February the 23rd, 2023 - Villa Dubrovnik has finally settled its land dispute and will go ahead with the creation of new luxury accommodation units in a very desirable part of the city.

As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Hotel Villa Dubrovnik is embarking on a project to build luxury tourist villas in the Sveti Jakov area of Dubrovnik, on its own land that is free of encumbrances, after the legal entanglements with the Europrojekt company were finally resolved on Monday. So far, there have been no details about the project published, and Villa Dubrovnik promises to present their ideas to the local community in due course.

As stated in the recent announcement on the Zagreb Stock Exchange, based on the settlement between Villa Dubrovnik and Europrojekt, the Commercial Court in Dubrovnik issued a verdict on Monday rejecting the plaintiff Europrojekt's claim and cancelling all encumbrances on the aforementioned land.

Legal entanglements

This is the epilogue of the story about the attempt to sell the aforementioned land to the company Europrojekt, which has allegedly never paid the required amount since signing the purchase agreement with the hotel way back at the beginning of 2021, and just a week ago, it has been said that it sued Villa Dubrovnik because they ''didn't want to return the deposit of one million euros''. With that settlement, Europrojekt gave up its claim for double the amount of the advance, and Villa Dubrovnik agreed to return the down payment, although until a few days ago they had claimed that there was no basis for the return.

It is currently non-operational land in the Sveti Jakov part of the city, spanning a total area of 6,675 square metres. The attempt to sell the land off, all with the aim of preserving the financial stability of the company, was launched in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and the sales contract with Europrojekt stipulated that the land be sold for 4.2 million euros plus VAT.

At that time, Villa Dubrovnik was still owned by the large Turkish Dogus Group, and in the summer of 2021, pressured by the consequences of the global public health crisis, it was sold off to a group of eight Croatian pension funds. With the aim of paying the full purchase price, on October the 6th, 2021, Villa Dubrovnik signed a long-term loan agreement and an agreement to secure a monetary claim (mortgage) on the property as a pledge debtor, and with this agreement, the hotel was to be paid the purchase price no later than the 15th of October 2021, and following the payment, the mortgage should have been established.

However, the payment never arrived. According to Villa Dubrovnik's report on its business operations for the year 2021, it is stated that during that year, the Company and the Group recognised income in the amount of 7.4 million kuna based on the down payment for the sale of the land in the past.

It is un that report that they noted that, based on the contract, the buyer had the obligation to pay the difference in the purchase price by a certain deadline, and otherwise, they'd lose the down payment. However, since the customer breached the contract and failed to fulfill their obligation, the Group recognised revenue from the collection of damages in accordance with contractual law.

However, they relented. As Villa Dubrovnik pointed out in its recent press release, the court decision confirmed Villa Dubrovnik's ownership of the aforementioned real estate, the previously paid down payment in the amount of one million euros was returned, and Villa Dubrovnik also achieved the desired structuring of the land parcels.

To speak more specifically, by exchanging and selling smaller parts of real estate with the owners of neighbouring properties, who are in partnership with the company Europrojekt, the required minimum area was reached, which will allow Villa Dubrovnik to develop its already planned project of the construction of luxury villas on all parcels under its ownership, which wasn't the case before.

"The planned development of the project of luxury villas in Sveti Jakov is currently still in the initial phase, and we're convinced that, with its synergistic potential, it could provide additional value to the overall tourist offer of the city. Of course, as a socially responsible company which akes into account the interest and opinion of the public, we'll publicly present our ideas beforehand to all involved and interested stakeholders, and in cooperation with the city authorities responsible for spatial planning, we'll ensure compliance with all of the relevant regulations that define construction in the area of Sveti Jakov,'' said Mirna Loncar Strazicic, president of Villa Dubrovnik's management.

For more, check out our news section.

February the 23rd, 2023 - The list of the most popular Croatian museums which are dotted all over the country has been published. From Dubrovnik to Hrvatsko Zagorje, here are the favourites.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, visitors are returning en mass to Croatian museums. According to data from the Museum Documentation Centre (MDC), throughout 2022, 35.6% more art lovers visited Croatian museums than they did in 2021 - with a total of slightly less than 3.5 million visitors (3,458,338). Nevertheless, attendance is still 34 percent lower than it was in the last pre-pandemic year of 2019.

The most visited of the Croatian museums last year was the Archaeological Museum of Istria, under which the collections in the Pula Arena stand out the most, having been visited by 509,778 people, a very encouraging 200,000 more than the year before. This attendance brings the numbers for this museum back to those from 2018 and 2019, and the jump can be attributed to the growth in the overall number of tourists visiting and discovering Istria.

In second place are the Museums of Hrvatsko Zagorje with 301,508 visitors, which is a noticeable increase of 13.4% when compared to the reference year of pre-pandemic 2019.

