September 21, 2021 - Travelers who provide proof of full vaccination against the coronavirus before boarding a flight will be able to enter the United States, ending an 18-month ban on travel from 33 countries includes members of the European Union as part of the U.S. pandemic travel restrictions.

The New York Times reports that the Biden administration will lift pandemic travel restrictions starting in November for foreigners who are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, reopening the country to thousands of people, including those who have been separated from family in the United States during the pandemic, and easing a major source of tension with Europe.

The halt to the 18-month ban on travel from 33 countries, including members of the European Union, China, Iran, South Africa, Brazil, and India, could help rejuvenate a U.S. tourism industry that has been crippled by the pandemic travel restrictions. The industry suffered a $500 billion loss in travel expenditures in 2020, according to the U.S. Travel Association, a trade group that promotes travel to and within the United States.

In New York City alone, the lack of tourists wiped out 89,000 jobs and resulted in a loss of more than $60 billion in revenue, the state comptroller found.

“Everyone says New York is back, New York is back, but it’s not really back until tourists are back from all countries,” said Leyla Saleh, 28, a pastry chef whose father was forced to shut down his gift shop in Midtown Manhattan last year because he did not have enough business.

Foreign travelers will need to show proof of vaccination before boarding and a negative coronavirus test within three days of coming to the United States, Jeffrey D. Zients, the White House pandemic coordinator, said on Monday. Unvaccinated Americans who want to travel home from overseas will have to clear stricter testing requirements. They will need to test negative for the coronavirus one day before traveling to the United States and show proof that they have bought a test to take after arriving in the United States, Mr. Zients said.

“International travel is critical to connecting families and friends, to fueling small and large businesses, to promoting the open exchange of ideas and culture,” Mr. Zients said. “That’s why, with science and public health as our guide, we have developed a new international air travel system that both enhances the safety of Americans here at home and enhances the safety of international air travel.”

The changes announced on Monday apply only to air travel and do not affect pandemic travel restrictions along the land border, Mr. Zients said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers people fully inoculated two weeks after they receive the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or the single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Those who have received vaccines listed for emergency use by the World Health Organization, such as the AstraZeneca vaccine, would also be considered fully vaccinated, according to a statement from Thomas Skinner, a C.D.C. spokesman.

The C.D.C. will also issue an order directing airlines to collect phone numbers and email addresses of travelers for a new contact-tracing system. Authorities will then follow up with the travelers after arrival to ask whether they are experiencing symptoms of the virus.

Although the new rules open up travel for some, they shut it down for others.

Unvaccinated people will soon be broadly banned from visiting the United States even if they are coming from countries such as Japan, which have not faced restrictions on travel to America during the pandemic. The restrictions will create substantial complications for people who want to travel to the United States from countries where it is more difficult to get vaccinated, according to Willie Walsh, the director-general of the International Air Transport Association, a trade group of the world’s airlines.

Follow the latest flights to Croatia HERE and the latest travel updates and COVID-19 news from Croatia HERE.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

ZAGREB, 21 Sept, 2021 - In the last 24 hours, 9,777 coronavirus tests have been conducted in Croatia, and of them, 10.6%, or 1,037, have returned positive, and there have been 12 more deaths raising the COVID-related death toll to 8,526, the national COVID-19 crisis management team reported on Tuesday.

There are now 7,464 active cases and of them, 689 are hospitalised patients including 88 placed on ventilators.

Since the first registered case of the infection with the novel virus in Croatia on 25 February 2020, the country has conducted over 2.74 million tests, and 383,285 have turned out to be positive. So far, 377,295 registered patients have recovered, including 1,079 recoveries in the last 24 hours.

Since the start of the vaccine rollout, 3,374,095 vaccine doses have been administered. Every second adult has been fully vaccinated.

For more about COVID-19 in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

September 21, 2021 - Summer takes a step aside for the arrival of autumn, and some regions, such as Istria, show the enormous variety of their tourist offer in all their corners and throughout the year. And that is demonstrated by announcing its celebration of the World Tourism Day for the sixth year in a row on October 2 and 3.

