September 4, 2020 - The Independent Institute of Health Metrics and Assessments (IHME) in Washington has published the latest COVID-19 predictions in Croatia, which are quite grim.

Slobodna Dalmacija reports that the current death toll from COVID-19 in Croatia is 194, and IHME predicts that there will be 225 deaths in Croatia by October 1, 2002.

In compliance with the current epidemiological measures or if they are mitigated, they expect that by January 1, 2021, an average of 52 infected people will die daily in Croatia. By the same date, they predict that there will be 1,267 deaths in the country.

The model also envisages a situation in which everyone would adhere to the mandatory measure of wearing masks in public, and that in that case, there would be 230 deaths in Croatia by January 230.

They also calculated that we would need almost 2,000 hospital beds for the patients at the beginning of next year and as many as 493 ventilators.

The projections are made according to the latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and are subject to change depending on the epidemiological situation in the country.

Although this scenario seems very pessimistic, let us hope that IHME may have overestimated the death toll this time as it happened in their previous projection.

Namely, the institute has already corrected their projections for Croatia this summer.

Thus, in the first wave of the pandemic, they estimated that Croatia would have about 166 deaths, or about sixty more than actually died.

Shortly afterward, they corrected the projections and predicted that there could be 122 COVID-19 deaths by early October. The calculation model was changed after Nenad Bakic objected to the institute, and was supported by Nobel laureate Michael Levitt.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, September 4, 2020 - In the past 24 hours, 334 new cases of the coronavirus were registered in Croatia, bringing the number of active cases to 2,703, and one person died, the national Covid response team said on Friday.

Of the 334 latest cases, 283 are in hospital treatment, 15 of whom are on ventilators.

Since 25 February when the first case was registered in Croatia, there have been a total of 11,428 persons infected with the virus, 195 of whom have died and 8,530 recovered.

Currently, 9,042 people are in self-isolation.

To date a total of 183,912 people have been tested for the virus, 4,047 of whom in the past 24 hours, the response team said.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, September 3, 2020 - Over the past 24 hours there have been 369 new cases of the coronavirus infection and three deaths in Croatia, and the number of active cases today is 2,634, the national COVID-19 response team said on Thursday.

Until now, the record daily high was 358 coronavirus cases, recorded on August 26.

Currently, 269 patients are being treated in hospitals, including 15 persons on ventilators.

Since February 25, when Croatia registered its first case of the infection, a total of 11,094 people have contracted the disease, 194 of whom have died, while 8,266 have recovered.

At the moment, 8,901 people are self-isolating.

To date, 179,838 persons have been tested for the virus, including 4,492 in the last 24 hours.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

September 3, 2020 - Three of Croatia's most internationally famous venues in the events industry were lit in spectacular red on Monday. Pula amphitheatre, Zagreb Arena and Fort Punta Christo were bathed in light from sunset until after dark

Three of Croatia's most internationally famous venues used by the events industry were lit in spectacular red on Monday. Pula amphitheatre, Zagreb Arena and Fort Punta Christo, also in Pula were bathed in light from sunset until after dark.

Though the change in appearance was enjoyable and visually impressive, the action was undertaken to send a strong message. It was part of a worldwide campaign to highlight the effects of Coronavirus on the events industry and those who work within it.

Some of the most famous historical buildings, concert venues and event halls in the world joined the Red Alert campaign and were similarly lit on the same night.

Large public events have been put on hold over most of the world under epidemiological guidelines. Seating arrangements in theatres, conference halls, sports and music halls are simply not compatible with social distancing regulations – many such venues could not make a profit by holding events at 50% capacity.

This has affected millions around the world who work in the events industry, from musicians and performers to technicians, bookers, agents, the media, PR representatives, venue management and general staff. Freelancers operating within the events industry are some of the hardest hit and have had all of their income sources removed completely. Many who operate in the events industry are highly trained and skilled, so diversifying into other industries can be problematic.

Pula amphitheatre (also known as Pula Arena) is a massively popular open-air venue in warmer months. It holds spectacular opera, ballet and classical music events as well as hosting a film festival. Like Zagreb Arena, it attracts some of the biggest names in pop and rock music. Fort Punta Christo has become famous all over Europe and further over the last decade, thanks to the internationally renowned Outlook and Dimensions festivals. Those events were supposed to take place in Tisno, at The Garden festival site. But, along with seven further festivals due to be held there this year, they chose to cancel in order to safeguard the health of their attendees and locals.


Fort Punta Christo in Pula is widely known as a host site for international music festivals

The Croatian events industry alone is comprised of 2000 business entities, has more than 12,000 employees, and annually generates HRK 4.5 billion. Autumn/winter 2021 is the soonest estimated point at which large scale events could return to normal. The Red Alert campaign has been undertaken to highlight the plight of the events industry as many sections within it face total collapse if deprived of work until then. 



