Travel

July 13, 2015 - The Croatian tourism numbers are the subject of national discussion once again. A comparison to 1990 statistics and some thoughts on strategy.  Something is not quite right.  It is a record season, say the statistics, and yet private renters are complaining that they are empty.  Croatian tourism introduced a transparent tourism statistics reporting system, which won international awards for its transparency - "the information is available in real time for research and destination management," said UNWTO - and then Croatia restricted access to the information.  Istria seems to be doing as well as usual, but there…

July 13, 2019 - The Bench is one of the iconic symbols of Dalmatia, but is there a more beautiful bench and sunset view in the world than this one on Hvar? Regular readers of TCN and - before that - may be familiar with my unhealthy obsession with one of the bastions of Dalmatian culture - The Bench.  A male kingdom, where females do not roam, each community has its own bench, where the male village elders assemble at different times of the day - early evening is popular - to discuss the weighty matters of the hour, such…

July 13, 2019 - June and July are the months of lavender harvesting in Dalmatia - a gorgeous 1970 video showing how it was done 50 years ago. Lavender fields in bloom are one of the most beautiful sights that Nature has bestowed upon us, as well as one of the most aromatic experiences.  Hvar is often known as the lavender island, and at one point it was the 8th biggest producer in the world. The photo above is taken, we believe, around 1985. Gorgeous, isn't it? Sadly, emigration and forest fires have severely diminished Hvar's lavender fields over the…

The unique Uber Boat service, that premiered in Croatia two tourist seasons ago, will be available to the public on the Dalmatian coast again this year, during the summer months. You will be able to rent a boat using Uber again this summer in Split, Dubrovnik, and the islands close to them, hrturizam.hr reports. There will be two options to the service, just like in the previous years: transfer and trip. The users will be able to order a fast boat to take them from one of the towns to the coast, as well as take them to and from…

More international recognition for the island of Hvar on July 10, 2019, as Croatia's premier island is voted the 7th best in Europe by Travel + Leisure. For years, it was known as one of the ten most beautiful islands in the world (it still is, in this Englishman's humble opinion). That title came from a survey of Conde Nast readers in - from memory - 1997.  And the traveller's love of Hvar lives on, this time through the readers of the influential Travel + Leisure at their World's Best Awards 2019. Hvar and the Pakleni Islands featured in the…

The newly built passenger terminal at Split Airport will receive the first passengers on Saturday, July 13, 2019, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on July 12, 2019.  This will mark the completion of the project to extend the Split Airport, which saw an investment worth 450 million kuna. The official opening will be attended by the Minister of Sea, Transport and Infrastructure Oleg Butković, and the arrival of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković is also expected. The passenger terminal is now larger by an additional 34,500 square meters, and totals 46,000 square meters, with a peak load of up to 2,500 passengers per…

The Croatian camping sector has a lot of potential, but much like with many other things in Croatia, is it really being taken advantage of properly? The short answer is of course, no. As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 11th of July, 2019, a new law should provide for the high-quality planning and preparation of a long-term development strategy in Croatian camps, which should result in the growth of not only quality, but also in the opening up of new, high-quality employment opportunities. The adoption of the new Law on Tourism Land is of crucial importance for Croatian tourism…

July 12, 2019 - Not enough hotels, way too many apartments - one of the stories of Croatian tourism. But have you heard the one of too much tax, almost no tax at all? One reason so many people are turning to private renting.  We are delighted to welcome Kresimir Macan to the TCN team. As the founder of Croatia's oldest PR agency and a former Communications Director to Prime Minister Plenkovic, Kreso understands the undercurrents of Croatian society better than most. His opening piece ventures into the Kingdom of Accidental Tourism, and a quite breathtaking look at who is…

E-cars actually work like giant smart phones, people from Hrvatska elektroprivreda (HEP Group, Croatian national electric company) told journalist Lucija Špiljak from poslovni.hr. They took her from the Croatian headquarters in Zagreb towards Brinje, where HEP presented 16 additional chargers for the e-cars which were financed by EU funds. The driver who took them to Brinje never drove an e-car before, but he was satisfied, and described it as solid and stable, adding that he'd happily replace his classic car with an electric car like that. July 10th is symbolic because that's the day when we celebrate the National Nikola…

July 11, 2019 - When the tourism numbers are good, Croatian officials want to tell the world. So why the sudden change in transparency in another 'record' year? I am one of the few people living in Croatia who has lived in the Soviet Union.  It was a fascinating experience, although my time there was in 1991 just before the death of the county, and ironically the birth of another - the modern Croatian State - were a little more chilled than previous decades.  Although the latter days of the Soviet Empire were considerably more relaxed than the Stalinist years…