Assessing the Synergies Between Sustainable Tourism and Sustainable Development Goals in Europe

ABSTRACT Tourism is a strategic factor for sustainable development. Although it is explicitly referenced in only a few of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), its cross‐cutting nature points to a much broader contribution. This paper empirically analyses the relationship between levels of tourism sustainability and the degree of SDG implementation. The methodology is based on the construction of synthetic indices using objective weights, avoiding subjective criteria and retaining relevant information. Tourism sustainability is measured using 20 indicators from the European Commission's Tourism Dashboard while the 17 SDGs are measured with 102 harmonized variables from Eurostat for the 26 European countries with available information for 2024. The results suggest that the green pillar occupies a central position within the observed pattern of associations, supported by digital capabilities and a socio‐economic agenda focused on decent employment and resilience. However, stronger performance in tourism‐specific environmental indicators does not necessarily coincide with higher performance across all SDG dimensions, reflecting the heterogeneous economic, institutional, and geographical characteristics of European countries. These findings provide empirical evidence on the associations between sustainable tourism and SDG implementation, offering insights for future research and policy discussions.