Sustainability claims to encompass all areas of economy and social life and cannot therefore, be reduced to any single component whether from an economic or an environmental viewpoint. Environmental protection must today no longer simply be seen by business as a strategy for marketing or a prevention of economic growth, but rather as the path to economic success for companies and a starting point for the development of a regional profile. Legislative measures, voluntary incentives and guiding measures support the regional aims.
Tourism is embedded in a sustainable, interrelated economy that is specific for the region.
Integrative Tourism must, in accordance with the respective requirements of each region, take account of the need to maintain economic resources. The basic principles of sustainable development demand economic planning which encompasses all economic sectors and must not therefore be restricted to the tourism and leisure sector, in order to set up regional life-cycles and avoid the development of tourist monocultures. The most successful example for this is the necessary and practicable co-operation between tourism and agriculture. The quality of tourism is also determined by the quality of services provided. Therefore, the raising of education and training standards and the improvement of social protection for those employed by the tourist industry are of great importance.