At a press conference held today in Dubrovnik, Deputy Mayor Jelka Tepšić described the program details for this year's Winter Festival.
As Dubrovacki Dnevnik reports on the 14th of September, 2017, it was pointed out that this years' festival program has been being worked on since June and the aim has been to try to cover more locations around the city. Workshops for kids, traditional festive cottages and numerous other additions have been announced for this winter in the Pearl of the Adriatic.
Alongside Deputy Mayor Jelka Tepsic, the festival program was presented by Dubrovnik's Mayor Mato Franković and the Director of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival.
The Dubrovnik Winter Festival will be held from the 2nd of December, 2017 to the 6th of January, 2018.
The City of Dubrovnik, numerous public cultural institutions, the Tourist Board of Dubrovnik and other public companies will organise various cultural and entertainment events in various locations throughout the city. The Festival will be opened in front of the Church of Saint Blaise by the popular Gibonni, and performances from Jacques Houdek and more are expected.
Mato Franković stated the cost at the very beginning of the press conference - 2 million kuna.
''There will always be people who say it could be better, or of a higher quality, we've always been open to improvement and criticism. We've brought the Dubrovnik Winter Festival back in the way it should be, with the cooperation with the Dubrovnik Summer Festival'' noted Franković.
Some novelties include a map of both small and large Christmas trees set up in various locations in collaboration with [local] schools and an application that can be downloaded.
Medo (the popular bear that used to sit on Stradun during the Winter Festival) will be moved to the park on Pile.
Tepšić added that for the duration of the Festival, the park on Pile will be transformed into a kind of family oasis where entertainment will be held, artificial snow will be released and ''medo'' the bear, who has become a symbol of the Winter Festival, will await all visitors.
''There will be a program in Lapad Bay. There will be an ice skating rink on one of the tennis courts. There will also be a program for older youth and there will be a festive cottage. We'll also have the train going around the ice skating rink. That space was indeed neglected,'' emphasised Tepšić, noting that the city administration will ensure that the Christmas spirit is felt throughout the city.
"What remains is the space at Brsalje, where there'll be cottages, but there will also be another space, and that is Gundulićeva poljana where we will have a program called ''Gundulić's Winter Dream''.
Novelties for this year also include new goings on in Mokošica, where Advent Afternoon will be held. On Sunday afternoon, performances from various bands, choirs and the like will be organised.
As far as festive cottages in the city's historical core are concerned, they will be divided into three zones: the park on Pile, Brsalje and Stradun, as well as the Cathedral and the Rector's Palace, where there will be a large fir and advent wreath. Along with the cottages in the aforementioned Lapad Bay, the traditional little cottages will also be set up in Gruž.
One of the main questions that has been raised recently has been ''Who will perform at Stradun on New Year's Eve?'' and as we reported yesterday, suspicions about Dino Merlin have been confirmed today.
''The fact is, we want to increase the number of overnight stays and new-year holidays. That's [the line we've been thinking] on when it comes to the question of who to bring to Dubrovnik, and attract a large number of visitors'' said Franković.
Jelka Tepšić emphasised her hopes that the Winter Festival program would bring pleasure for both citizens and tourists during the festive season, and that the planning of the program was mostly based on tradition.
Traditionally, for the duration of the Dubrovnik Winter Festival, Libertas city buses will operate free of charge during the afternoon.
Sources: Dubrovacki Dnevnik, DuList
