Rural destinations in Austria, Hungary and Slovenia have shared approaches to making tourism work more closely with local communities, in a UN Tourism network discussion reported on 8 September.
The Village Talks session, held on 31 August, brought together St. Johann in Tirol, Hosszúhetény and Bohinj. Their examples focused on resident participation, access to international markets and stronger local food supply chains.
St. Johann in Tirol described a dialogue process addressing issues including mobility, housing and local identity. Hosszúhetény presented partnerships connecting local experiences with responsible international travel programmes and opportunities for guides, artisans and other businesses.
Bohinj highlighted cooperation between tourism organisations, farmers, hospitality providers and public institutions to strengthen links between local producers and buyers.
The session also introduced a good-practices factsheet on inclusive and resilient rural communities. Its central policy question is how destinations can share tourism’s benefits more widely, rather than judging success through visitor numbers alone. The examples offer approaches for adaptation, rather than a single model for every village.
By Editorial Desk. Source announcement: 8 September 2026.
Image: Lake Bohinj, Slovenia. Photo by Gizem Ş. on Pexels. Illustrative photograph; not from the reported event.