Dates for your Diary – Major events for our pro audience during 2020

19th February – Sustainable Tourism in the Mediterranean Area: Workshop with decision makers

On Wednesday 19th February, join us at the Croatian Permanent Representation in Brussels, for a morning workshop with decision-makers on cycling tourism in the MED area! Organised in the frame of the EuroVelo 8 – Mediterranean Route MEDCYCLETOUR Project. This event will feature discussions on the benefits of cycling tourism for the Mediterranean Area and its contribution to the European Green Deal; how to get the best out of cycling tourism and identify available sources of EU funding and related topics. The workshop will be followed by a networking lunch. This is a free event but registering here is required. Be sure to consult the dedicated page for this event on our website for regular updates!

4th - 8th March - ITB Berlin

The World's Leading Travel Trade Show will be held once again at the Messe Berlin exhibition grounds on 4th-8th March, 2020. ECF will co-organise with ADFC (German National Cyclists’ Association), the ‘ITB Cycling Tourism Day’ on 6th March at Hall 4.1b. Several panel discussions will be held on different occasions during the day about cycling and tourism topics, including a panel on the development of cycling tourism in natural areas.

The ITB provides a great opportunity to meet both professional and members of the public interested in cycling tourism in Europe. Be sure to come join us at the ECF stand located in hall 4.1b Adventure Travel (booth no. 241) where we will also welcome visitors for a networking lunch from 12:00 on Friday 6th March as part of the Cycling Tourism Day.

Main highlights of this year will include the release of the new EuroVelo overview map, the launches of the new developed EuroVelo 1 - Atlantic Coast Route transnational website and the EuroVelo 8 - Mediterranean Route promotional brochure. You can visit the event page on our website to get the last updates on the presence of EuroVelo at ITB Berlin 2020!

April (exact date and venue tbc) - EuroVelo 8 – Mediterranean Route Final Conference

The EuroVelo 8 – Mediterranean Route Final Conference will be held this April in Cádiz, following the MEDCYCLETOUR Final project meeting. For this Conference, international experts from all around Europe will gather to share the lessons that have been learned during the project, present their best practices and introduce the main deliverables of the project, such as the EuroVelo 8 promotional brochure. The EuroVelo 8 – Mediterranean Route MEDCYCLETOUR project is a 3-year long initiative aimed at developing EuroVelo 8 – Mediterranean Route as a transnational touristic product and financed by the EU Interreg MED programme.

Join us in Cádiz this April to discover this successful project that will hopefully lead to a long-term cooperation between all Mediterranean countries to keep maintaining and improving the route! Besides the conference you will get to know Cádiz, the city of sun, sea and tapas. Walking through the old town, you’ll dive in the Spanish way of life and every evening you have the chance to enjoy the beautiful sunsets on the coast.

2nd - 5th June - Velo-city Ljubljana

For the first time the cycling city Ljubljana will host the Velo-city conference on 2nd - 5th June 2020. The theme for this year’s Velo-city is ‘Smart Cycling Inclusion’. The theme includes the topics Social Innovation & Technology, Sharing Public Space and Connecting People as well as Policy of the Future. EuroVelo, route network development and cycling tourism are likely to feature strongly in the programme as in previous years. Velo-city 2020 will be held in the GR- Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre located in the city centre. For more information please visit the official website.

October (exact date and venue tbc) – EuroVelo General Meeting

The EuroVelo General Meeting, gathering representatives of all National EuroVelo Coordination Centres and Coordinators, traditionally takes place the day before the EuroVelo Conference, in the host city. It is the yearly occasion for the participants to exchange experiences and agree on some significant steps to continue the successful development of EuroVelo across the continent.

October (exact date and venue tbc) – EuroVelo Conference

This year’s EuroVelo Conference will be held in October 2020. The Conference is the premier event of its class in Europe, aiming to gather professionals from the tourism and cycling tourism sectors from around the world. It is a unique occasion to learn about the last developments in this field and network with members from cities and regions working in the development of cycling tourism, tour operators, researchers, enterprises, etc. During the last EuroVelo Conference in Limburg, a record number of participants (over 150), 10 exhibitors/sponsors and 40 speakers joined us in 8 plenary and parallel sessions. We expect an even bigger success for this year’s Conference, which will feature sessions on various topics relating to cycling tourism, such as infrastructure, technological innovation in the transport sector, communication and marketing, storytelling, network management, intermodality, and so on. The EuroVelo Conferences have been held every other year since 2012 to share knowledge, highlight good practices and encourage further development of the EuroVelo network and cycling tourism generally across Europe. The European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) is always co-organising the EuroVelo Conferences with a host city/region.

Autumn 2020 (exact date and venue tbc) - European Certification Standard Training

As every year the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) organizes its Certification Training Course, on the European Certification Standard. The participants have the opportunity to learn both theoretically, through the European Certification Standard Manual, and practically, through a field trip. The European Certification Standard is not only used to certify EuroVelo routes, but also serves as quality assessment tool for national or regional routes. The European Standard can also help to set up national standards where they do not exist and harmonise the different regulations in the European states. Please subscribe to the EuroVelo Newsletter to stay up to date with this year’s location, precise date, costs etc.

Autumn (exact date and venue tbc.) – EuroVelo 1 – Atlantic Coast Route Final Conference

The Final Conference of the EuroVelo 1 – Atlantic Coast Route AtlanticOnBike project will take place in the autumn. International experts will gather to share the lessons that have been learned during the three years project, present their best practices and introduce the main deliverables of the project. The AtlanticOnBike project aims to develop and promote a sustainable European tourism destination based on one of the longest and most fascinating European long distance cycle routes. Funded by the EU Atlantic Area Interreg programme, ECF is one of 20 partners from six different countries. Hopefully the project will lead to a long-term cooperation between all countries along the Atlantic Ocean to keep maintaining and improving the route!

If you would like to look back at our top stories in 2019, check out this article.

Author(s): Thessa Gebhardt