HrTurizam reports that, for the sixth time in a row, the Administrative Department for Tourism of the Istrian County is organizing and encouraging the inclusion in the celebration of the World Tourism Day in Istria. This year, World Tourism Day is held under the motto: "TOURISM FOR INCLUSIVE GROWTH".

”The celebration of the World Tourism Day in Istria 2021 will be held on Saturday, October 2 and Sunday, October 3 from 10 am to 6 pm at 64 points throughout Istria where tourist attractions open their doors that can be used with discounts of up to 50% or completely free. In this way, we make our offer more accessible with the aim of getting to know the contents and attractions in Istria as much as possible, and thus strengthen the promotion of Istria”, pointed out the head of the Tourism Board, Prodan Mrakovic.

All those interested, in addition to adrenaline parks, museums, castles, caves, protected areas, workshops, performances, and more, will be able to visit the many winemakers, olive growers, truffle growers, and other local producers who joined the action. Also, numerous local tourist boards joined the event with their programs.

"In the Department of Tourism, we believe that, in accordance with this year's theme of World Tourism Day, this event will point to domestic, indigenous products, offers, and services and encourage consumption and thus support local facilities. Thus, we contribute to inclusive development, ie the development of new, lesser-known content that has been most affected by the crisis in recent years. In this way, we encourage sustainable and responsible tourism development. and ultimately, we point out the importance of tourism that affects the economic, social, cultural and environmental segments.” concluded Prodan Mraković.

To find the most complete information on all the destinations in Croatia that you can visit, take a look at the Total Croatia guides HERE. Now in your language!

For more, check out our dedicated travel section.

ZAGREB, 21 Sept (Hina) - Croatian President Zoran Milanović, who arrived in New York for the 76th General Assembly of the United Nations, on Monday held talks with his Costa Rican counterpart, Carlos Alvarado Quesada, the Office of the Croatian head of state reported.

The two presidents discussed the developments of the bilateral relations and their enhancement to higher levels.

They agreed that the small ethnic Croatian community in Costa Rica, notably its members in Puntarenas, a city on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, made a contribution to those good bilateral relations.

On Monday, Croatia and Costa Rica co-chaired a ministerial meeting in the UN on the role of women in prevention of mass crimes.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page

September 21, 2021 - Zagreb's initiatives to produce a diverse and cultural year-round tourist programme continue. Meet the new art and culture addition for autumn - Artupunktura. 

I have had lots of conversations with visiting digital nomads in recent months in Zagreb, and it is always interesting to take in the fresh perspectives of new arrivals, especially the things that surprise them about the city. And there seem to be some common themes. 

Fantastic Internet, extremely safe, unbelievable English spoken by almost everyone are encouraging findings, especially as they are among the most important as the shift to remote work continues. I have also been pleasantly surprised to hear how much they enthuse about the culinary scene in the Croatian capital. The nature, trees and parks all get a mention of course, but there is also one aspect of Zagreb which is becoming increasingly noticed.

(Photo Bosko i Kreso)

The art and culture scene. 

From its vibrant street art to small open-air concerts in picturesque squares, these nomads have commented that there is always something seemingly happening in Zagreb when they stroll its very walkable streets. 

And the fact is that Zagreb has become a destination with a much higher focus on art and culture in recent years, with numerous festivals and smaller initiatives all playing their part in adding to the diverse art scene. 

(Photo Bosko i Kreso)

Zagreb - perhaps more than any other destination in Croatia - has enjoyed more success in transforming itself into a year-round destination. The phenomenal success of Advent in Zagreb brought significant tourism to the capital at a time of year when it would normally be sleeping. And more initiatives are being introduced to connect the rest of the tourism calendar. 

Walking along Ilica, Zagreb's longest street which connects directly to the main Ban Jelacic Square, was an unexpected joy. A street normally associated with one-way traffic and frequent trams in both directions had been reclaimed by artists, performers, and the people. It is part of the Ilica: Q'ART project, an initiative to take art out of institutions and bring it closer to citizens.  

A wonderful atmosphere. 