The third most visited of the Croatian museums is Zagreb's Nikola Tesla Technical Museum with 259,493 visits and an increase of 33% when compared to 2019. Compared to 2021, however, the growth in terms of the number visitors has been even greater, as high as 136 percent.

The Museum Documentation Centre writes that this museum achieved this impressive growth through numerous events and educational activities – 25 open exhibitions and 4,769 professional tours. In addition, the Nikola Tesla Technical Museum opened its doors to other museums across the City of Zagreb that were left without space due to the damage left by the March 2020 earthquake.

Dubrovnik's museums are in fourth place with 235,526 visitors, while in fifth place is the Museum of the City of Split, which, together with Diocletian's cellars, attracted 210,103 visitors in total.

There was also a significant increase in the number of students who, compared to last year, visited various Croatian museums almost four times more often. This can be attributed, the MDC explains, to the cessation of the application of epidemiological measures put in place back during the pandemic, and the most active in working with young people were the Museums of Hrvatsko Zagorje, which were visited by 77,237 children from primary and secondary schools.

That museum is followed by the Nikola Tesla Technical Museum, in whose programmes 49,257 children participated, while in third place came the Museum of the City of Zagreb, which attracted 23,965 of the youngest visitors last year.

Croatian museums and galleries were visited by 912,594 tourists, or 386,116 more than the previous year, almost two-thirds of which were accounted for by just three of the country's most regularly visited museums - the Archaeological Museum of Istria, the Museum of the City of Split and the Museums of Hrvatsko Zagorje. Interestingly, the Dubrovnik museums located in Croatia's most famous tourist destination still don't keep any records of foreign visitors.

If we look at the cities individually, Croatian museums are still the most visited in Zagreb, where, despite the fact that almost half of Zagreb's museum houses are closed for constructive renovation, 22% of all museum visits at the national level were recorded.

For more, check out our news section.

February the 22nd, 2023 - New York based Croatian rapper Steve Mesic LUDI has released his sixth hip hop single "TI I JA" (YOU AND ME) on which he hosted Iva Ajdukovic. He describes the song as "ideal for relaxing after a night out when everything is kind of too loud and you just want to rest your ears".

The production and arrangement was handled by Serbian producer Mija Pavlek Trim, who is also the author of the music while Ludi is the author of the lyrics. D'Knock did the mixing and mastering.

"Working on the release single was pure pleasure, and the guests delighted me. Iva Ajdukovic is a wonderful person and a totally crazy woman, and Alen Lemesevic from Sarajevo spiced up the whole thing by playing a couple of guitar parts.

I've always wanted to record something with Iva Ajdukovic, and I feel fortunate to have achieved this, even though we're on different continents. In addition, this is the first collaboration with Mija Pavlek Trim, who was very well received by the D'Knock Production team. We're connected first of all by friendship, and then by a very warm vibe, and we will continue like that,'' said Ludi (Madman in English).

Ludi filmed the video in New York City, more precisely on the streets of Manhattan, and in a home studio in his apartment. Iva recorded her scenes in Velika Gorica in a music studio. Danijel Kovacevic and Michael Robayo are responsible for the production of the video, and Danijel Kovacevic (Studio 25)once again did the editing and colour grading.

The song is available on all digital services, published by the D'Knock Production label and distributed and published by the IDM Music company.

For more, make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle section.

February 22, 2023 - We are delighted to welcome Maja Dezulovic to TCN, and she begins with a somewhat different perspective - life as a black Croat in Croatia. Welcome Number 185! If you would like to write about Croatia from your perspective, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Subject Writing.

When I was a high school student in Zagreb from 2005 to 2007 I could go months without seeing people of African descent anywhere. For the entire first year I was the only student of African origins in the school. I remember how seeing an African in the street was memorable because it felt like a rare snippet of home. Nowadays that is no longer the case.

I can’t say that I really experienced racism or hate in Croatia. The closest thing to prejudice I experienced was on a walk on Jarun as a teenager. My friend and I were about to pass a man walking towards us with a little girl, possibly his daughter. As they got closer he glared at me with disgust and grabbed his daughter closer. “Ciganka!” He exclaimed. That’s the Croatian word for gypsy woman. I was saddened by his reaction but also not offended because I felt it came more from a place of ignorance rather than hatred. That was one of two occasions on which I was mistaken for a gypsy.

Most Croats who don’t know me mistakenly assume that I don’t understand Croatian and proceed to gossip about me in front of my face. However, rarely is it insulting or malicious. Most commonly they comment about my hair. I’m okay with comments, even those directed at me. I’ll even answer questions sometimes. The thing I don’t like is when people assume it’s just okay to touch my hair without asking. There are four words that Africans with natural hair often want to say to the ill-informed Croat who encroaches on personal space. Solange captured them in the title of her song “Don’t touch my hair”.

