*Visit Jyväskylä Region is among the first regions and tourism areas to receive the Sustainable Travel Finland (STF) label awarded by Visit Finland. To receive the label, the tourism area must be recognized as a sustainable travel destination and committed to developing sustainable tourism. Additionally, more than half of the tourism businesses engaged in international business within the area must have the STF label and certified operations. “Your cross-municipality cooperation demonstrates a shared will to develop sustainable tourism within the designated area in your application. The Visit Jyväskylä Region website refreshingly highlights localism and acknowledges the diversity of travelers.” commented the Visit Finland STF team on the Visit Jyväskylä Region’s received label.
In Visit Jyväskylä Region 53% of the companies engaged in international tourism have passed the sustainability program developed by Visit Finland. The vision of Visit Jyväskylä Region is to be “an exemplary sustainable and internationally successful nature, experience, and cultural tourism area in the Lake Finland region, known for its good accessibility and active cooperation.” Consequently, the strategic goal is to have more companies obtain STF labels and join the STF path by the end of 2025.
We are very proud of the long-standing sustainability work of the region’s tourism companies, and we want to continue developing sustainable tourism throughout the Visit Jyväskylä Region tourism area. This sustainability work is not only done at the business level but also in cooperation with the participating municipalities, says Susanne Rasmus, the tourism director of Visit Jyväskylä Region.
“A few weeks ago, Visit Jyväskylä Region was granted the We Speak Gay – Trailblazers Awards for destination pioneer work in promoting LGBTQ+ inclusivity and LGTBQ+ tourism in Finland”, Rasmus continues.
Behind this achievement lies a long-term and years-long development effort. The Jyväskylä region was already chosen in 2019 as one of the tourism areas for the Sustainable Finland pilot program, and since then, Visit Jyväskylä Region has been working systematically with local tourism businesses to promote sustainable tourism in all its aspects. The destinations with the Visit Jyväskylä Region STF label include Leivonmäki National Park and several cultural sites in the area, such as the Säynätsalo Town Hall, known as an Alvar Aalto site. This responsibility work has now been recognized and awarded with the Sustainable Travel Finland label granted by Visit Finland.
“We continue active environmental and sustainability work, for example, by developing the travel chains in our area. This summer, a pilot project will be launched where the Outdoor Express bus will operate to three national parks and the tourism businesses near them”, says Johanna Maasola, project manager of the The Sustainable International Accessibility for Tourism in Jyväskylä Region (KeKaSa) project.
The Outdoor Express, operating on weekends during the summer season, offers a quick connection from Jyväskylä city center to Pyhä-Häkki, Southern Konnevesi, and Leivonmäki National Parks. The Outdoor Express transport service is intended for both locals and tourists; the goal is to provide an easy opportunity for everyone to go hiking.
We are also participating in Sustainable EU Tourism Project – Twinning opportunity for EU DMO´s workshop in Brussels March 2025. It is a great opportunity to exchange ideas about sustainability with other DMO´s in Europe. continues Destination Specialist Päivi Heikkala.
*Visit Jyväskylä Region is the official DMO (Destination Management Organization) of Central Finland, representing the tourism area of Central Finland. By 2025, the tourism area will include a total of 13 municipalities in Central Finland (Jyväskylä, Jämsä, Keuruu, Laukaa, Muurame, Hankasalmi, Toivakka, Joutsa, Uurainen, Konnevesi, Petäjävesi, Saarijärvi and Äänekoski).
Additional information:
Susanne Rasmus
Tourism Director
Tel. +358 0400 885 786
[email protected]
The development of sustainable tourism in the Jyväskylä Region – Visit Jyväskylä Region
