European Destinations of Excellence

Each participating country manages its own selection process during the first half of the year, organising a communication campaign to inform all possible candidates about the competition.

In the middle of the year, a winning destination per country is selected on the basis of a set of award criteria established at both European and national level.

Each of the chosen theme serves to highlight different aspects of European regions’ assets and is related to sustainable development in one way or another, whether from a cultural, economic, local involvement or environmental point of view.

EDEN topics provide an opportunity for demonstrating the wealth of diversity Europe can offer, including its natural resources, historical heritage, traditional celebrations, local gastronomy, and so on.

18 countries participate in the project from November 2011 until August 2012: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Spain, France, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Turkey.