August 18, 2020 - Croatian bureaucracy 2.0 can be very efficient, it seems, as the campaign to introduce the Croatian digital nomad visa passes an important milestone. 

Among other things, it is the speed with which things are happening that is giving me hope for the future of Croatia. 

A common-sense idea, put in the public arena, then quietly pursued behind the scenes. 

Let's move away from the pointless slogan of Croatia, Full of Life, to something which embraces which sets Croatia apart from the rest - its safety, lifestyle and authentic experiences. Croatia, Your Safe, Authentic Lifestyle Destination. 

A destination which is a haven for an increasing number of digital nomads and remote workers, who present a fantastic opportunity for Croatia to completely diversify its tourism approach and become one of the leading markets in Europe for this rapidly expanding - and highly lucrative - new type of tourism, based on its position as the lifestyle capital of Europe. 

Nomads are already coming to Croatia - and loving what they find. But without the support of Croatian bureaucracy 2.0, that love affair is restricted to the (typically) 90-day stay that many foreigners are allowed to stay at a time. 

A digital nomad visa, first championed in Estonia and now also by the Bahamas and the Republic of Georgia, would change that, allowing wealth-creating remote workers to earn online in their countries, and spend their lifestyle money in Croatia. With more and more people looking to go home to lifestyle around the world, and with Croatia boasting the best lifestyle in Europe - as well as safety, English spoken, accessibility, affordability, excellent food, wine and natural beauty, and plenty to do, the possibilities for Croatia are enticing indeed. 

One recent - and very enthusiastic - convert to the digital nomad initiative is Split-based Dutch entrepreneur, Jan de Jong, who has been particularly vocal in calling for a digital nomad visa - and his progress has been impressive. Here is a timeline, which has been documented every step of the way by TCN:

May 5, 2020 - Digital Nomads Enter Croatian Tourism Conference Strategy Debate for 1st Time 

May 11, 2020 - Digital Nomad Tourism Featured for 1st Time in Croatian Media

July 11, 2020 - Estonia on the Adriatic? Dutchman Asks PM for Croatian Digital Nomad Visa

July 28, 2020 - Split-Based Dutch Entrepreneur Jan de Jong: Croatia Should Introduce Visas for Digital Nomads

August 15, 2020 - Croatian Digital Nomad Visa One Step Closer? Ministry Meeting Confirmed

That meeting in the Ministry of the Interior took place yesterday, and de Jong posted a summary of it on his LinkedIn page shorted after the meeting:

Ladies & gentlemen, we did it! We are entering round 2!

After my open letter to our Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, who from his end engaged his colleague - Deputy Prime Minister Davor Božinović - I can share with you all that I got full support from MUP to proceed with operational meetings on the subject of introducing a digital nomad visa in Croatia!

Full of excitement and with high hopes for Croatia - today I had the pleasure of meeting with Zoran Ničeno, Zvonimir Vrbljanin & Anita Mandic from the Croatian Ministry of Interior (MUP)

Seeing their smiles through their masks ?(which we had to wear during our meeting) when presenting this digital nomad opportunity, confirmed their full understanding of what this visa could bring to Croatia: Year-round tourism.

I could not be happier with the outcome of our first meeting as Zoran Ničeno has committed himself to right away start forming a task force, including people from other ministries, for our next operational meeting - which shall be scheduled on short notice.

Today was a great day as the story continues.

Thank you all for your support, your kind and warm messages and for liking & sharing this post.

Follow me on #LinkedIn to stay up to date.

#LivingTheCroatianDream #digitalnomads #Croatia

TCN will continue to follow this story and update you on progress. The growing awareness of the potential of digital nomad tourism is encouraging to see, as is the government's willingness to look at new ideas in a such a responsive way. 

To be continued... 

Read more about the challenges and opportunities for developing the digital nomad sector in Tanja Polegubic's excellent 10 Ways Croatia Will Be At The Forefront of Countries with a Digital Nomad Visa (DNV).

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As more and more countries begin adding Croatia to their list of ''no go'' or ''red list'' countries as a result of the rise in infection rates, Germany keeps Croatia on its list of safe countries. The German RTL has released a map with a detailed overview of the risk and safety of countries when it comes to the new coronavirus, published by the German Federal Office of Foreign Affairs.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 18th of August, 2020, under the title "Holidays in Spain, Turkey, Croatia - where it's safest", the German RTL.de published a text and a "coronavirus map" showing the countries to which it is safe to travel for German nationals and residents, but also those that are currently on Germany's "red list" .