(Gallery Rally)

And an atmosphere taking place all over the city at the moment, with the arrival of a new art festival for the Zagreb calendar: Artupunktura (Artupuncture in English). As the dedicated Artupuncture website explains:

Zagreb is a living, breathing organism. Its streets throb with people's energy; its parks and squares echo the footsteps of its inhabitants and visitors like a heartbeat. They are the ones for whom Artupuncture is intended – a collaboration of partners and friends of culture and creation, aimed at awakening the city's vital energy through joint artistic activities at specific locations in the city. The Artupuncture project approaches the individual as a unique artistic and social phenomenon, serving the beauty and value that comes from the signatures of the authors behind the work. These works, strategically arranged in numerous sites around us, will write another story of Zagreb.

(ALU Perspective)

Artupuncture is the latest initiative from the Zagreb Tourist Board and its partners to promote art and culture in the city, a strategy which is already paying dividends as the artsy side of the Croatian capital is becoming increasingly recognised. This latest initiative brings together a synthesis of various artistic events in the city, awakening the vital energy of specific points of Zagreb through inclusive art and culture. It aspires to a large, holistic, all-encompassing social process, where are provides vision and healing. 

As with acupuncture, an injection of Artupuncture art and culture helps to alleviate stress and provides therapy through Zagreb art. Artupuncture provides a clear connection and tourism, with an emphasis on contemporary culture. It is a very inclusive project, which is helping to redefine the urban cultural scene.  

The ultimate goal is to establish Zagreb as an autumn destination for art and culture. With the influx of low-cost flights to Zagreb (there will be more than 40 budget flight destinations by next summer), the city is growing in attractiveness as a city break, and the Artupuncture offer will only add to the capital's attractiveness. 

Artupunkura kicked off on September 13 in this year's inaugural edition. With events taking place literally all over Zagreb this autumn (some of which have finished), this vibrant festival is turning the city into a living and breathing artistic and cultural entity in the season of falling leaves. The project, run by the Zagreb Tourist Board, has brought together the following diverse partners and projects:

1. “Art & the City – The Art Has Spoken” project is painting the streets of Zagreb with art.

(ALU Perspective)

2. The ALU Perspective – New Generation project is presented by an exhibition of final-year students and graduates on the ground floor and first floor of the building, the ALU Park and the Sira Gallery.

3. The Ilica Gallery Q'ART project is moving art out of institutions and bringing it closer to the citizens.

4. 9 decades / 9 arcades, the work of BOIR studio, portrays the transformation of Zagreb’s main marketplace over the last nine decades, displayed in nine arcades.

(Art Zagreb)

5. Prostoria 10, an exhibition celebrating 10 years of passion for the design and manufacture of furniture in Prostoria.

6. The interactive cultural event Gallery Rally networks ten galleries in Zagreb and actively involves visitors in their tour.

7. Founded in the midst of the 2021 pandemic, and conceived as an upgrade to the 36 Mountains Festival, 36 Mountains Studio is a place to promote contemporary art.

8. This year, Art Zagreb will present six galleries, which is the largest number so far.

For the full programme and more information about Artupuncture 2021, visit the official website, which is available in English, German, Italian and Croatian. 

(Art Zagreb)

September 21, 2021 - Three Croatian municipalities and villages, two in Istria and one in Bjelovar, are among the candidates for the novel initiative of the World Tourism Organization to promote rural tourism, and this is why Kaštelor-Labinci, Motovun, and Veliko Trojstvo will compete in the UNWTO Awards.

With the aim of improving the role of rural tourism, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has launched a pilot initiative "Best Tourism Villages", reports HrTurizam.hr. As part of the activities, UNWTO member states, until 15 September, had the opportunity to apply for up to three candidates: villages or municipalities. They will present their places as drivers of sustainable change in the social, economic, and environmental aspects. The Municipality of Kaštelir-Labinci, the Municipality of Motovun from Istria, and the Municipality of Veliko Trojstvo from Bjelovar-Bilogora County were elected as Croatian representatives.

