June 14, 2021 - There are just over 2,700 tourists in Split, though announcements of a promising summer are underway. 

Slobodna Dalmacija reports that there are currently 2766 tourists in Split - mostly Croatians, followed by guests from the USA, Germany, France, and Poland, confirmed Alijana Vukšić, director of the Split Tourist Board, which clearly speaks of the current tourist picture in Croatia's second-largest city, which broke records until the coronavirus pandemic.

From the beginning of June until June 13, a little more than 26,000 tourist overnights have been realized, while the number of tourist nights in the same period last year was 5,800, and in 2019 a little more than 100,000, which the people of Split can now only dream of.

The Split Tourist Board director is optimistically looking forward.

"The interest in Split is growing day to day, which is confirmed by tourist traffic, and also the current announcements of travel agents, journalists, and tourists. We have a reason to be optimistic, and I believe there will be growth in tourist traffic in the following months. Still, we need to be very careful because the success of the tourist season depends on the responsible behavior of each individual," says Vukšić.

The current situation in Split in terms of tourist arrivals is not great, as evidenced by the announcements of numerous renters in various groups on social networks. They mostly complain about the lack of reservations. There are many empty apartments in the city center, those in great locations, beautifully decorated.

By reviewing the offer of accommodation on popular online platforms, it is easy to see how some renters struggle because their existence depends on renting or on credit. In despair, they began to significantly lower prices. Some stunning central apartments can be found for as little as fifty euros.

"According to people's reactions and available information, the pre-season was catastrophic in the case of those renters who previously had guests in that period. Only now, in mid-June, something similar is starting to happen that once took place in the pre-season - in Split, some reservations began to appear, and the first guests appeared. This is very weak, considering that our epidemiological situation is excellent and that we thought that our "last minute" would start at full speed. For now, the story is on the respirator, but for at least the last two weeks, the reservations have started to come to life, and there are no cancellations as before," notes Martina Nimac Kalcina, president of the Family Tourism Association of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce.

The first guests move into the apartments in Split almost shyly, but this is far from what the renters hoped for. Nimac Kalcina will say that the current situation in Split on this issue looks like the one that the people of Split used to have in April. And that means - there are some guests, but it's generally poor. 

"Attractive apartments in the center of Split, even those with their own parking, are empty. In the last few days, their owners are asked to inquire daily, which usually ends with a reservation, but all this is too little, insignificant. These are apartments in Varoš, Get, Bačvice, Radunica, Spinut, which were once full throughout the summer. In addition, the prices of their rent have been lowered by about twenty percent compared to 2019, so again it is not going," says the president of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce Family Tourism Association. 

However, Nimac Kalcina believes that the Split tourist story will soon heat up somewhat, as the planes in full operation towards Split should start returning at the end of June.

"Unfortunately, the pre-season has been lost, and the peak season itself will not be what we hoped for," predicts the long-term volunteer in the family tourism sector.

Split Airport: Traffic growth and the announcements are good

"According to the information from Split Airport, already May, in which the traffic of approximately 33 thousand passengers was realized, from 14 markets where 15 airlines flew, was a good announcement of what awaits us in the next period," said the Split Tourist Board. 

The airport expects further traffic growth by the end of June, a total of 80 to 90 thousand passengers, an additional 10 markets, and a total of 35 airlines.

"Confirmations of flight announcements for a period longer than three weeks are ungrateful given the variability of the epidemiological situation in our country and in the world. But if the favorable epidemiological situation is maintained from June to September this year, we can expect approximately 800,000 passengers," Vuksic hopes.

She notes that, according to the Split Port Authority, 151 cruise ships have been announced by the end of the year.

Follow the latest on flights to Croatia HERE and the latest travel updates and COVID-19 news from Croatia HERE.

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June 11, 2020 - On Wednesday, 560 guests were registered in Split. Alijana Vukšić, the director of the Split Tourist Board, confirmed the good news.

"These are individual arrivals, guests who are inclined to visit us. We expect a larger number next week when the opening of borders begins, i.e., air transport," said Vukšić for Dalmatinski Portal.

She stressed that private renters are the foundation of tourism, so they organized training for them to get first-hand information.

One of them was organized in cooperation with the Tourist Board of Split-Dalmatia County on the topic 'Useful information, instructions, recommendations and rules of conduct for private renters with tourists in the post-COVID-19 era'.

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All renter questions were answered by Tonči Glavina, State Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism, Luka Brčić, Deputy Mayor and Head of the Civil Protection Staff, Srđan Kušćević, Head of the Split Regional Civil Protection Office, Slobodan Marendić, Head of the Border Sector of the Split-Dalmatia Police Administration and his colleagues Paško Ugrina, Head of the Department of Prevention, Dr. Diana Nonković, Head of the Department of Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases of the Institute of Public Health and prof. Ivo Ivić, head of the Clinic for Infectious Diseases of the Clinical Hospital Center in Split.

