Source: Visitnorway

The award is one of the most recognized in the industry and was presented at a major awards ceremony during WTTCs Global Summit in Tokyo. Over 1,000 leaders from the international travel and tourism industry were gathered for what is considered one of the most important events for the industry.

‘This is a big and important recognition for Destination Røros - all players in the region have helped to contribute to it. It is interaction and focus on conservation and development that have made ​​this possible,’ says Linda Ramberg, director of tourism for Destination Røros.

‘We would like to congratulate Røros with this great award. This is the first time a Norwegian candidate has won a Tourism of Tomorrow award. This award shows Norway and Røros lead the way in sustainable tourism, says Per-Arne Tuftin, director of tourism at Innovation Norway.

Destination Røros won in the Destination Stewardship category, and received the award for its work with its sustainable tourism development programme, which incorporates the social, cultural, environmental and economic aspects of the many different stakeholders in tourism in the region. The other finalists in the category Destination Stewardship were Misool Eco Resort in Indonesia and Tanabe City in Japan.

About Tourism for Tomorrow

Awards are bestowed by the World Travel & Tourism Council. They were first awarded in 1989 by the Federation of Tour Operators before British Airways took over in 1992. WTTC took responsibility for the awards in 2004, in line with its blueprint for New Tourism-vision. The awards are to put the spotlight on the most prominent examples of best practice in sustainable tourism in an international perspective and have over the years become some of the most profiled in their field.

About World Travel & Tourism Council

World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) is a global organisation and forum which gathers chairmen, presidents and directors from the top 100 leading travel and tourism companies in the world. WTTC's goal is to increase awareness of travel and tourism as one of the world's largest industries with 260 million employees and 9 percent of world GDP.

About Destination Røros

Destination Røros is the destination company for the destination that stretches across municipalities Holtålen, Røros, Os, Tolga, Tynset and Alvdal of Hedmark and Sør-Trøndelag counties.

Other honors received for sustainable tourism development

• 1991 Norway's contribution to award European Best Kept Village
• 1995 European Grand Prix - 1st place in Norway in Environment and Tourism
• 2009 Norwegian travel pilot for Sustainability 2015
• 2010 Norwegian candidate Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, Sustainable Stewardship
• 2011 Best Destination in the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards presented at the World Travel Market, London.