Boosting Finnish boat industry and water tourism through research cooperation

The research project promotes the international competitiveness, innovations, and sustainability of the Finnish boat industry and waterway tourism, and strengthens the visibility of Finnish boating.

The project investigates user habits and the conditions affecting product development and innovations of boats on new markets. It studies, for example, how the sharing economy, the rapid development of digital platforms, and the rising demand for experiences are present on changing markets. Additionally, it examines how the service infrastructure of Finnish water tourism should be developed to sustainably meet the needs of travelers in the future.

The project has nearly 30 corporate partners, all of whom are members of Finnboat ry and key players in the tourism sector.

The project is funded by the Innovation Funding Agency Business Finland with over 1.5 million euros and by boating and tourism companies with a total of nearly 200,000 euros.