August 29, 2020 - I have been travelling and working between the UK and Croatia for the past 4 years or so after falling in love with the county of Konavle during a cycle touring trip a few years back. I was kindly hosted by Marko Bradvica at Mikulići Nature Park, a man with a big dream regarding a small train!

There are a few generations growing up in the area that never remember Čiro ever chugging its way up the side of Sniježnica mountain on its way to Vojski Do or departing the harbour in Dubrovnik on its winding journey toward Mostar. The Čiro route, now a walking trail, offers stunning panoramic vistas of our beautiful coastline and beyond, a would-be attractive hike for tourists if the summer temperatures weren’t quite so high!

When I was first discussing with Marko the rich history of this often forgotten corner of Croatia the train regularly came into the conversation and since I’ve heard many romantic anecdotes from others describing a train line that did much for the people here and hopefully still will! Perhaps most notably a beautiful account from our friend Danielo who describes his first journey on the train during his first visit to then Yugoslavia as a student in the 1950’s have a read here.

The author Stanislav Vukorep wrote a book chronicling Čiro’s rich history titled ‘Pruge koje su zivot znacile’ or ‘The tracks that brought life’. So important was the train for transport and infrastructure back then, it enriched a large part of the Dalmatian coastline for many, an essential attribute to local commerce as we hope will be the case again.

Recently Croatian tourism and the Dubrovnik strip especially, have been devastated by the effects of the Coronavirus. The usual tourist numbers in the area have plummeted; down by significant percentages comparative to a steady few years of exponential growth, hard times for many in the area however here at Čiro HQ we remain ever confident that the train will roll again. Previous to the virus, year upon year tourist numbers were steadily rising, 2019 reporting an increase of 13% over the previous year with a total of 1.3 million tourists visiting Dubrovnik and its surroundings.

So what do all these tourists do? Stari Grad or the Old City of Dubrovnik, the Pearl of the Adriatic is a huge pull to tourists from all over the world. Its imposing walls lauding over the Adriatic Sea beyond yet quaint cobbled streets provide visitors with ample photo opportunities and an insight into its rich historical past, an absolutely fantastic place if you are happy to queue for a few hours just to get inside!

Limited space between those mighty walls restricts the number of tourists at the height of the season, one might only cope with half a day there before the crowds become oppressive and the beach beckons. Beaches are great, I myself am one of their largest fans however even time spent cooking in the sun with dips in the ocean for relief eventually become tedious, what next? ‘’Kovavle...’’, I say, ‘’...a train ride into the mountains’’, ‘’Huh? Konavle, train, what?’’ you quiz, ‘’Čiro!’’ I simply reply with a smile.

I had the joy of spending part of my career climbing mountains in North Wales, UK. One of my favourite places to climb was the rock slabs overlooking the old slate mining town of Blaenau Ffestiniog. This town used to be a hub of activity with the mined slate being transported from the mountains to the sea via a small narrow gauge steam train until imported slate killed the local industry and business eventually dried up. The train was no longer needed so stopped running and mass unemployment ensued as the area slumped into disrepair along with its inhabitants. In the 1990’s a passionate group of people came together and brought the 200-year-old railway back to life as a tourist attraction. Visitors flocked to the restored railway attraction seeking mountain scenery, coastline views and to relive a nostalgic journey back in history. The town of Blaenau Ffestiniog had new life breathed into it and flourishes to this day with the restored train line now being extended further on into the valleys of North Wales.

At present, partly due to Coronavirus and the lack of tourists in our area, unemployment is down by approximately 30% over last year so we look with positivity to the future of Čiro. Not only would the proposed project provide many new job opportunities but would benefit a large part of the local population with the possibility of kick-starting many affiliate businesses.

So is there light at the end of the tunnel amidst these troubling and doubtful times? We very much hope so and look to a much brighter year next with hopefully our first passengers arriving with a new zeal for the area and its opportunities; we’re not done yet, choo choo!