The initiative includes three pillars and two awards. Villages that are an outstanding example of a rural tourism destination and that are committed to sustainability in all its forms - economic, social, and environmental - will be awarded the label "Best Tourist Villages of the UNWTO". Villages that do not fully meet the criteria for the label will be provided with an upgrade program to support the UNWTO and their partners in working in problem areas. Finally, a network will be created that will provide space for the exchange of experiences and good practices, learning and creating new opportunities for development. It will include representatives of villages awarded the “Best Tourist Village” label by the UNWTO, villages participating in the Upgrade Program as well as experts, public and private sector partners engaged in the promotion of rural development tourism.

The aim of the UNWTO Awards is to strengthen the role of tourism as a positive force for transformation, rural development, and community well-being. It seeks to increase the sector's contribution to reducing regional inequalities and combating the depopulation of rural areas. It also seeks to enhance the role of tourism in valuing and protecting rural villages, along with landscapes, knowledge systems, biological and cultural diversity, local values, ​​and activities, including gastronomy.

To find the most complete information on all the destinations in Croatia that you can visit, take a look at the Total Croatia guides HERE. Now in your language!

For more, check out our dedicated travel section.

September 21, 2021 - The 21st Split Marathon will hit the streets this weekend, organized by the Marjan Club. On Saturday, September 25, at 6 pm, the five-kilometer 'Slobodna Dalmacija Trophy' will also take place. 

Dalmatinski Portal reports:

"For the first time, I hope we will organize the last marathon in early autumn. We were forced to do this because of the coronavirus. Split is known for being the sportiest city in the world. We are one of the few who will hold marathons in these two years without interruption. The number of participants is slightly smaller than usual, but we are specific in that we have many foreign competitors from as many as 46 countries. That's a record. I hope everyone enjoys what we provide them. I want to ask for the understanding of all our fellow citizens to show patience and support for this event. Everyone who participates in the race will need to have a Covid certificate. For all those who do not have it, we have provided on-site testing," said the president of the organizing committee, Kristijan Sindik.

The Deputy Prefect of Split-Dalmatia County, Stipe Čogelja, emphasized the importance of this event.

"This is a very valuable event. Mr. Čular recently said at the Paralympic reception that our County won more medals at the Paralympics than India. This speaks volumes about the uniqueness of this region and how important sport is. The county recognized that, and this is one of the significant events."

Last year, Ivica Puljak ran the marathon. Today, Puljak is the mayor of Split. 

"The atmosphere that is being created around the Split Marathon makes us happy. I ran the marathon last year, and I can testify to how interesting this event is. It is perhaps the most beautiful sporting event I have participated in. I persuaded 13 people to run the marathon. It prompted me to participate. I wish you a sports and tourist weekend this year as well. We prove once again that we are the sportiest city in the world. I won’t run this year, but I will next year."

The mayor of Solin, Dalibor Ninčević, announced that he would also participate in the half marathon this year.

"For the second year in a row, the city of Solin is part of this significant event, which is an important tourist period for the entire Split-Dalmatia County. I am grateful to the organizers for connecting Split and Solin even more. We are a proud sponsor of this event. I will try to run the half marathon this year."

Split Tourist Board director, Alijana Vukšić, is also satisfied.

"The city of Split is constantly branded as a city of culture and sports. The city offers many opportunities and can be branded in all markets. Our guests want to continue their active lifestyle when they come to a destination. This is a specific year, but I hope that this event will return to the pre-season."

The director of the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board, Joško Stella, compared this event to Ultra.

"This is a sports Ultra. We watched marathons on television and wondered when they would come to us. That is a huge achievement. We from tourism see that sports tourism is on the rise."

Celebrated Split Olympian Igor Boraska is also looking forward to the marathon.

"Running and marathons have become the lifestyle of hundreds of thousands of people around the world. I was very pleased to be with 60,000 people at the New York City Marathon. I want to congratulate the organizers for bringing the marathon to our city. I wish all marathon participants a good time and time."

For more, follow our lifestyle section.

September 21, 2021 - Speculation and doubts continue to appear about the future financial scenario in Croatia after the eventual introduction of the euro in the country as an official currency, displacing the kuna, and CNB Governor Boris Vujčić gives some clues about what it would look like in the first weeks.