All exhibitors agree that hygiene, disinfection and a sense of security for guests is paramount.

Brčić pointed out that there is no panic, but there is responsibility.

"Life goes on, we want tourism to develop, but we must know how to behave in the post-corona period. That is why we organized this training so that the landlords know how to act in case of guest infection, who to contact and how to proceed," stated Brčić.

Stella announced that everything from the training, to all questions about the conditions, preparation and potential situations, will be recorded and put on their pages so that all renters can be made aware.

"All in order to be the safest," underlined Joško Stella, director of the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board.

As for the conditions and measures, they are clear, Glavina said.

One of the main questions is whether there should be a break between receiving guests.

"There is no need to take a break and we can do it within Croatia. We have shown that we know how to fight and control," said Glavina.

The border police are also ready for the tourist season.

"A dozen countries already have an almost liberal approach, almost like before the coronavirus, and we can respond to all challenges. The border police had already shown that they know at the beginning when the borders needed to be closed so that epidemiologists could work on preventing the spread of the virus. Now we will because we are well organized," Marendić concluded, calmy.

May 2, 2020 - Split Tourist Board director Alijana Vuksic talks about the kind of tourist activities we can expect during the corona crisis.

The coronavirus pandemic has posed a significant challenge to the whole world, and at a time when the #stayhome message is still in place, the tourism sector is particularly at stake.

On the topic of what kind of tourist activities can be expected during this crisis, Slobodna Dalmacija spoke with the director of the Split Tourist Board, Alijana Vuksic.

"In a crisis, it is first and foremost important to think strategically and positively. The situation is changing day by day, each market has a specific situation, so we follow the recommendations of competent national authorities and those globally such as UNWTO, especially monitoring the situation in our leading markets, in the UK, USA, Germany and France. Still, we also plan to focus on those markets that are the most stable in this situation," says Split Tourist Board Director Alijana Vuksic, and points out that in such crises, we must first think about changing the target markets.

"All important facts must be considered; for example, more trips will be made from destinations accessible by road, so we will directly communicate in that way. It is very important to emphasize those tourism products that are in high demand in a given situation, that is, to identify which products are. We have the advantage that Split and its surroundings is a destination that offers a full range of tourist products throughout the year.

Thus, through communication, we will emphasize those products that allow people to maintain social distance, such as sports, recreational and nautical tourism, but also health tourism, because if measured and mitigated, it is estimated that social distance could last until 2022," says Vuksic, adding that since the first day of the crisis, they have continued to communicate with their partners and tourists, via social networks and internal channels, while listening to experts' estimates of possible scenarios and tourist movements.

"I take the opportunity to announce the 'Together in Split' campaign, which, like many destinations, will inspire people with creative content to fantasize about the moment when they will be able to enjoy the beauties of our city and region again. This will send a message to tourists that we are together even though we are separated. With this campaign, in addition to the message of community with tourists, we want to primarily send a message of community to all tourism professionals in Split. We will invite employees of all our agencies, hotels, museums, travel guides to join this campaign. We aim to increase the visibility of Split through our joint efforts, primarily on social networks and communication with other digital channels, as this form of communication is now crucial. In this first phase of the campaign on our Facebook and Instagram profile VisitSplit, we have many interesting things to come, such as the 'Conference Call' section, through which our guides will tell interesting stories about Split, the 'Heritage quiz', which is a cultural knowledge quiz about Split, and interesting stories from our Welcome magazine. There are also recipes from our restaurants and hotels through the 'Cook o'clock' section and many other exciting things," the director announces.

"The fact is that the expectations from this season are very low compared to the previous year's record, only 10 to 15 percent, and according to the estimates of the Institute of Tourism, significant market stabilization will happen at the end of next year, so we will direct certain activities accordingly. Of course, I note that the situation could change day by day, so we regularly monitor changes in all markets. We will all bear the brunt of this crisis, and thus the system of tourist boards remains without revenue, but I am sure that together we will overcome this situation with the help of all measures and the Government of the Republic of Croatia, as well as the local government, or the City of Split. We are ready to do our best to bring benefits to our local community with minimal investment," says director Alijana Vuksic, and when asked if there is a chance for tourism to come to life, she says:

"Tourism is the most affected sector in the corona crisis and it will take time for the system to stabilize. This is an opportunity to build responsible and sustainable tourism based on quality offers and to channel communication messages properly. The situation we are in further emphasizes the importance of developing other branches of the economy. The chances of tourism coming to life depend solely on the epidemiological situation and adherence to the prescribed measures and instructions. As a tourist country, we are currently in a very good situation because we have strengthened the image as a health-safe destination, but it is still very uncertain as the situation can change, and it largely depends on the epidemiological picture in the main markets."

If tourists come to Split, how might it look?