All photos © Red Alert

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, Sept 2, 2020 - In the past 24 hours 311 new coronavirus cases in Croatia have been registered, bringing the number of active cases to 2,566, while four people have died, the national crisis response team said on Wednesday.

One person died in Dubrava hospital in Zagreb and three in the KBC hospital in Split. They all had other symptoms or were suffering from chronic diseases.

Thirty-three people have been admitted to the hospital in the past 24 hours. Currently, 258 people are being treated in hospital for Covid-19, fifteen of whom are on ventilators, four more than on Tuesday. At the same time, 30 people were discharged from the hospital.

Since the outbreak of the virus in Croatia on 25 February, a total of 10,725 people have been infected with the disease, 191 have died and 7.968 have recovered.

There are currently 8,881 people in self-isolation.

To date, a total of 175,346 people have been tested for the coronavirus, with 4,122 tests carried out in the past 24 hours.

When asked by journalists when fewer new cases could be expected, Capak replied in about a month.

"There are certain mathematical models which, by entering data of new patients and other parameters, population mobility, eg our model, which we use in the HZJZ, but also some other models, show for some time that we have introduced good measures and will the numbers start to fall. This is a downward trend, we can expect a decline soon. These are mathematical models that can always be changed by some new event. But as things stand now, the model shows a significant drop in late September, early October", Capak explained.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

September 1, 2020 – Wedding numbers in Dubrovnik-Neretva County have been limited to 50 maximum after a Coronavirus outbreak was traced back to someone's big day. But, who can possibly stop the juggernaut of joy that are Croatian summer weddings?

Epidemiological guidelines can only be followed so far. You can put some extra space between the tables, insist people wear a mask, and aim for the highest standards of hygiene. For all the measures insisted upon by the Croatian state and the sincere efforts of some business owners and their staff, a necessary part of the burden falls on personal responsibility.

People tut and shake their heads in disbelief at the photos and videos of irresponsible Italian youths in the nightclubs of Pag. Others assign blame for Croatia's international safety downgrading on specific regions of Dalmatia and the kind of tourists who visit there. But, there is one homegrown phenomenon which Coronavirus cannot hold back - nor epidemiological measures - and to which no outside blame can be assigned - Croatian summer weddings.


© Pexels

From spring until autumn, the sound of car horns fills Croatian streets each and every weekend. Youths dangle precariously from car windows, the national flag flutters in the air and the strong scent of rakija arrives especially early, even before midday. An occasion of unrestricted joy, of tradition and, usually, extravagant expense, Croatian summer weddings are long in the planning and the fuel for a thousand remembrances. They are automatically dissected after their occurrence, each minute detail compared against the other weddings you have attended.

“They had sarma. In the summertime! And with nothing, only bread. No potato. No rice. Also, there was no fish,” one Dalmatian wedding guest recalled in 2019, after accompanying her husband to a Croatian summer wedding in an agricultural part of the continental region.

“But, surely there was rice in the sarma?”

“Well, yes. But also, the flowers we wore were not as nice as those at my sister's wedding. Her's cost 200 kuna per person!”


Sarma, served in summertime. With no potato! Some details of Croatian summer weddings will never be forgotten © Gurman chef

Everything has to be done correctly. Everyone has to be invited. The seating of guests is given more consideration than the planning of a national counter-attack.

A young couple from Osijek, now residents of Sweden, didn't so much want a traditional affair for their wedding of this year. Both are of an alternative nature. They would have sat miserably through hours of tamburica music. Instead, they wanted similar friends to DJ some music they enjoyed at a more informal gathering, without the compulsion of inviting all the cousins who they only ever see at extended family weddings. A fair request, right? After all, it was their big day, right? Wrong.

Everyone agreed. Except for the bridegroom's sister. She hit the roof “You cannot possibly have a wedding without the tamburica band and all the cousins! We went to ALL their weddings, and gave them gifts! They owe us!”

After ceaseless petitioning to their parents, her demands were eventually met. The parents gave in and refused to pay for the wedding unless it was done correctly. The couple married alone in Sweden, before one witness, who they didn't even know. In Croatia, your big day does not belong just to you. It belongs to everyone in your family.

Nothing can stop this juggernaut of joy. Not poverty nor personal wishes. And certainly not Coronavirus or epidemiological guidelines.

Civil Protection Headquarters in Dubrovnik-Neretva County recently banned 'large' weddings. The maximum number of guests for each wedding is now set at 50. This is in response to an outbreak of Coronavirus in Metković, which stemmed from a wedding held there on 15 August. 38 active cases of Coronavirus were subsequently recorded. And few who've attended a Croatian wedding would be surprised.