Pay in kunas, get euros back. At least this is how the first two weeks in Croatia would look after the introduction of the Euro on January 1, 2023, reports Poslovni Dnevnik. The objective is to stop the circulation of what would be the old Croatian currency at that time and to start the circulation of the euro. To provide more information and details, RTL Direkt interviewed CNB Governor Boris Vujčić, who in addition to the introduction of the euro, also talks about inflation and tacit minuses.

Why is the Minister of Finance so tough about not lowering VAT, couldn't the introduction of the euro be used to reduce it?

You have to ask him about VAT. As for inflation, I would say that a good part of inflation really comes from food especially now in the summer while in the first half of the year most of the inflation came from rising energy prices. At the moment, about half of the rise in inflation is energy, and now in the summer, food, vegetables and fruits are practically poor due to partly weather conditions.

Aren't you afraid of rising inflation? In the US it is somewhere around 6 percent…

The US has a higher inflation rate, but the economy is overheated there, they also have strong fiscal stimuli that are stronger than European ones and I do not see that at this time such an inflation rate could happen in Croatia, we expect that year-round inflation rate to be 2.2 percent. This is, in principle, the goal of the European Central Bank, so we should not be concerned about that. The problem is if there is a change in expectations, wage growth, but we do not see that at the moment. A significant part of that inflation comes from the fact that the so-called supply chains in the world at this time were disrupted. The Crown has disrupted all that, now you have continents where there are a lot of containers, some countries where you don't have them. You have a situation that road traffic, air travel, is still at a very low level and everything that flew with passengers on airplanes cannot fly… Then companies formed very large stocks that they never had and that logistically present a problem, say in the car industry you have full car parks that you can’t reach at the moment. It all takes some time to clear up and get back to what we had in 2019, one good mechanism, and then prices will slowly start to fall. I would say it won’t happen in the next 6 months.

Especially rising real estate prices. Housing squares are not in the inflation basket?

They are not. I am in favor of having these prices in the basket and what the European Central Bank, where we are going now, has done, and what will be the standard… that these prices will also start to be included in the basket, however, this will only be through two, three years. At the moment we have only the so-called implicit prices through rents and they do not reflect the fact that real estate prices have risen significantly, and they have risen because there is a lot of liquidity, a lot of money, part of which flows into the real estate sector. For example, interest rates that are at zero, or in the countries around us in the eurozone are even negative on deposits of citizens - some of these citizens take money from banks and carry and buy real estate, which inflates real estate prices.

Aren't you afraid that we will enter the eurozone just when euro inflation starts?

I wouldn't say. I don't see it as a danger. I do not see the inflation we measure through the consumer basket as a medium-term danger when we enter the eurozone, but I see the risks arising from these prices that we see at the moment in the bond market, real estate where much money has flowed and even cryptocurrencies. That bubble can always burst, as you know, financial crises arise, but it can blow out easily, prices can stabilize, which will depend on a lot of things, in my opinion, there is primarily a risk. Not these consumer prices.

What do you think would be the best advice for citizens?

Since I do not see any great risk from inflation itself, then I do not think that it should not be insured by investing in those types of assets for which the price is already too high, said Vujčić.

The Governor on the introduction of the euro

How many kuna, physical, banknotes are in circulation?

You have a billion and one hundred million coins and about half a billion of paper money. It is a demanding logistical operation, it all needs to be pulled.

What will it look like? I go to the store, I pay in kunas, the change is returned to me in euros?

That's right. Until 01.01. is HRK, from 01.01. is either kuna or euro for two weeks, after that it is only euro, with the proviso that when you pay in those two weeks, you pay in kuna, the euro is returned to you. And we collect all the kuna.

And then what about them? Are they going somewhere to catch fire?

Coins are a bigger problem. I already said it’s like 120 ZET trams. We have to store and store it somewhere, because it is money for another three years, as long as it changes. As long as they change, they are money. We agreed with the Croatian Army…

Are you building a safe somewhere?

We will build a safe, but at the same time, we agreed with the Croatian Army. It’s really all together logistically difficult.

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