Croatia is still marked in green, meaning that it is one of the safe countries for holidays for Germans.

The description of Croatia RTL.de states that Croatia allows entry to all citizens of EU member states. But after entering the country it is necessary to leave contact information.

''In order to avoid long waits when crossing the border, the Croatian Ministry of the Interior recommends that you fill in the appropriate form online in advance. There is no obligation to quarantine, nor is there any obligation to test for coronavirus,'' writes the German RTL, RTL.de, and reports Felix magazine.

They note that almost all of Spain is marked as a risk area for coronavirus, but the German Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs withdrew warnings for some Turkish provinces back in early August.

As some begin to suspect that the warnings being issued by some European countries against travel to Croatia has more of a political nature than it does of health, it is encouraging to see that Germany isn't condemning Croatia in the way Austria recently has. For the the current status in individual countries published by the German RTL, click here.

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August the 19th, 2020 - There has been an unfortunate increase in the infection level in Croatia, and while some government figures plead with the countries placing Croatia on their ''no go'' or ''red'' lists for travel to divide Croatia up into different regions to reflect the infection rate rather than condemning the entire country, many European countries are continuing to make things difficult as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Austria is the most recent country to make very bold moves in warning their nationals not to travel on holiday to Croatia, rejecting the aforementioned plea to divide the country up, and many have been complaining about the price of the coronavirus test some countries are asking for upon return from Croatia. On top of that, the second complaint has been that there aren't enough facilities at which to get the necessary tests which more and more countries are now demanding. This has resulted in huge crowds of people waiting to have their tests performed.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 18th of August, 2020, on Tuesday morning, there were large crowds waiting for coronavirus tests in front of the  Dr. Andrija Štampar Institute in Zagreb, which came to the forefront during the pandemic as being a ''drive through'' testing facility in which people didn't need to leave their cars.

The number of tested people has been growing even though the cost of the test is at the testee's expense, and since prices have been reduced. There has been pressure in Zagreb for several days now due to the large number of people who want to be tested, so three additional locations will be opened in health centres that will work from 08:00 to 20:00.

Fewer people are being tested on weekends because such facilities work part-time or don't open their doors at all over the weekend, reports N1.

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Not one person from the beautiful green region of Gorski Kotar has been infected with the new coronavirus in the six months since the pandemic reached Croatia. No resident or guest is infected, nor have they become infected in Gorski Kotar. Naturally, the locals are very proud of their ''zero''.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 18th of August, 2020, back at the start of the pandemic, the levels of fear were high. The elderly population who live in Gorski Kotar, for whom the virus remains the most devastating, needed to be protected from it. Spring, quarantine, work from home and popular picnic areas have made Gorski Kotar an ideal place to escape from the crowds, which posed a danger of importing the new coronavirus.

"At the beginning, we were really concerned, at one point we had to ask all our dear guests, our friends who come from Rijeka and Zagreb not to bother, we needed to see what it was all about. When the National Civil Protection Headquarters said that they could come, we thanked them and invited them to come,'' said the mayor of Fuzine, David Bregovac, in a report brought by Dnevnik Nova TV.

Preserving health was and remains the main task. Even when gatherings across the country, and especially Mass celebrations were re-approved, in Gorski Kotar, they still held on a bit longer. In recent weeks, the focus has been on young people. The number of infected people has increased due to people going to nightclubs on the Adriatic, and especially in Dalmatia. In Gorski Kotar, they have no problems with such forms of entertainment.

"We ride bikes, we play football, take care of the elderly, wear masks, and we go to the store for the elderly," said Lorena Buric, a girl from Ravna Gora.

The border area and daily migrations of the local population who, due to their respective daily needs, cross from Slovenia into Croatia and vice versa didn't endanger this area. The protection is double because the recommendations of epidemiologists on both sides of the Kupa are being followed.

"That's right, the measures are respected, our dear Slovenian friends come here every day to Brod na Kupi to our store, our bakery, our hospitality facilities because they don't have anything over there on their side," says Davorin Klobucar, president of MO Brod na Kupi.

