Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and in the Baltic Sea rim trans-national tourism
projects have been significant.
The inter-governmental Council of the Baltic
Sea States (CBSS) is, among other issues, advo-
cating and coordinating the EU's Russian policy
in the Baltic Sea region (CBSS, 2002). Partly in
order to gain these objectives, Finland launched
the Northern Dimension initiative of the EU in
the late 1990s. The joint European strategy for
cooperation between the EU and Russia has
been delineated in the Northern Dimension
Action Plan 2004-2006.
Although in the Action Plan tourism is only
implicit at present, it emerges as an important
tool for regional development in the contribu-
tions of various regional and thematic organiza-
tions contributing to the Action Plan, e.g. in the
initiatives of the Union of the Baltic Cities (UBC),
and the Baltic Sea States Sub-Regional Coop-
eration (BSSSRC). These organizations are also
promoting trans-regional projects serving tourism,
for example, the above-mentioned Via Baltica,
South Baltic Arch, and Via Hanseatica (CBSS,
2002, pp. 11, 16).
Just to mention some other examples,
the Baltic Sea Tourism Commission (BCU) is a
supra-national apparatus of the national tour-
ism boards and respective ministries. One of its
important contributions has been
Agenda 21 for
Baltic Sea Region Tourism
, which offers guide-
lines for sustainable tourism development in
the Baltic Sea region. Tourism also has its own
working group among the other industrial clus-
ters in the Baltic Rim Competitiveness Council
showing that tourism is seen as a promising
sector in multinational economic development,
thus enhancing the overall competitiveness of
the Baltic rim (Porter, 2001, p. 36).
Besides cooperation between states and
governments, regionalization at the NUTS III
(Nomenclature of Territorial Statistical Units)
level is creating practical forums for most of the
trans-regional and cross-border cooperation (CBC)
projects on regional development, cultural and
environmental collaboration and tourism. A new
phenomenon created through the EU measures for
activating cross-border cooperation is the forma-
tion of a process of 'Euroregions' that link the bor-
der areas of Finland and the Baltic EU countries
and their adjacent areas in Northwest Russia and
Belarus. There are 12 Euro-regions being consoli-
dated in the Baltic rim (e.g. Radvilavicius, 2004).
The Euro-region of the Gulf of Finland
wil provide neighbouring countries with an
opportunity to develop the Gulf rim as an
international, marine-based tourism destination.
Here, three metropolises (Helsinki, Tallinn and
St Petersburg), with their cultural heritage, tourism
facilities and attractive natural surroundings could
create a strong single market area of international
tourism at the global level. Also, Hoghland Island
in the middle of the Gulf of Finland may possess
promising potential for international tourism,
although its political status in the Russian vision
is still uncertain. In some of the schemes the rim
has been referred to as the 'growth triangle of
the Gulf of Finland' (Council of General Affairs
and External Relations 2003, p. 38). The eastern
enlargement of the EU and the 'regionalization'
of the Northern Dimension initiative and pro-
gramme have created a mental and material
base for the realization of this tourism vision.
Euro regions have already launched cross-
border cooperation projects with infrastructural
emphases, supporting means for privatization
and small and medium entrepreneurship, mar-
keting, environmental protection, land-use plan-
ning and upgrading governance. The majority
of the projects are directly or indirectly linked
with the tourism sector. From the viewpoint of
Finland, it will be crucial that border crossings
throughout the Baltic region along the Via
Baltica start operating properly without any
unexpected obstruction.
Tourism in the Baltic Countries
and in Finland
2004, when the EU was enlarged from the
previously 15 member states to 25, was a very
good year for international tourism. International
tourism grew by 10% and incoming tourism to
and within Europe grew by 4% measured by
the number of international arrivals (WTO,
2005). The best results in Europe were achi-
eved by the 'emerging' destinations of Central
and Eastern Europe (ETC, 2004, pp. 13-15).
The number of accommodation overnights
increased by 21.1% in Estonia and 30.4% in
Lithuania (Table 12.1). Data on the number of
overnights in Latvia were not available to the
authors for 2004, but measured with the num-
ber of foreign departures (including day visits)
