December 2, 2021 - The Croatian National Tourist Board is presenting the Croatian tourist offer as part of the IBTM Barcelona, which has been held until today. Exceptional interest during the event was expressed for Slavonia as an incentive destination that represents something different on the market.

After last year's online edition, the fair is being held in person again this year, so numerous meetings of domestic and foreign partners from the business travel segment have been held, reports Turističke Priče. Namely, in addition to the Croatian Tourist Board as the main exhibitor, seven co-exhibitors present their offer at the fair, including the congress offices of Zagreb, Dubrovnik, and Opatija and Valamar, Liburnia Hotels & Villas, Le meridien Lav Split, and Spektar putovanja.

According to the first feedback from the IBTM Barcelona, many partners from the Polish and Ukrainian markets are interested in creating additional offers with Croatian destinations in the business travel segment, while Turkish partners are announcing great interest in Advent programs in our country. Also, exceptional interest during the stock exchange was expressed for Slavonia as an incentive destination that represents something new, different on the market, and which is adorned with a very rich and authentic offer.

Croatian partners, who have already received concrete inquiries for 2022, are also satisfied with the performance on the event, during which the main advantages of Croatia, as business tourism destinations, could be quality infrastructure, proximity, and accessibility; historical heritage, nature, top eno-gastronomy, etc.

Let us add that this event presents more than 3,000 destinations and providers, who have the opportunity for business meetings with more than 15,000 professionals from the business travel industry. The IBTM Barcelona congress, along with the IMEX Frankfurt, are the most important events of its type in Europe and the world.

If you want to learn more about Osijek, Vukovar, Vinkovci, Đakovo, Baranja, Slavonski Brod, and other magical destinations in Slavonia, be sure to check all the full detailed guides at Total Croatia here.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

December 2, 2021 - From December 3 to 5, visitors to the Opatija Chocolate Festival will not only be able to taste the irresistible delicacies of twenty domestic and foreign producers but also experience many more "sweet surprises" prepared by the organizers.

Opatija and chocolate have been inextricably linked for years thanks to the Chocolate Festival event, the largest and oldest Croatian event dedicated to this irreplaceable food, which in 2021 celebrates its jubilee.

The fairy-tale atmosphere of the luxuriously decorated Advent city will be a great backdrop for top-quality desserts that will return to the Crystal Hall of the Kvarner Hotel exclusively for the 15th Opatija Chocolate Festival. The occasion also requires a festive ambiance, so the jubilee of the sweetest Opatija event will be celebrated under the famous crystal chandeliers of the oldest Croatian hotel.

Photo: Visit Opatija Facebook Page

From December 3 to 5, visitors to the Opatija Chocolate Festival will be able to taste the irresistible delicacies of twenty domestic and foreign producers, but also experience many more "sweet surprises" prepared by the organizers. It will be a unique opportunity to enjoy the unique desserts that, except in the specialty stores of the present "craft" chocolatiers, can only be purchased at this fair.

The event will feature chocolate delicacies made in Italy, Slovenia, and Croatia, and the program will also include chocolate-themed workshops, lectures, tastings, and concerts.

Romantic winter evenings in Advent Opatija will be sweetened by the largest and longest-running Croatian event dedicated to chocolate, and hedonistic pleasure in divine flavors will be complemented by a special program at the Opatija chocolate factory Milenij Choco, as well as specially designed chocolate desserts in many hotels and restaurants. This sweet "lifestyle" will not only stay on the palate, but you will be able to enjoy chocolate with your whole body because this food will "interfere" with the treatments of Opatija's spa & wellness centers.

An opulent stretch of Austro-Hungarian finery on the beautiful Kvarner coast, Opatija was Croatia’s first-ever tourist destination. As popular now as it always was, it’s easy to see why. If you want to learn more about the location of the Chocolate Festival in December, be sure to check Total Croatia's Opatija in a Page guide by clicking HERE. Now in your language!

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

December 2, 2021 - After the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup quarterfinal matches came to a close on Wednesday, the Executive Board of the Croatian Football Federation decided that the Croatian Cup final match would be played in Split, namely at Poljud Stadium.

This season, the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup final will be played at Poljud Stadium, which is comforting news for Hajduk fans after the Split club advanced to the semifinals with a victory against Lokomotiva Tuesday. The Croatian Football Federation decided on Poljud after choosing between Karlovac, Koprivnica, and Split, reports HNS.

At the suggestion of the HNS Competition Commission, the Executive Board of the Federation decided that the final of the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup will be played at the Poljud Stadium in Split and that the final match will be played on May 26, 2022. It will be the first Croatian Cup final at Poljud played in a single game.

On Monday at 11 am, the draw will decide which pairs are in the semifinals. Gorica, Hajduk, Osijek, and Rijeka remain in the competition, and the matches are scheduled for March 2022. 

After the draw at noon, Hajduk president Lukša Jakobušić will meet with HNS president Marijan Kustić at the federation's headquarters on Vukovarska, a year after meeting with his predecessor Davor Šuker, when he said he would "leave the federation alone," reports 24 Sata. 

Since 2016, when the Croatian Cup changed the format and one final match was introduced, the Cup final has been hosted by Osijek, Varaždin, Vinkovci, Pula, Šibenik, and Velika Gorica.

Recall, in the quarterfinal matches which were played on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, Gorica topped Istra on penalties, Hajduk beat Lokomotiva 6:3, and Osijek beat Belupo on penalties. In the last quarterfinal, Rijeka knocked out Dinamo 3:1, which forced the resignation of Dinamo coach Damir Krznar. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

ZAGREB, 2 Dec 2021 - Film tourism related to the mega-popular HBO series "Game of Thrones", the filming of which began in Dubrovnik and elsewhere in Dalmatia ten years ago, brought into the Croatian economy a total of €180.7 million between 2013 and 2018, or €30.1 million annually. 

The figures were published in an article in the scientific journal Oeconomica Jadertina, issued by the University of Zadar. The article was written by Martin Vukašin and Josip Miočić from Zadar and Mirela Brechelmacher from Slavonski Brod.

The filming of the popular television series spawned a new type of tourism service, including trips to filming locations such as the Walls of Dubrovnik, the Palace of Diocletian in Split, the Klis Fortress, and the Krka falls in Krka National Park. Some travel agencies offer routes where particular Game of Thrones episodes was shot, the article says.

The BuzzFeed website, which has more than 80 million visits a month, has included Dubrovnik among the 18 most popular film tourism destinations.

The fourth season of the Game of Thrones series attracted a record 18.4 million viewers per episode.

For more, check out our dedicated business section.

ZAGREB, 2 Dec 2021 - Conflict of Interest Commission chair Nataša Novaković said on Thursday she would be surprised if GRECO, the Council of Europe's anti-corruption body, gave a positive assessment of the conflict of interest bill currently in the first reading in parliament.

Speaking to the press, Novaković said she would be surprised because the bill did not show that Croatia had acted on GRECO's recommendations.

"Those who know how to read GRECO's report and the bill think it's quite clear that the essential recommendations haven't been complied with. Whether they have or not, we'll see when we get the report."

Novaković said that as far as she knew, GRECO was expected to assess if Croatia's new conflict of interest bill was in line with its recommendations today, and the assessment would be forwarded to the Conflict of Interest Commission.

"The bill is between two readings and it would be a bad message if later on, we were to receive a message from GRECO that the law we passed in the meantime is bad."

Novaković was speaking after a meeting of the National Council monitoring the implementation of the Corruption Prevention Strategy, whose chair Nikola Grmoja said GRECO insisted on principles of conduct and that the bill was a big step backward.

For more on politics, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 2 Dec 2021 - The Bridge party's parliamentary deputy, Marija Selak Raspudić, on Thursday called on Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Education Minister Radovan Fuchs to ensure that undergraduates can undergo free testing for coronavirus so that they can attend university classes without additional costs.

The decision that it is up to faculties to decide on their own whether students are required to have COVID certificates to enter the premises of the faculties has caused chaos on the ground, the MP said.

She explained that in the event of the COVID-19 certificate mandate, unvaccinated students would have to pay for their coronavirus tests, which would be an additional cost to them.

"I call on Prime Minister Plenković and Minister Fuchs to take responsibility for the anti-epidemic measures adopted by the para-political body -- the COVID-19 crisis management team -- and to pay for coronavirus tests for students who have not been vaccinated so that they can attend classes without additional costs, which they can't afford and which puts them at a disadvantage in relation to other citizens," Selak Raspudić told a news conference.

For more on politics, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 2 Dec 2021 - The German-based bus company FlixBus and Croatia's Čazmatrans signed a strategic partnership agreement on Thursday.

Under the agreement, in the first phase, Čazmatrans and FlixBus will integrate their bus services to provide travelers with greater mobility and availability of Croatian and international destinations.

The agreement provides for the digitalization of bus tickets, which will facilitate the online purchase of tickets. Over 30 continental destinations in Croatia will be included in the FlixBus network, and some towns, such as Đakovo, Kutina, Petrinja, and Sisak, will become FlixBus destinations for the first time. 

In the second phase of integration, which begins in the spring, a portion of the Čazmatrans fleet will start operating according to FlixBus standards.

For more, check out our dedicated business section.

ZAGREB, 2 Dec 2021 - Addressing an international conference on creative industries, Culture Minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek said on Thursday that during the COVID-19 pandemic, over HRK 900 million (€120 million) had been provided for the cultural and creative sectors to help them cope with the corona crisis.

The minister said that the government, in cooperation with associations, had responded promptly and drawn up a set of measures to help the creative industry in coping with the consequences of the COVID1-19 pandemic.

Of the HRK  900 million, HRK 300 million was earmarked for the development of the cultural and creative sectors.

"A portion will go towards the media sector, for setting up a fact-checking system and registers for transparent information on the ownership and financing of media outlets, while HRK 250 million has been set aside for the transformation of and boosting the competitiveness of the cultural and creative industry," Obuljen Koržinek said.

She expressed hope that the grants would help the sector recover from this crisis.

The two-day conference opened today in Zagreb.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

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