Who will try to tell the boys not to drink too much at a wedding, then not to hug or dance with their cousins? Who will tell the godfather of the bride that he must remain distant from his guests, and alone wipe the tears of happiness from his face? This is a day he waited for all of his life.

No wonder, as Slobodna Dalmacija reports in their coverage of the situation in Neretva, that in response to the new limits, Croatian summer weddings are simply now moving across the border into nearby Herzegovina. There, wedding numbers remain unrestricted. No masks will be required to ruin the close group family photos. There probably won't even be anyone stopped on the way back through the border for carrying leftovers. Nor potentially carrying coronavirus.

There is no easy fix to this situation, no simple solution to appease both authorities and celebrating families. We can only hope that the case in Metković is an isolated one and the porous nature of the border with Herzegovina remains the advantage it always has been for Croatians living in the region. For whosoever tries to impede the festivities of Croatian summer weddings is surely fighting a losing cause.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, Aug 31, 2020- Over the past 24 hours, 146 new coronavirus cases in Croatia have been registered and two persons have died, Health Minister Vili Beros said on Monday.

Currently, there are 2,650 active coronavirus cases in Croatia.

Since the outbreak of the virus in Croatia in February, 10,270 persons have shown to be positive for the virus and 167,250 have been tested, including 1,591 in the past 24 hours, Beros said at a press conference of the national COVID response team.

Twenty-eight persons have been hospitalized in the past 24 hours, he said, adding that 14 patients were on ventilators.

To date 7,434 persons have recovered from the virus, including five discharged from hospital in the past 24 hours, Beros said.

Namely, Index.hr. reports that, as for the decision on the work of the gym, it will be changed and the gyms will be able to work with the application of all measures. When asked how the gyms became safe within 4 days, Božinović answered that it was a question for the local headquarters.

"We made the decision based on the conclusion of the Split-Dalmatia County Headquarters. And by arguing that the focus is to be extinguished in such a way that, if detected, in this case, 4 gyms, to take all measures allowed by law to remedy the situation as soon as possible and so that the activity can continue to go. The last option should be to close something for 14 days. We need as many field trips as possible, more precise information, to remedy the situation. On this occasion, we call on all those who use and give their services to make every effort to implement the measures of the Croatian Institute for Public Health", said Božinović.

When asked about the protests of caterers, Capak said that the goal is always to find a balance and adapt as much as possible to the necessary epidemiological measures.

"We strive to find balance all the time. Epidemiological measures and restrictions are being imposed at various levels around the world. In some European cities, restaurants are completely banned. We have balance, working cafes, restaurants, nightclubs until midnight. Everyone has the right to protest. We think we have found a balance between the economy and health", Capak concluded.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, Aug 30, 2020 - In the period from 1215 hours Saturday to 0745 hours Sunday, 262 persons in Croatia were diagnosed with the coronavirus infection, and one more COVID patient died, the national COVID-19 crisis response team stated on Sunday morning.

The country's COVID tally shows that since the outbreak of the infection, there have been 10,123 cases.

Of them, 2,727 are still active, of whom 229 are being treated in hospitals, including 13 patients on ventilators.

So far, 184 persons have succumbed to the infection, and 7,212 have fully recovered.

Since 25 February when Croatia registered its first COVID case, 166,638 tests have been performed for this infectious disease.

Currently, 8,879 people are self-isolating.

As of this Sunday, the national COVID-19 management team starts issuing press releases on the daily new coronavirus infection cases every day at 10 am. Until now, press releases on COVID-19 numbers have been issued at 2 pm every day since the onset of the coronavirus outbreak.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, Aug 29, 2020 - Over the past 24 hours 312 new coronavirus cases have been recorded in Croatia, bringing the number of active cases to 2,654, the national COVID-19 response team said on Saturday.

Currently, 211 patients are hospitalised, including 12 on ventilators, and three more persons have died, raising the death toll to 183.

Since February 25, when the first case was recorded in Croatia, 9,861 persons have been diagnosed with the new infectious disease, and 7, 024 have recovered.

Currently, 9,148 persons are self-isolating.

To date, 165,716 persons have been tested, including 3,415 over the past 24 hours.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

August 29, 2020 – Renowned British newspaper compares destinations across Europe and claims, though hit economically, Dubrovnik residents can finally enjoy summer again.

Popular British newspaper The Guardian have today published a feature comparing popular European tourist destinations in the year of Coronavirus. Comparing Magaluf, on the Spanish holiday island of Mallorca, Barcelona on the Spanish mainland and Dubrovnik in Croatia, they tell a story of once packed destinations whose streets this summer are comparatively barren.

The positive side of the story is that this breath of fresh air, though damaging economically, has allowed local residents to rediscover their cities.

“At the moment it’s wonderful,” