Since 2008, the Region has implemented a strategy on the principle of ‘Visit Amsterdam, see Holland (‘Amsterdam Bezoeken, Holland Zien’, or ABHZ in Dutch) - a strategy executed by Amsterdam & Partners. All sides are keenly aware of the challenges associated with rapid tourism growth in a densely-populated, historic city. Therefore, the city of Amsterdam together with 29 surrounding municipalities and two provinces have participated in the programme, which has involved organising the visitor offer around a distinctive range of places and experiences in the Amsterdam Area, and marketing these towards visitors. The MRA would now like to understand to what extent the strategy has been meeting its objectives and what could be improved.
With Amsterdam being one of the earliest cities to take this approach, it is vitally important to understand how effective the ABHZ programme has been to date, the challenges and opportunities associated with the programme in the eyes of the participating municipalities, and what the most recent experience from Amsterdam’s peers could teach the city in the years to come.
TOPOSOPHY was asked by our colleagues at For the Love of Place to contribute to this comprehensive evaluation, which will involve examining the programme’s impact on the surrounding region to date, exploring what approaches other city-regions are taking through an in-depth international benchmarking study and assembling local and international experts to generate recommendations on the future of destination management in the Amsterdam Region.
- In-depth Desk Research:
In-depth analysis of destination management in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Region to date, including tourism performance evaluation, market and policy context, trends analysis. - International Benchmarking Research:
Evaluation of nine city-regions across Europe, together with key takeaways and recommendations. - Stakeholder Consultations:
Consultations with a range of participating municipalities to evaluate performance to date and explore implications of the existing plan for destination management. - Strategy Sprint:
In-depth workshop with local experts and international peers to evaluate findings and generate recommendations.
For many years TOPOSOPHY has been involved in supporting the Netherlands’ leading destinations in planning and managing tourism in a responsible and sustainable way. Our projects have included supporting Amsterdam & Partners with the preparation of their 2025 Sustainable Visitor Economy Strategy, participating in the Rotterdam Partners panel of international experts on the future of tourism in the city, and guiding the VVV Destination Knowledge Network on guiding the future of Dutch DMOs.