As the demographics of this country inevitably shift, some of the challenges faced globally by non-white minorities will begin to surface here too. The biggest issue, I believe, is ignorance within the majority population. Croatia has been almost completely white for a very long time. People are open, they want to interact, the thing is that they don’t know how to because they haven’t had to before.

As with most things the solution here is to educate people and one of the best ways of it happening organically is through exposure. The more we welcome people of colour here the more effortless integration will become for all.

It also helps to remember that people’s reactions come from a place of innocence. People are in awe when they see people who look nothing like those who they encounter in their daily lives. If you look different you’re on display. You get used to it and while the population of non-whites remains so small it comes with a responsibility too – you represent your race with your behavior and responses.

It is my hope that the description of “that Black woman who speaks Croatian”, often used to refer to me, will become less surprising as more Black men and women learn the language and themselves become a part of the Croatian community.

My only fear is that many non-whites are coming here as migrant workers to fill in the labour shortages, which may skew perceptions of them. They’re entering a social class that is looked down upon no matter what race you are. I hope Croatia becomes home to a good number of African doctors, engineers and people in places of leadership to combat the stereotype of the Black labourer and serve as hope to a demographic of people who may mainly be confined to the working class in Europe.

On my last extended trip to Zagreb in January not a day went by without my spotting a person of colour in the streets around the main square. It’s refreshing. I hope that locals will recognise the wealth that diversity has to offer a nation and embrace it.

Read more... What is It Like for Black People Living in Croatia?

February 22, 2023 - After the 2022 European Championships in Split, Croatia is again the center of water polo. This time, the world's water polo elite is coming to Zagreb, where the World Aquatics Water Polo World Cup will be held from March 8-14.

The Barracudas thus become hosts to the national teams of France, Hungary, Italy, Japan, and the United States of America in the first edition of the World Cup. 

The World Cup is played in two groups with six national teams each. Croatia is playing in the Zagreb group with powerful opponents. Five intense matches await Croatia, which will be an excellent opportunity to prepare for the most important competition this year - the World Championships.

The Croatia national team gathers in Zagreb on March 5 and plays their first game of the tournament on Wednesday, March 8, against the USA.

"I invite all spectators to the World Cup tournament. We are in a group against Italy, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the USA, and France. We expect a tough rhythm with five games in a week, which will be a great mini-test for what awaits us this summer at the World Champs. I hope we will play well and reach the super final," announced player Luka Bukić.

While Group A is held in Zagreb, Group B is simultaneously held in Montenegro with the national teams of Greece, Serbia, Spain, Georgia, Australia, and Montenegro.

The only safe participant in the World Cup Superfinal is the USA, as they are hosts of the Superfinal tournament. 

Thus, two more teams from Croatia's group and three from the group who played in Podgorica hope to secure their spot in the final tournament.

The World Cup matches in Zagreb will be played according to the following schedule:

Tickets for the tournament can be purchased at ulaznice.hr.

To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

February 22, 2023 - Illegal construction has been rampant in Istria for years. It is estimated that there are almost 50,000 illegally constructed buildings on the Istrian Peninsula. And that will finally be stopped. In the area of Mandriol alone, the construction inspection closed 14 construction sites last week, and the City of Vodnjan issued decisions on the removal of these illegal structures.

As HRT writes, there are more than 3,000 such and similar facilities in the Vodnjan region. The city decided to put an end to this and punish illegal builders. Since the beginning of the year, communal wardens have made 300 reports on illegal construction.

"The fact that these construction sites are sealed is the result of about 50 applications that we sent to the construction inspection. This is initiated b,y us, and we see that it has an effect. I think it is the obligation of the city of Vodnjan to do it and to act like that", said Edi Pastrovicchio, the mayor of Vodnjan.

Communal wardens in the Vodnjan area are on site every day. They note about 20 illegal buildings daily. And in the construction inspection, they claim that they continuously conduct inspections in Vodnjan.

Illegal construction everywhere

Illegal construction has been a problem on the Istrian peninsulafor the last 20 years. Nevertheless, illegal construction occurred everywhere, on almost every part of the Istrian coast, even in protected areas. However, no one has yet paid the fine there either.

"We initiated criminal charges, and that was the only thing left to do. At the end of the day, we hope that we will stop illegal construction, at least in our protected areas, and that someone will bear the responsibility, emphasized Silvia Buttignoni, director of the public institution Natura Histrica.

Therefore, Natura Histrica and the County of Istria warned that the system is too lenient towards illegal construction.

"If the state, or the state inspectorate, does not have enough human resources, leave the authority to the regional and local level. I'm sure we'll be able to handle it, deal with it. The legal regulation in terms of punishment should definitely be changed", said Boris Miletić, the Istrian prefect.

