Dec. 4, 2018 — Even though nearly every city and large town in Croatia will be hosting its own version of Zagreb’s seminal Advent, most Croats will be enjoying their holiday vacations elsewhere.
Croatia 365? It seems most Croats didn't get the memo.
A study conducted by MasterIndex shows almost half (46 percent) of Croatians surveyed plan on taking trips outside of Croatia during the winter, according to hrturizam. More than a quarter (27 percent) will not vacation while the rest are undecided.
Although Croatia’s concerted push for year-round tourism spawned a successful Advent bonanza, it hasn’t changed Croats’ traditional short winter jaunts to neighboring countries.
Croatians by and large holiday during the summer (if at all). And consider a nod or acknowledgment of their own country's beauty, but most Croatians vacation within their own country overall: about 63 percent of all vacation trips taken by Croats were within the country’s borders; 25 percent were within the EU; and around 10 percent left the continent altogether.
Most of those going on vacation will be gone for up to a week, according to the report by MasterIndex, while those planning on spending Advent trips in foreign countries will only be gone a day or two.
The short-burst trips reflect the Croatian habit of hopping over to the nearest neighboring European capital, with Ljubljana, Sarajevo and Budapest among the most popular, along with Vienna and Munich. (Belgrade, it should be noted, ranks within the top 10 as well). Skiers are especially prone to prolonged trips that can last up to seven days.
The habit also costs the local economy beaucoup bucks. Those hightailing out of Croatia represent a loss of about HRK 6.000 — what most traveling outside the country will spend on their trips, assuming they spend nearly all their vacation budget regardless of where they go.
To read more about Advent and winter in Croatia, check out our dedicated page.
