Sustainable Tourism Law

56 SUSTAINABLE TOURISM LAW timeshare. I refer to Directive 90/314 on all-inclusive travel and to Directive 94/47 on real estate timeshare. The Community has also intervened, “indirectly”, with special measures such as those that facilitate crossing borders, with the Council Recommendation of 22 December 1986 on fire safety standards in hotels, to name only a few. The European Union had, of course, a general competence in consumer protection, and that, naturally, affected tourism 34 . European Union case law We should also remember the case law of the Court of Justice, which has repeatedly affected tourism. Here it is sufficient to recall the rulings of the Court of Justice in Cases C-189/89, C 154/89 and C 180/89, which have laid down the principle that a tourist guide may pursue his profession in a country other than that of origin. A foreign guide could therefore accompany his group of foreign travellers, with the exception of places where a specialized guide (museums, historical and architectural heritage) was needed 35 . And, of course, we must recall the well-known decision on “Ruined Holiday Damages” 36 . International Conventions Tourism was – and is – also object of international conventions. Historically, the CCV – Convention Internationale Relative au Contrat de Voyage (International Convention on Travel Contracts (CCV)) is of particular importance. Signed in Brussels, on 23 April 1970, the Convention was important because it laid down the first definition ofTravel Contract, stating that “ Organized Travel Contract” means any contract whereby a person undertakes in his own name to provide for another, for an inclusive price, a combination of services comprising transportation, accommodation separate from the transportation or any other service relating thereto ”. The Convention was ratified in Italy with Law of 27 December 1977 no. 1084. 34 In 2001, the Commission of the European Communities published Working together for the future of European tourism . We read: “Tourism is an important economic activity in the European Union (EU). It comprises a wide variety of products and destinations and many different stakeholders are involved – both public and private – with very decentralised areas of competence often at regional and local levels. Tourism has great potential as regards contributing to the achievement of several major EU objectives, such as sustainable development, economic growth, employment and economic and social cohesion”. 35 A review of EU Case Law in the field of tourism may be read in Cedric GUYOT – Helen DYSON, Review of European Union Case Law in the Field of Tourism , in International Travel Law Journal , Vol. 2004, Issue 3 (2004), pp. 145-155. 36 Court of Justice, Section VI date 12 March 2002, case C-168/00. See infra .