The proximity of the Croatian-Slovenian border has actually become a plus for Gorski Kotar

It is the proximity of the border with Slovenia that has quickly become something good for Gorski Kotar. Istria and Kvarner are the most successful Croatian regions in terms of the number of guests this season. In Gorski Kotar, from August the 1st until today, a little more than 2,900, both Croatian and foreign, have visited. Given the frequent changes in the colours of Croatia on the lists of various European countries, the proximity of the border crossings is a great relief for tourists.

"Our guests are mostly oriented to nature and to the top of Risnjak and the source of the Kupa, they want some peace and quiet, and since it is close to the Slovenian border, even if the borders are closed, they can be out of Croatia in 10 minutes and can return to their countries," says Marko Cicavica, a local landlord.

There was one new case in Istria County yesterday, while in Primorje-Gorski Kotar, there were two newly infected people. Due to the good epidemiological picture, despite the large influx of foreigners, they are calling for the introduction of measures by region.

"Gorski Kotar is truly a godsend in the sense that it is a large area with low population density, so visitors who come don't really change the epidemiological situation and therefore it is still coronavirus free," says Vladimir Micovic, the director of NZJZ Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.

Autumn and winter, and thus the cold season, are at the door. We now all need to make sure we're well prepared so that the discipline and effort and also the positive experience of the first coronavirus wave don't simply go to waste.

"The closest KBC to this part of Croatia is in Rijeka, where there are 53 respirators available for as many as three counties, which fortunately are still excellent with their coronavirus numbers. The people of Gorski Kotar hope that they will still have zero infected people by then and that there will be no need for such medical help.

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On a recent episode of HRT's Dnevnik, the Minister of Health, Vili Beros, didn't specifically reveal the possible new epidemiological measures for Croatia this autumn, but when speaking about the obligation to wear protective masks outdoors, he said that it would make sense to introduce something similar in Croatia.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 18th of August, 2020, Minister Vili Beros emphasised that the National Civil Protection Headquarters has daily discussions on the anti-epidemic measures they must take, but they do so in constant accordance with the epidemiological situation of the time.

''At this moment in time, it isn't possible to conclude what will happen in the autumn,'' said Vili Beros. He added that the wearing of masks outdoors in the French capital of Paris is done in places where a lot of people are grouped and where no physical distance can be kept.

''It would make sense to introduce something similar in Croatia in those places where more people are grouped together, that is, on trams, in waiting areas for buses, where there are certain tourist groups, but we'll carefully monitor the situation and bring in new measures in the way we did before,'' Beros explained.

Commenting on the decline in the number of newly infected people in Croatia, ie answering the question as to whether this is a trend or a short break, Vili Beros said that it wasn't possible to say. It was a weekend and not all family doctors were working, meaning they weren't referring any patients for coronavirus testing, but the epidemiological service is working hard.

''It is a controlled pool and in that way the spread of the virus is prevented. So it's possible that these measures of ours - of course, with an emphasis on personal responsibility - will indeed cause these numbers to be smaller and smaller, but it isn't possible to conclude anything,'' he said.

Beros also said that a meeting of the expert group of the crisis staff of the Ministry of Health would be held soon and that it was possible to start some training of junior doctors from the epidemiological profession so that they could join in with the field work.

The Civil Protection Headquarters of the City of Split asked the National Headquarters to specify more clearly the conditions and measures that must be observed by catering and service facilities. Beros said that the National Headquarters would respond to their request and that talks should always be held. He added that people in the local community know all the specific circumstances of certain areas.

''Specifically, here at my place in Hvar, after the closing of night clubs and coffee bars, a problem arose with the grouping of young people in front of certain stores. Therefore, local employees can best notice this problem,'' he noted.

As for the teaching model, Beros stressed that it would be best - if the epidemiological situation allows it - for all children to be back at school, but some other models are being prepared that may be a combination of school attendance and online teaching.

''I want to say that all of us who are participating in this process, parents, teachers, healthcare workers, but also us politicians, must look at this problem in full from all aspects and try to find the most opportune solution at that moment,'' concluded Vili Beros, adding that the concept and proposal will come very soon.

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August 18, 2020 - Have you ever tried sparkling, actually lightly sparkling, fizzy, and lively wine that everybody is talking about nowadays: Pétillant Naturel, or Pét-Nat, for short? 

I have, and I immediately fell in love with it. However, the insiders claim Pét-Nat is actually far from being a novelty. This spritzy sparkler dates far back, all the way back to 16th century France, which makes it older than the traditional method typical for Champagne.