"Tourism is partly possible if we all adapt properly to the situation and directions. Split also offers a range of outdoor activities that help maintain social distance, and it is precisely these contents that we will strive to present to the maximum to our local guests in the second part of the campaign. When it comes to foreign markets, we are monitoring the further development of the epidemiological situation and measures introduced at higher levels such as the "corona-passport" and accordingly, we will emphasize the specific offer through communication.

In the end, I will quote the message of our campaign that we want to emphasize encouragement, because in this situation, my team and I see an opportunity for new beginnings, new ideas and, above all, an opportunity for the community that we all often miss.

The world stopped because it was the only way to go again. The people parted, because that was the only way they could help each other.

But soon, travel will bring strength and love back into our lives, it is in human nature to move and to travel. And then, Split is here to offer you its beauty, heritage, lifestyle. We are waiting for you, we will be together again in Split," concludes the Split Tourist Board director.

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Last week, a meeting of the Tourist Board directors of Split-Dalmatia County was held, which saw the director of the Split Tourist Board, Alijana Vukšić, also take part. Vukšić commented on the hot topic of weaker bookings for the upcoming tourist season, and what we should expect this year, reports Dalmacija Danas on March 24, 2019. 

“If judged by the results of the Split Tourist Board, in the first two months we recorded a 25 percent increase in arrivals and overnights. The reason for this may be the many events in the city during the winter months because we must not forget that behind us is the Split Half Marathon, numerous congresses, and fairs that are a good motivator for arrivals to the destination, but good results are also recorded in the surrounding cities. It's a great introduction to, hopefully, a successful tourist year, and judging by all presentations and programs that will be developed by individual tourist communities, we should not doubt it. On the contrary, we need to work intensely, the year will be demanding, no one disagrees, but that's why we create a lot of activities so our guests can experience the destination, to motivate them to come. So far, the city and county have had excellent results, and we hope we will have them this year too.”

Behind us is the ITB Fair in Berlin. What makes Split more interesting for Germans than some other destinations?

“I personally see the fair in Berlin as one of the best, and I have been in the tourist board system for the last 20 years. The presentation was exceptionally good because we presented it as the Split Riviera. We even made a brochure on the Split Riviera. Thus, in one booklet, there are all cities in the surroundings, as guests staying in Split for more than three days are looking for additional content. On this occasion, we offered other material in the surrounding destinations, which proved to be a good move. The interest was great. There were not only many business contacts and meetings but in the two days that were open to the public, the excitement was high. 

Of course, the reason for this was that you could taste our specialties such as pršut, cheese, and soparnik, but we also had a klapa that attracted many guests with beautiful singing to our booth and gave an additional Dalmatian tone. Even colleagues said that for the first time we surpassed the Italians because they give out ice cream free of charge and are always full. This time, the stand of Split-Dalmatia County, which included the Split Riviera, Makarska Riviera, and Zagora, was visited by more guests. Next year we have plans to develop altogether. We're trying to keep up with the international trends. All tourist workers know that we have been advertising in such a way for a long time - we would always bring klapas and food with us. When we cooperated with the Croatian National Tourist Board at a joint stand, we no longer had those opportunities because we had small spaces. By coming out of this great story, which we are still part of, we are not running away, but we have the opportunity to advertise individually both by product and by destination.”

The world trend is the idea of sustainable tourism. 

“Not only sustainable but also responsible. That is why our county last year implemented a capacity study to get information about the load we have and how we need to develop further; where it is necessary to disperse large crowds so that the guests in the destination get more pleasure for the money they spend, but it was primarily for our citizens. We must not forget if the citizens of one town live well, and in this case, we are talking about Split, then the guests will feel satisfied. First of all, we have to think about our citizens and if our quality of life is good, it will be good for our guests as well.”

How much is the country resisting our coast being apartmentized? 

“Tourism workers are aware that there are limits and that there are studies that show how many hotels and apartments there can be. If we follow the guidance from the strategy brought by the experts, we will surely have no problems in the destination. Still, we must be aware of the fact that in Split there are crowds even when there is no pressure from tourists. When we solve the tourist infrastructure, and we all work - from the city to the county, we are certain that the guests will be more satisfied.”

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Last year, Split did not reach one million overnight stays until August!

In the Split area today, 18,646 beds in household accommodations have been registered, which is 20% more than this time last year.

And it isn't even high season yet!

Tourism in Split is booming. 2016 is seeing the busiest year at its airport, and all the tourism indicators have been sharply increasing in the last few years, as the Dalmatian capital has established itself as one of the hippest destinations in all Europe. From the peak season Ultra Europe music festival to the popular and expanding Advent in Split, the city is rapidly growing into a diverse 12-month nation, and is no longer the 'Gateway to the Dalmatian Islands' with little to explore beyong World Heritage Site Diocetian's Palace. TCN caught up with Split Tourist Board director Alijana Vukšić to find out more.

Enjoy the holiday magic in Croatia's largest cities until January 10