Travel

November 25, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Aegean returns to three Croatian airports next spring.  Croatian Aviation reports that Greek national airline Aegean Airlines has announced its return to Croatian airports next year. Aegean Airlines did not operate to Croatian airports this year. In the original plan, before the outbreak of the global pandemic, they planned to operate to Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik, but all flights were canceled in April for this year.  The airline then completely withdrew from selling all routes to Croatia for the summer flight schedule in 2021, so at one point, the…

November 25, 2020 - Following the recommendations and decisions of the authorities, Zagreb Advent 2020, under the slogan "Advent in Zagreb, feel the light" will be held in a slightly different capacity, from November 28, when the first Advent candle will be lit, until January 1, 2021.  HRTurizam reports that special emphasis this year has been placed on cultural events, and during Advent, there will be nine different music festivals with a total of 95 concerts. There are three novelties this year: Zagreb nativity scene, Light of Advent, and an interactive augmented reality exhibition Virtual Christmas Windows. "Every year we…

November 24, 2020 - The first no-fishing zone (no-take zone) in Croatia has been identified in Telašćica Nature Park. HRTurizam reports that on World Fisheries Day (November 21), the new Ordinance on fishing in protected areas, special habitats and areas with special fishing regulations for the nature parks Telašćica and Lastovo entered into force. With the new ordinance, there are no-fishing zones in Telašćica Nature Park, or so-called "no-take" zones, which were adopted in cooperation with fishers, as well as several other measures that reduce fishing efforts in Croatia's marine nature parks. This is extremely significant news and progress, both for…

November 23, 2020 - Croatia hopes for pre-pandemic tourism revenues by 2023, and to reach the EU average of gross value added generated from tourism by 2026. Turizam 24 reports that while we face the worst crisis since World War II, Europe and the world are already looking heavily at the 2021 tourist year. As the pandemic rages and more and more countries are re-entering lockdowns, few can even predict what the new tourist season will bring, but announcements of the vaccine’s arrival generally restore optimism and hope that the sector’s recovery will begin as soon as possible. We should…

November 23, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Turkish Airlines is selling over 5,700 seats on the Istanbul-Zagreb route this December. Croatian Aviation reports that in December, Turkish Airlines will operate four times a week on the Istanbul-Zagreb route. The Turkish national airline has stabilized the number of operations to the Croatian capital, with four flights a week available since mid-September this year.  In the last month of this year, Turkish Airlines will keep the same number of weekly flights as before, operating between Zagreb and Istanbul on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. The B737-800 and A321…

November 22, 2020 - Looking to escape Zagreb for a day? Meet the lakes of Sveta Nedelja, a natural fishing and cycling paradise. One of the biggest tourism surprises for me this year has been Sveta Nedelja, Croatia's youngest town close to Samobor, and home to the world-famous Rimac Automobili headquarters.  In my mind, I had always associated the town with progressive local government and a healthy environment for business (Sveta Nedelja has been voted the best medium-sized town for the economy for each of the last three years). About its tourism offer, I knew nothing.  That all changed a…

November 22, 2020 - Pula and Medulin have launched an offseason campaign to tempt travelers in the winter months.  Goran Rihelj of HRTurizam writes that the Adriatic's inviting weather nearly 10 months out of the year should be enough incentive to extend the tourist season. Arena Hospitality Group made the first move and opened its campsites, the Arena Stoja camp and the Arena Grand Kažela camp, which are now open all year round, next to the already open Park Plaza Histria hotel in Pula. But is decent weather enough? The real answer, says Rihelj, is quality content and a complete tourist product.…

November 21, 2020 - Often overlooked by its more fashionable neighbour on the western tip of the island, the luxury hotel story in Stari Grad on Hvar is developing nicely, with or without Four Seasons.  When I bought my house in Jelsa back in 2002, the island of Hvar was very different. It was only seven years after the Homeland War had finished, and tourism was only just beginning to recover. Nowhere was this more true than in the hotel industry. With almost no tourists during the war, some of the hotels were used to house refugees and internally displaced…

November 21, 2020 - While many kids are glued to their phones and other gadgets, the team from Outdoor Croatia offer a more natural way to spend a day - Velebit with kids. Stunning! It has been a while since I checked out one of my favourite YouTube channels promoting Croatia, and it is great to see it going from strength to strength.  Longer-term followers of TCN might be familiar with the series of articles we did on the man and dog team from Outdoor Croatia, whose efforts are quite simply the best video promotion of The Great Outdoors in…

November 20, 2020 - The Croatian Tourism Association is optimistic about the 2021 tourist season, thanks to the recent announcements of a COVID-19 vaccine. HRTurizam reports that the recently published optimistic results of the third phase of testing two vaccines against COVID-19 and Germany's announcement that it could vaccinate 70 percent of the population by the summer of next year have brought optimism among tourism workers around the world, including Croatia. This news is especially important for our country, where the arrival of guests from Germany in large numbers is crucial for a successful season. Announcements about the vaccine inspire…