinations were evaluated according to the criteria of the Green Destinations Standard, such as quality, sustainability, level of innovation in stories and good practice.

This year, there were a total of 165 applications. Submissions were evaluated by the Top 100 evaluation team, experts, partners and coordinators of Green Destinations.

The Bosnian-Herzegovinian destinations won in the following categories:

1. Konjic, Destination Management;

2. Trebinje, Destination Management;

3. Skakavac Nature Monument, Nature and Environment;

4. Protected Area Tišina Bosanski Šamac, Destination Management;

5. Bosanska Krupa, Advanced Community.

Partners of the "EU4BusinessRecovery" project, experts from the company Green Visions Ecotours who organise and promote successful destinations in the Western Balkan countries, were tasked with preparing destinations from Bosnia and Herzegovina for the green certification process.

Thierry Joubert, executive partner at Green Visions Ecotours, says that during 2023, destinations from Bosnia and Herzegovina passed the first 15 criteria for the Green Destinations standard, and that in the coming year they will meet the criteria for another 15 out of a total of 84.

Each of them will create an action plan on how to implement these new 15 criteria in their destinations.

- Confirmation that the BiH destinations met 60% of the first 15 criteria and that they wrote and shared sustainable tourism stories led to these destinations being selected by Green Destinations for the Top 100 award.

This means that the destination is on the right track in terms of organisation and meeting all 84 criteria in Green Destinations, thereby strengthening skills and understanding of sustainable tourism - said Joubert, adding that the entry of destinations into the top 100 in the world is a great success for tourism in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Recognising the growing demand for green tourism, sustainability and the trend of tourists turning to environmentally friendly destinations, Bosnia and Herzegovina, within the framework of the "EU4BusinessRecovery" project co-financed by the European Union and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, is paving the way towards a new chapter in the development of green destinations in tourism.

Danija Krieg, project manager of "EU4Business Recovery", says that sustainability is key for tourism in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as everywhere in the world, and that countries like Estonia, which are similar in size and offer to Bosnia and Herzegovina, can serve as inspiration and a source of "know-how".

- The tourism sector should appreciate the wealth of nature that Bosnia and Herzegovina already offers and work together to create sustainable products that involve creating interesting tourist offers as well as stories that would connect our history and tradition with natural riches, which would intrigue tourists even more towards our destinations.

And we really have a lot to offer. Only through joint effort, networking and combining offers and stories can we ensure a form of sustainable future for our country - Krieg believes.

Green Destinations Top 100 Stories is an annual competition organised by Green Destinations.

The competition is held under the patronage of the Top 100 partnership, supported by the Coalition for the Future of Tourism, with special contributions from: Green Destinations, ITB Berlin, QualityCoast, Good Travel Guide, Travelife, Ecotourism Australia and DEL Turismo, as well as sponsors Acorn Tourism Consulting and Simpleview.