The Scottish Capital has been named the most climate-conscious place to visit in the world at the 30th annual World Travel Awards.
In recognition of its drive to become a net zero city, Edinburgh was announced as a winner at the awards ceremony at the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah in Dubai on Friday (30 November), with the city's Johnnie Walker Experience also receiving top place for the best 'spirit tourism' attraction on the planet.
Welcoming the news, Council Leader Cammy Day said:
We’ve been seeing Edinburgh make it on the world travel stage for all the right reasons and I’m very proud that the city is officially leading the way. Our position as the world’s leading sustainable travel destination is a fantastic global recognition of the ambition and work we’re doing to make travel fairer on our people and our planet.
It of course follows Edinburgh’s top ‘A grade’ marking by the Carbon Disclosure Project as we revealed earlier this month, with the city named one of the world’s leading cities on climate action. It complements our standing as the very ‘best city in the world’ to visit according to Time Out and confirms our green credentials are important to the many thousands of people who visit Edinburgh each year.
We’re making every effort to make Edinburgh a greener and healthier place to live and work, now and into the future, and our ambition towards net zero carbon by 2030 is testament to that. Our thriving local communities are enticing residents, workers and visitors too such as Leith which was recently voted the best neighbourhood in the UK and Ireland at the 2023 Urbanism Awards.
Edinburgh’s 2030 Tourism Strategy has also been built on creating a well-managed, sustainable, future and reaching this is one of the drivers for our visitor levy plans. We have some of the most famous and best cultural events and visitor attractions in the world, including of course fellow award winner the Johnny Walker Experience, and this anchors all of our promotional activity through Forever Edinburgh.
When taken alongside our ongoing investment in improving cycling and walking infrastructure and better public transport, not forgetting of course preservation of our world-famous green spaces, it’s no surprise Edinburgh has once again been chosen to be on top.
Edinburgh has an ambitious target to become a net zero city by 2030. This means that by 2030, we aim to remove the same amount of greenhouse gases that it puts into the air.
Working towards a more sustainable, fairer visitor economy Edinburgh has also launched marketing campaigns redefining the city as a destination for a whole range of experiences, for everybody, at every time of year. The promotional Forever Edinburgh website celebrates the green credentials of local businesses as well as Edinburgh’s stunning green spaces. It also highlights accessible, low-carbon travel options to make it easy for people to get around both the city centre and local neighbourhoods.
To find out more, visit netzeroedinburgh.org and edinburgh.org.