Both the IDS and some Istrian cities and municipalities started a fierce fight against illegal construction. They launched a website - bespravnagradnja.hr where you can see the extent of such construction and report it.

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

February 22, 2023 - Did you know there are more Uzbeks living in Croatia than Brits? A look at the population change since 2018, as Croatia is no longer the whitest county in the world.

Back in 2018 as Croatia reached the World Cup Final against France, an anti-racism group tweet suggested that Croatia was racist as all its players were white. A quite ridiculous suggestion, in the same way as Nigeria could be accused of the same thing for not fielding any white players (in fact Croatia has had black players and Nigeria a white player, according to research I did at the time). 

It did get me thinking though. Having lived in 10 countries including Rwanda, Somalia, Japan, Russia, the UK and Germany, it was quite a rare thing to see black or Asian people in Croatia. Curious, I contacted the Ministry of the Interior to get statistics on how many foreigners were living in Croatia in 2018. The answer - 29,156. You can see a breakdown in my 2018 article How Many Foreigners Live in Croatia, and Where are They From?

99.3% Croat and most of the foreigners also being white, it seemed that Croatia was the whitest country in the world, as I explored recently on my YouTube channel. 

Back in 2018 (and please note these are not my numbers, but ones from the Ministry of the Interior), these where the top 20 countries in terms of numbers of nationals with temporary or permanent residence in Croatia.

Of these, only five countries - BiH, Slovenia, Serbia, Germany and Italy had more than 1,000, see below.

So how have things changed since then?

I contacted the Ministry again, and they very kindly provided me with data for every country. I was very surprised by some things I saw - that there are more Uzbeks than Brits living in Croatia, for example. 

Here are the top 20 on December 31, 2022, according to MUP. 

Quite a difference. 

The trend of importing cheaper labour from Asia seems to be clearly visible.

In 2018, there were only 5 countries with more than 1000 nationals living here, according to official MUP statistics.

That has changed considerably, as you can see below.

The total number of foreigners with temporary or permanent residence as of December 31, 2022 stood at 172,199, a big leap from those 2018 numbers. 

And bear in mind also that the population has been slowly declining over that period, as young Croats emigrate in search of opportunities abroad. 

So it would appear that Croatia is no longer the whitest country in the world. I am not saying that is a good thing or a bad thing, just that it is a thing. An interesting discussion in the cafe, for sure. 

Many thanks for the efforts of the press department of the Ministry of the Interior for providing the information. Having worked closely with MUP during the pandemic with the award-winning Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community, I do sometimes wonder how Croatia might look if they ran other parts of the administration.

Read more... Croats Leaving, Foreigners Arriving, How to Preserve Hrvatska?

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February 22, 2023 - Zagreb mayor Tomislav Tomasevic announced on his Facebook page that 20 buses were presented as part of the project to purchase 65 buses for ZET, co-financed from EU funds, on top of the 45 new buses which were put in traffic in November last year.

"These are 20 articulated buses with a capacity of 89 standing and 41 seated places, equipped with access platforms for simpler and easier entry for people with disabilities, video surveillance, and an air conditioning system. The value of all 65 buses is EUR 21.4 million, of which EUR 14.5 million was financed from the EU Cohesion Fund", the Zagreb mayor wrote on Facebook, as reported by 24Sata.

"The new buses are replacing worn-out vehicles of the older generation, which means that the fleet will break down less often, the timetable will be more reliable, and through the reduction of exhaust gas emissions, the new buses will contribute to cleaner air in Zagreb. In addition to these buses, in December, we signed a contract to purchase 20 new low-floor trams, the largest project co-financed from EU funds in Zagreb. After a full 17 years, when the last tram was purchased, the men and women of Zagreb will be able to ride in new trams again shortly", he added.

"The plan is to purchase an additional 40 to 60 trams and about 100 buses that run on clean energy sources (most likely hydrogen or electricity), which we will discuss in the coming months. These are investments of several hundred million euros. To this should be added the reconstruction and expansion of the tram and road network (Heinzelova, Sarajevska, Črnomerec Srednjaci, connecting the airport with the city center), the reconstruction of bridges, the construction of new bicycle paths, the expansion of pedestrian zones, the reconstruction of Jarun, etc., which together shows that it is a busy infrastructure at the top of our city administration's investment.

Our goal is that the share of citizens who use public transport (tram, bus, cable car, and in the future the train to the airport) increases significantly compared to the number of car users. Everyone will benefit from this: the city will be less congested with crowds, the air will be cleaner, and travel around the city will be faster and more affordable for the people of Zagreb and everyone who comes to Zagreb", Zagreb mayor concluded in the announcement.

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