James Manning

www.cirothetrain.com

Photos courtesy of Stanislav Vukorep

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

August 29, 2020 - Istria is in the limelight as the Istrian Development Agency implements two cross-border cooperation projects with Italy. The main goal is to connect the coast and the interior as well as the promotion of environmentally friendly forms of transport.

In addition to other activities of the Istrian Development Agency and the experience of 50 implemented EU projects with a total value of HRK 500 million, two projects in the field of mobility are being implemented, in which IDA is a partner. As Lokalni.hr writes, these are ICARUS and MIMOSA.

ICARUS project

Last year, a project called ICARUS - Intermodal connections in the Adriatic-Ionian region foresaw the growth of seamless solutions for passengers and invested in that with a total value of 2,200,000 euros, of which 180,000 euros are intended for IDA.

In partnership with HŽ passenger transport, this project will arrange a section of the train on the Istrian railway for the needs of bicycle transport. Travellers will have the opportunity to continue their journey by exploring other parts of Istria after exiting at one of the stations on the route or the new bike path Kanfanar - Rovinj. This second option will be possible after the completion of the reconstruction of the former railway line, which is being regulated by the City of Rovinj and the Municipality of Kanfanar, and to which the Istrian Development Agency has partly contributed.

So far, the "Analysis of shortcomings and needs in mobility in Istria County" has been prepared within ICARUS. It is a study that includes a description of the current situation, the systems implemented so far, and the legal basis and relevant strategies, after which the "Guidelines for the development of IT solutions" were developed as a starting point for the following activities and projects.

As part of this project, IDA held a webinar in cooperation with the Istrian Development Tourist Agency on the topic of bicycle transport in Istria, attractions near bicycle paths and plans. After the webinar, a quiz called "Discover Istria by bike" was organised, the winner was awarded a bicycle, all with the aim of promoting healthy transport habits.

Three years to finish

As ICARUS has established good cooperation and communication with local and regional stakeholders, representatives of the public and private sectors, useful information has been obtained for further development. They are included in the activities of another project in which IDA is involved, and that is MIMOSA (Maritime and multimodal sustainable passenger transport solutions and services), with a total value of 7,140,000 euros, of which IDA has invested 374,750 euros. Implementation began in July this year.

In this project, the Istrian Development Agency will focus its activities on two pilot activities. The first one is the development of a smart card, and the second is the platform "Via Istra", which will enable the promotion of available forms of transport in Istria but also create new opportunities for economic development and supply in this region. The expected duration of the MIMOSA project is three years, and some of the partners are HŽ passenger transport, the Port of Rovinj Authority, and the Ministry of Regional Development and European Union Funds - Directorate for Islands.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

August 29, 2020 - Split-Dalmatia County has recorded excellent tourist results so far this season - and far more than expected. However, the latest increase in coronavirus cases and Croatia's inclusion on the red list of some countries, some extremely important markets, is a cause for concern. Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board director Josko Stella believes that, despite everything, the situation can still be improved.

We still have time; the tourist season is not over yet.

"The situation is not good, it is very difficult now, but we still have time to fix it. It is a great pity because this end of August started very well and was better than we expected, but now it all depends on the period ahead, whether we will curb this situation and reduce the number of new infections. We need to take the situation seriously, discipline ourselves, listen to the Headquarters' recommendations, avoid gatherings and physical contacts," says Stella for Lokalni.Vecernji.hrokalni.Vecernji.hr.

Austria, Slovenia, and Italy put Croatia on the red list, and Germany placed Split-Dalmatia County on theirs. August is currently at 68% compared to last year. The most numerous guests in central Dalmatia are Poles, Germans, Croats, and Czechs, so putting Split-Dalmatia County on the red list in Germany could be the strongest blow so far. And after a dry May in which there was no tourism anywhere and a timid June when about 20% of last year’s result was achieved, things went well. According to data from the eVisitor system, in Split-Dalmatia County, 433,820 guests stayed in commercial accommodation in July, 47 percent of the tourist traffic of last July.

They realized 2,898,993 overnight stays or 54 percent of tourist overnight stays realized in the same month in 2019. There were 22,511 arrivals and 160,649 overnight stays in July, representing 50 percent in arrivals and 49 percent in overnight stays compared to the same month last year. He was pleased with the fact that the same number of German guests stayed in Central Dalmatia in July as last year, who had the same number of overnight stays as last year, which is an exceptional success in this turbulent business year.

"In the first seven months, we realized 39% of overnight stays compared to 2019, but now our situation has become more complicated. After the dismissal from Great Britain, we will see what will happen to the Germans. Those blacklists are changeable, and I hope that we will be able to calm the situation and remove us from the lists. If this hadn't happened, we would have had a great September and October, bookings were great, but if it doesn't improve, I'm afraid of canceled reservations," says Stella.

The dismissals from Germany, however, have not yet begun. The County Tourist Board points out that tourist companies, hosts in family accommodation, marinas, and camps respect strict epidemiological measures and protection standards. The Croatian coast has so far proved to be the safest and most acceptable holiday destination in the Mediterranean this season. That this is the case is evidenced by the daily visits of world-famous people to Split-Dalmatia County and its attractive waters. This sent the best marketing message of our tourism to the world.

However, the deteriorating epidemiological situation has also raised concerns at Split Airport, which had 165 landings and take-offs of commercial aircraft on August's first weekend, carrying more than 30,000 passengers in both directions. Although this is a relatively large number, it was only 35 percent of passengers compared to the same weekend last year. In the first seven months of this year, Split airport, which is connected to 60 destinations worldwide, had a total turnover of 277,000 passengers, and in July alone, this airport had 171,815 passengers. The traffic of around 150,000 passengers was expected in August, which is now in question given the situation and the global pandemic.

In order to attract tourists to Central Dalmatia, the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board has proposed to the Civil Protection Headquarters to open a point where only tourists will be tested for coronavirus so that those who are obliged to take the test can do so faster and cheaper.

"We would finance part of the costs as the Tourist Board, hoteliers also expressed the will that they would also give a discount to guests who are being tested, and part of the guests would have to pay," says Stella. "In this way, we would meet guests' needs from countries looking for testing for COVID-19 on their return from Croatia. I fully support everything that is determined and implemented by the Headquarters. I call on the inspections and all other authorities to do everything they can so that we can put ourselves in order and save September," says Stella.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

August 29, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates for Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik, Zadar, and Rijeka.

Croatian Aviation reports that Windrose Airlines planned to launch the Kyiv-Zagreb route at the beginning of the summer flight schedule, but this route was not established for objective reasons.

The company then postponed the date establishing traffic on this line and then canceled it completely for this year. But Windrose made another change and reopened sales, announcing the first flight for October this year.

The originally planned three flights a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays) are no longer on sale, but the company plans to connect Zagreb and Kyiv twice a week, every Wednesday and Sunday. The first flight has been announced for October 4, and flights will run throughout the winter flight schedule (until the end of March 2021).

This will be the first completely new line for Zagreb Airport this year, which can certainly be considered a success in this crisis. A direct line has never connected the capitals of Ukraine and Croatia.

Windrose plans to use the E145 aircraft on the route to Zagreb, with a capacity of 48 seats. The plane will depart from Kyiv at 11:30 am, with the expected arrival in Zagreb at 12:40 pm. Departure from Zagreb is planned for 13:25, and arrival in Kyiv at 16:20.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reported that Poland would ban flights from 46 countries from September 2 this year, and Croatia is among the many countries, according to a draft law released on Thursday. LOT, however, previously announced numerous routes to Croatian airports for September this year.

The Polish national airline currently operates on regular routes from numerous Polish cities to as many as 5 Croatian airports: Zagreb, Rijeka, Zadar, Split, and Dubrovnik. Although many of these lines will stop operating at the end of this month, which is logical considering that the end of the summer season is approaching, the Polish company announced traffic on as many as 7 lines to Croatia through September:

Warsaw - Zagreb,

Warsaw - Rijeka,

Warsaw - Split,

Warsaw - Zadar,

Rzeszow - Zadar,

Warsaw - Dubrovnik,

Krakow - Dubrovnik.

All these routes are still on sale on the LOT website, but the Polish national airline will likely be forced to cancel flights on these routes from the mentioned date (September 2). According to the announcements of the Polish authorities, with the ban on flights between Croatia and Poland, LOT has almost no other choice.

In addition to those who planned to travel directly between Polish and Croatian cities, this decision also affected many transfer passengers that LOT attracts, given the favorable prices.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

August 29, 2020 - A total of 13 countries have introduced specific mandatory restrictions for travel from Croatia, and three more - the Netherlands, Finland, and Denmark - have put Croatia on the orange list.

Slobodna Dalmacija reports that Slovakia is the newest European country to include Croatia on the red list. From September 2, everyone who wants to enter that country will have to self-isolate. Apart from Croatia, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Malta, and Belgium will also be on that list from the same date.

These are countries that have recorded many new coronavirus cases in the last 14 days: Croatia, which on Thursday reached an average of 80.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last two weeks, ranked in the high fifth place of the worst countries.

In front of Croatia are Spain, Malta, Luxembourg, and Romania.

Thus, everyone that was in Croatia and wants to enter Slovakia will have to undergo a 10-day quarantine. Slovakia, on the other hand, recorded 16.3 patients per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days, cumulatively, as of August 27.

Several states have set a limit on the cumulative number of patients in 14 days per 100,000 inhabitants, after which they will set restrictions on return from individual states. For example, Slovenia set that limit at 40 and introduced restrictions on the day Croatia crossed it.

And the growth of the cumulative number in Croatia was rapid: on Thursday, it exceeded 80, and on Assumption Day, August 15, it was less than 30.

A total of 13 countries have introduced certain mandatory restrictions for Croatia, and three more - the Netherlands, Finland, and Denmark - have put Croatia on the orange list, which means that recommendations have been issued not to travel to Croatia and to carry out quarantine, but it is not mandatory. 

The director of the CNIPH, Krunoslav Capak, said that Croatia was still mostly green.

"We have a high incidence, and it is expected that some countries will take some measures against us. However, I must say that most of Europe are still green towards us, and Croatian citizens can still travel to most European countries. We hope that now that the tourist season is waning, we will be able to reduce and improve our indicators, based on which they will then remove us from the red and orange lists," said the main state epidemiologist Capak. On Friday, Croatia came to 2560 active cases.

Among them, 212 patients are in hospital, of which 11 are on a ventilator. On Friday, in the past 24 hours, 2,065 people were tested. There are currently 8,770 people in self-isolation.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Ana Blaskovic writes on the 28th of August, 2020, due to the rapid growth in the number of people suffering from coronavirus in the south of Croatia, which Croatia agreed to allow to a certain extent in order to save the tourist season, fitness centres and gyms are among those who will be the first to pay the price thanks to a sweeping decision from the Croatian Government.

At the suggestion of the Split-Dalmatia County Headquarters (SDŽ), local measures were tightened and a wider obligation to wear masks was introduced, but only fitness centres had to put their keys in their locks.

The Minister of Health, Vili Beros, added fuel to the fire by noting that these are new hotspots of infection. The Croatian Government's decision infuriated gym owners as well as the Voice of Entrepreneurs Association (Udruga Glas Poduzetnika) which asked the minister for transparent evidence for this draconian measure accusing the staff of such facilities of negligence and of shifting responsibility.

"The Minister and the National Civil Protection Headquarters must not punish business owners who constantly invest in their facilities in order to makes them as safe as possible and adhere to all epidemiological measures. These are decisions which lump everyone into one category and which cause even more damage,'' point out the UGP, the only association of entrepreneurs that has spoken out on this issue.

“We'd like to point out that fitness centres, gyms, sports halls and clubs were all closed at a time when they generate the most revenue to cover themselves during the summer. Their re-closure will shake the economy and shake families without income,'' they note.

''It's a political decision''

"We know for sure that there were cases in the Joker centre in Split of someone getting infected, but we need to define the direction in which to take these further measures, and not punish the entire industry just because of one case where someone didn't follow the measures. How can you be sure that person didn't contract coronavirus at the post office or when they were on the bus? There were cases when someone in the tax administration became infected, so what are we going to do now, close down the entire tax administration?'' asks Drazen Orescanin from the aforementioned association.

"The decision to close is political because the SDŽ headquarters didn't do its job properly, so now they're shifting the responsibility for those omissions to others. That is just shameless,'' he concluded.

Many see the idea of the introduction of those measures in gyms across the rest of the country putting the 1.2 billion kuna revenue generated annually by the fitness industry in grave danger. Orlando Lopac, the owner of the OrlandoFit Croatia chain, said on Facebook that the minister had a direct impact on the long-term revenues of the entire fitness and sports recreation industry owing to these utterly odd decision.

The owner of the FitnessOF gym chain, Vanja Radjenovic, gives a slightly different perspective. “Right now we aren't locking our doors like we were during the lockdown, but we are being stigmatised. People are afraid and won’t come, and the costs of that are on us all the time. If they fully told us to close, at least we could ask for help from the state,'' he says, illustrating that the turnover this year dropped to 30 percent when compared to last year, meaning down to a mere 50 percent of what is typically achieved in the summer in ''normal'' years.

The request of the UGP Sports Committee, which, on behalf of all SDŽ fitness centres and gyms, asked the Ministry of Finance to pay the salaries of gym and fitness facility employees and write off their contributions for a period of fourteen days, is on a similar train of thought.

"If you want to close us down or limit our business, gentlemen in the Croatian Government, then you have to pay for it, not only with measures to preserve jobs, but also with additional measures - to preserve companies that close or restrict business in the name of force majeure. Without companies, there are no employees,'' said UGP leader Hrvoje Bujas.

For more on the decisions of the Croatian Government, follow our politics page.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

As Novac/Lidija Kiseljak/zupan.hr writes on the 28th of August, 2020, Zadar County was shortlisted for the best EU project with Project IRENE - Interregional Renewable & ENEergy efficiency network", which was registered within the category of Contribution to cross-border cooperation.

The leading partner in the project is the Zadar County Development Agency ZADRA NOVA, while the partners are Zadar County, the DELFIN Eco Centre from Montenegro, the Municipality of Tivat, the Association for the Economic Development from Bosnia and Herzegovina and the City of Mostar.

Project IRENE took place at the locations of Zadar County (Zadar, Smilcic, Korlat, Lisicic, Bibinje, Vinjerac, Novigrad - Gajine, Galovac, Privlaka), then outside of Croatian borders in Mostar, Tivat, Neum and Jablanica. The implementation of the project began on the 1st of July 2017 and lasted until the 31st of December 2019.

The total value of the project is 1,915,820 euros, and the amount of paid grants stands at 1,628,447 euros. Of that, other funds poured into the project amounted to 287,373 euros.

The aim of Project IRENE was to contribute to the protection and preservation of nature by encouraging the sustainable use of natural resources in border areas through joint development and the networking of local energy management systems, as well as to actively encourage energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy systems in the public sector.

The value of the project is visible through the development of a common network of project ideas and enabling the development of new initiatives, specialist training and the equipping of existing and new energy efficiency teams with specialised equipment, as well as investing in infrastructure. Thus, Projct IRENE replaced the existing lighting systems that used mercury lighting with highly energy efficient lamps and installed a solar power system for the preparation of domestic hot water in these cross-border areas. The lighting system was replaced at locations in Zadar, Mostar, Tivat, Neum, Smilčcic, Korlat, Lisicic, Bibinje, Vinjerac, Novigrad, Galovac, Privlaka and Jablanica.

"The ZADRA NOVA Agency has given its contribution to the realisation of the European Union's energy and climate plan 20-20-20 with the planning and implementation of projects such as IRENE. Project IRENE is a step towards achieving the set goals of lower greenhouse gas emissions, increasing the share of renewable energy sources in total energy consumption and lower energy consumption compared to what is expected in the case of the non-implementation of special measures,'' said the director of ZADRA NOVA, Marina Dujmovic Vukovic.

''In accordance with the obligations accepted by signing the energy charter and the letter of intent, Zadar County has expressed a lasting interest in implementing activities to improve energy efficiency. Zadar County has authorised the ZADRA NOVA Agency to implement systematic energy management activities in its administrative area. These activities are regularly performed by the Agency, either through the monitoring of energy consumption in public buildings, consulting with the aim of saving or entering data into registers and data monitoring systems.

The lasting result and foundation of further work is the base of ideas and network of projects in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources developed through Project IRENE. It is therefore expected that the number and quality of projects in the field of energy that will be applied by local and regional self-government units and institutions will increase through a partnership approach to open tenders of European and national funding sources. In the seven-year period ahead of us, through two financial packages, over 22 billion euros will be made available to Croatia, and a significant part of that amount is aimed at encouraging energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy sources. Thanks to Project IRENE, the ZADRA NOVA Agency and Zadar County are more prepared for the opportunities that will be provided by the new, multi-year financial framework,'' Vukovic added.

Through Project IRENE, in Zadar County alone, 510 energy efficient lighting fixtures were modernised, in the Herzegovina-Neretva County in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 605 lighting fixtures were modernised, and in the area of ​​Boka Kotorska in Montenegro 593 lighting fixtures were modernised and one solar power system was installed for the preparation of domestic hot water. The old lighting at the pilot sites was inefficient, mostly mercury-based, and didn't comply with light pollution rules. The installation of new, environmentally friendly lighting fixtures has increased the savings of the system, which, when compared to mercury lighting, amounts to a minimum of 80 percent of the installed power. In addition, the modernisation of lighting systems at pilot sites aims to raise awareness of the possibility of financing projects in the field of energy efficiency from EU funds.

The education of children was also conducted and the population and the public sector were encouraged to use renewable energy sources and get better acquainted with energy efficiency through a specially designed promotional campaign. A specially designed play for children with the aim of educating them about energy efficiency and nature protection was shown 12 times. Consumer energy monitoring systems have also been installed with a display of consumption, savings and real-time statistics for three public buildings in the cross-border area, and energy audits have been prepared for 13 public buildings.

Pilot projects

"Zadar County has long decided to encourage renewable energy sources and this project is just one of the activities in this direction. What was especially interesting for us and what prompted us to enter this project is directing EU funds to the rural part of the county and the opportunity to use the funds to rebuild communal infrastructure and at the same time achieve significant savings,'' said Bozidar Longin, Zadar County Prefect County.

''Through this project, we've managed to strengthen the social, economic and territorial development of the programme area through the implementation of joint interventions in the field of environmental protection and sustainable energy. As part of Project IRENE, Zadar County also organised and implemented a promotional campaign with the aim of raising awareness in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources,'' he noted.

For more on Croatian and EU projects, follow our lifestyle section.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

As Novac writes on the 28th of August, 2020, Liburnia Riviera Hotels are proud of their long tradition of providing superior services and an outstanding experience to all of its guests, as well as care for the safety of guests during the current coronavirus pandemic, while at the same time offering a pleasant and carefree stay in Kvarner.

In order to provide all residents and guests in the region with the most reliable and accurate testing for the disease caused by the COVID-19 virus currently available on the market, with their donation worth 1.3 million kuna, Liburnia Riviera Hotels enabled the purchase of RNA isolation devices and reagents to the Institute of Public Health of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.

The results of this test are available within 24 hours of sampling, and in emergencies - within just five hours. Such a possibility of testing for COVID-19 in Croatia and the country's immediate region is extremely important because Kvarner and the Liburnia Riviera Hotels are traditionally the favourite destinations of tourists who tend to come from an environment of up to 600 kilometres away. These visitors are generally from Slovenia, Italy, Austria and Hungary - and the anti-epidemic measures taken in these countries have tightened. If necessary, Liburnia Riviera Hotels will provide its guests with PCR testing inside their facilities, and thus make the whole process even safer, faster and more comfortable for guests.

On the occasion of the recent presentation of the donation, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County Prefect Zlatko Komadina said that this is a commendable gesture and expressed his satisfaction that the leading hotel company in Opatija has received a new ownership structure now dominated by experienced hoteliers who show that they want to invest. He emphasised that Opatija has great prospects for investments not only in hotel facilities but also in infrastructure and along the coastline. He welcomed them and said that in all their plans and further investments they can count on the help and support of the County.

The director of NZZJZ PGZ, Vladimir Micovic, emphasised the importance of public health and thanked Liburnia Riviera Hotels on behalf of all employees of the Institute who continue to work diligently not only during the epidemic, but also for the preservation of the of health of the local population and of tourists.

"It is in our interest that testing for citizens and guests is prompt, done on time, with the best possible technology, and your donation will certainly help us in that. We'll procure an automatic nucleic acid isolation device to help us speed up the process, which also complements our infrastructure. We'll also procure a large amount of tests in the amount of 900 thousand kuna,'' Komadina stated.

During the current tourist season, which has been heavily influenced by the spread of the coronavirus, nine of the 23 accommodation units belonging to Liburnia Riviera Hotels were opened. Furthermore, a total of 582 employees are currently providing top quality services to all guests, while applying strict security measures in all open hotels, accommodation units and restaurants to best protect health and provide the necessary safety. In addition, this hotel group has increased the frequency of cleaning, especially in the case of frequently used areas. The prescribed hygienic means used meet European standards and don't endanger human health.

Given the current coronavirus pandemic, the cancellation policy has been adjusted and guests have been offered the greatest possible flexibility in changing the length of their stay during these demanding times, as well as a 30 percent discount on normal prices.

''The coronavirus pandemic is continuously changing the circumstances in which we live and affects all aspects of life, including the ways in which we do business and how we travel. We're grateful to all of our guests who are currently staying with us, and their safety, as well as the safety of our employees, is a priority. With this donation, Liburnia Riviera Hotels wants to ensure the safety of the City of Opatija and the region as a tourist destination, and to provide residents and guests with the most reliable and fastest way of testing currently available on the market. As a long-term investor in the region, we're committed to creating long-term socially responsible partnerships, such as the one we have with the Thalasso Therapy Opatija team led by prof.dr.sc. Viktor Persic. Like all of our socially responsible activities, this donation is an investment in a partnership with the local community that has lasted for decades,'' said Waldemar Hirn, CEO of the Liburnia Riviera Hotel Heimo.

In addition to this significant donation, Liburnia Riviera Hotels presented the naval rescue ship "Nis Randers" a little earlier on this year, which will be used in the area of ​​Opatija and Kvarner as a whole. "Nis Randers" will contribute to the diversity of the tourist offer in the region.

The boat is available for rent to all tourists who are interested in a unique sailing experience on a naval lifeboat. However, if necessary, the ship will also be made readily available to local emergency services, and will greatly help them reduce the consequences of danger on the high seas and thus improve safety in the entire Kvarner region.

For more, follow our lifestyle page.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.