EN
C 188/38
Official Journal of the European Union
30.5.2023
15. flags up that in 2019, before the pandemic, 42 EU cities recorded over one million overnight stays; Paris, Barcelona, Lisbon and Rome each recorded over 10 million.
In fact, urban tourism and visits to historical cities were those hit hardest by COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021, along with tourism in sun and sea holiday destinations;
16. considers that it is a good thing that travellers have turned to smaller towns and rural communities, and is pleased that visitors are increasingly getting off the beaten paths; in this respect, strongly supports the objective of the EU smart mobility strategy (3) to double high-speed rail traffic across Europe; firmly believes that modern, sustainable models for travel will give a further boost to rural tourism;
17. emphasises that, while the EU portrays itself as the world’s number one tourism destination, in the last two years EU tourism has recovered largely thanks to domestic and European tourists.
With a view to assisting Europeans travelling in the EU, the CoR calls for further efforts to improve existing cross-border rail links (149 of the 265 links are not operational (4)).
This will promote zero-emission transport, spur on the development of the EU’s rail network and make it fit for the challenges of the 21st century by making the best possible use of cutting-edge rail technologies.
Impact on the housing sector 18. acknowledges that the big European cities in particular are faced with a growing demand for affordable housing for people wanting to study, work and live there.
Ensuring affordable housing is in the public interest: it is up to the local authorities to manage this issue by identifying the best possible solutions that are able to avoid clashing with people engaged in renting accommodation to tourists;
19. points out that short-term rentals (STRs) combine two separate markets: residential housing and tourism.
Consequently, financial or tax incentives for renovating buildings can encourage people to convert them from residential properties to tourist facilities.
Operating such accommodation for commercial purposes can harm residents, students and workers;
20.
each competent authority should decide if short term accommodation rental should take place in buildings of social housing;
21. points out that in areas where online platforms are very active, the impact on the real estate market is considerable (5); house rentals and house prices go up, consequently leaving fewer properties available for locals.
22. emphasises that, while granting opportunities for platforms, it is central to respect public policy objectives like available and affordable housing and protecting urban centres, especially when economic conditions in Europe are deteriorating.
Short-term accommodation rental services via platforms and their impact shall not undermine the high acceptance of tourism in Europe’s regions and cities and degrade the liveability of neighbourhoods;
Data sharing 23. therefore considers that, with due regard for the rules on data protection, platforms in the STR market should be required to abide by the rules on information sharing, as the authorities need access to this information in order to ensure the availability of affordable housing;
24. is concerned that the platforms are finding it difficult to share critical information with the authorities, despite signs that they are willing to help local and regional governmental bodies to take informed policy decisions and to simplify the enforcement and understanding of local rules;
(3) (4) (5)
https://transport.ec.europa.eu/transport-themes/mobility-strategy_en https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/information/publications/reports/2018/comprehensive-analysis-of-the-existing-crossborder-rail-transport-connections-and-missing-links-on-the-internal-eu-borders https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0094119020300498