August the 11th, 2021 - Baska Voda has always been a popular place for swimmers and other beachgoers, but it seems that this destination has well and truly taken advantage of what is being hailed as the most lucrative business on the Adriatic coast. Baska Voda deck chairs are seeing concessionaires rake in the cash from reservations.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Baska Voda is known as the place with the most deck chairs in all of Croatia. It's quite bizarre (yes, that's sarcasm) that every fifth voter who went to the last local elections is also the owner of a concession permit for renting Baska Voda deck chairs on the beaches, writes Dnevnik.hr.

When the numbers are scrutinised, it looks like this: 98 companies have a concession approval for renting Baska Voda deck chairs, each of which has a permit to place a maximum of 20 such chairs on the beach. It's interesting to note that the annual fee paid to the municipality is a mere 1600 kuna, or 80 kuna per deck chair, which is repaid in less than two days of the height of the tourist season because then, each chair is rented for a price of 50 kuna each.

Then we come to the fact that the Municipality of Baska Voda earns just over 156,000 kuna from its almost 2,000 deck chairs located on its beaches, and the concessionaire's earnings are into the millions, Kastelan reported.

The mayor of Baska Voda said that they couldn't increase that amount due to the Government's decision from way back in 2004, but that they had imposed an annual fee of 2,500 kuna on each of the concessionaires for cleaning those same beaches.

An opposition councillor in Baska Voda called Matejas Jozipovic says that renting Baska Voda deck chairs out is the most elaborate and profitable business on the coast.

"It doesn't matter how much is earned, nor does it matter how much ends up needing to be paid. This practice is the most developed and most profitable business in all of the Republic of Croatia. For 1,600 invested kuna, these people earn 400,000 kuna at the level of four election years. Because, of course, this is an election-related project,'' he said.

Jozipovic also said that you can't even find a place on the beach in the first place because everything is already reserved and booked in advance.

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Grand Hotel Slavia, located in Baška Voda on the Makarska Riviera has recently received two prestigious awards, given by the Thomas Cook Northern Europe agency. Hrturizam.hr reports about the awards in question, the "Sunny Heart Awards", given to them as the best hotel in Croatia in 2018, but also, more importantly, they were given the award as one of the Top Ten hotels worldwide in 2018, as selected by the agency's customers! Both awards are given in recognition of excellence in cooperation and superior service to their guests. 

Thomas Cook Northern Europe is a part of the Thomas Cook Group, the oldest and one of the largest tourist companies in the world, which organizes trips to over 400 destinations in over 50 countries of the world. Each year, their services are used by over 700,000 clients and growing. The awards were presented by Rickard Stenstrom, Senior Contracts Manager for VING – Thomas Cook Northern Europe, to the Chairman of the Board of the company Hoteli Baška Voda, Jakša Medić.

Grand Hotel Slavia has recently been redesigned and reopened in 2016, in the centre of Baška Voda, but also right on the beach. The building where the hotel is situated is the remarkable monument, built in the 1930s also with the purpose of hosting the hotel. So, the current Grand Hotel Slavia is a callback to the hotel with the same name, which operated back in the days when the tourism was just starting in this region. It is open throughout the year, which makes it a popular conference and business centre in that part of Dalmatia. With 72 rooms, it can host almost 150 guests, the redesign included the creation of a spacious wellness centre and a remarkable beauty centre. The hotel's a la carte restaurant Del Posto is one of the premier fine dining restaurants in the Makarska Riviera and in the region around it.

ZAGREB, January 24, 2019 - The government on Wednesday decided to choose the Marea Alta company as the most favourable buyer for the Hotel Hrvatska (Hotel Croatia) in the southern coastal town of Baška Voda, which offered 46.13 million kuna for the hotel which after the sale will be remodelled and recategorised into a four-star hotel, according to State Assets Minister Goran Marić.

Marić recalled that on May 12, 2018, his ministry published a tender for the sale of Hotel Hrvatska with a starting price of 42.3 million kuna and that not a single offer had been submitted. The government then reduced the price to 35.9 million kuna and published a new tender on 26 September.

Three offers were submitted following the new tender and Marea Alta submitted the most favourable offer.

Hotel Hrvatska is currently a two-star hotel and was not in use last year. It is a beachfront facility formerly used as a military barracks. The 136-unit hotel is located in downtown Baška Voda. "Following the sale, the hotel will be remodelled and recategorised as a four-star facility," Marić said.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Tourism Minister said this would help raise the quality of tourism in Baška Voda.

The State Assets Ministry and the buyer will sign a contract under which the buyer will be obliged to pay the said price within 30 days, minus 1.79 million kuna that was paid into the state budget during the public tender procedure.

More news on the hotels in Croatia can be found in the Travel section.

We've all seen and experienced the crowds during the summer, but just what effect are such large numbers of people having on consumption?

The former health resort on Makarska Riviera keeps sparking investor interest, but cannot be sold due to the unresolved dispute on ownership rights. A rundown of the current situation on January 2, 2018

Baška Voda will soon become a center for elite tourism, as cruisers and mega yachts will be moored in the new yachting port which will dramatically affect the extension of the pre-season and post-season.

The Sinj majorettes and the Municipal Brass Band of Baška Voda returned from their tour in the south of France, in the town of Bagneres de Luchon, for the 117th Festival of Flowers.

An adventure event across Dalmatia will take place for the first time this year. Meet “Dalmacija Ultra Trail” premiering this October from October 21-23.

Looking to taste the real Croatia on the Dalmatian coast this week? Head to Baska Voda.