This wine is bottled before fully completing its first fermentation, allowing carbon dioxide to be produced by the natural sugars found in the grapes and the method is called méthode ancestrele, “rurale,” “artisanale“ or “gaillacoise.” This is contrary to the classical, traditional méthode champenoise where the base wine is fully fermented, then undergoes a secondary fermentation in the bottle with the addition of yeast and sugar, (liqueur de tirage.)

Also unlike Champagne, Pét-Nat is not disgorged, and may or may not be filtered on completion of fermentation. It is the newest craze on the „cognoscenti“ market, and the kings (and queens) of the sparkling wine production in Croatia, Tomac family, have recognized it in time and have recently started producing their own Pét-Nat. 

Moreover, Pét-Nat, by Tomac with the label picturing their pet, Dachshund Hugo, is produced in a biodynamic way – strictly following the phases of the moon. Biodynamics was introduced to the world by 19th-century Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner who was actually born in Donji Kraljevec in Croatia.

Tomislav Tomac Jr and his wife Martina, as the new generation of the prominent Tomac winemaking family, are keen on producing biodynamically and are proud of their new wine, while Tomislav Tomac senior is now also getting „into the groove“.

Pét-Nat wines are usually low in alcohol, sometimes are sweet but can be dry as well.  Prior to tasting Tomac Pét-Nat, I also tried the one produced by the estimated Italian prosecco producer Bottega and it seemed to me that I am the one who would go to extra lengths to get such natural and tasty, refreshing wine, especially when they, like Tomac, cost a mere 100 kuna.

These rustic and raw but great wines can benefit from a couple of years in bottle, although they do not develop much with further aging. The bottles are often cloudy, due to remaining less presence and lack of filtration and are extremely reflective of the terroir. Limoux, Gaillac and Loire Valley are good sources of these crisp white wines, but now that we have Tomac's Hugo, look no further. 

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ZAGREB, Aug 18, 2020 - The nautical charter season in Croatia is recording good results, but it could be jeopardised by restrictive measures being introduced by an increasing number of European countries, the HGK's association of providers of boat charter services said on Tuesday.

The problem could be compounded by the unavailability of organised coronavirus testing for guests of marinas.

The charter season lasts until October, which means it is in full swing even now, but the measures being introduced in markets from which tourists come to Croatia could result in tourists suddenly leaving. In order to avoid that, providers of boat charter services are considering solutions - either making available organised testing to guests or providing early departure so that guests could have enough time to get tested in their home country before returning to work, said the press release by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK).

"Diplomatic negotiations that will impact the final outcome of measures being adopted by the countries are currently underway. Some countries do not accept the test and ask for 14 days of self-isolation upon return. This is a topic we are negotiating intensively and we are lobbying for a negative test to suffice," said Assistant Tourism Minister Robert Pende, as carried by the press release.

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ZAGREB, Aug 18, 2020 - Education Minister Radovan Fuchs said on Tuesday that the task force was working intensively on preparing measures for the start of the 2020/2021 school year on September 7 and that pupils from grades 1 to 4 would not be wearing masks.

Fuchs had appointed a 23-member task force in charge of elaborating and proposing measures for the start of the 2020/2021 school year consisting of epidemiologists, representatives of education agencies, principals' associations, school and trade union founders, the coordinator of which is Ivana Pavic Simetin from the Croatian Public Health Institute (HZJZ).

The measures must take into account many particularities of schools across Croatia, which are faced with the coronavirus epidemic, as well as of schools in the Zagreb area due to the consequences of the March earthquake.

For that reason, Fuchs said, nothing more definite can be said, except that children in lower grades of primary school will not need to wear masks.

The task force's coordinator Pavic Simetin confirmed this, saying that face masks do not offer much protection to children of that age, who often do not wear them in the right way.

The task force is still considering whether masks should be worn by pupils in the higher grades in primary schools and students in secondary schools, and they are waiting for a statement from the World Health Organisation (WHO) on this issue.

Face masks are mandatory for students at higher education facilities.

Asked about who will buy masks for pupils and students, Fuchs said that that would be discussed whether they would be bought by parents or schools.

Fuchs is aware that it is possible that the coronavirus spreads to schools, and when asked what would be done in case that happens, he said that this would be dealt with ad hoc.

Asked whether teachers and school staff would have to get tested for the coronavirus, Pavic Simetin said it was not mandatory and that epidemiological measures envisaged testing only those people showing coronavirus symptoms.

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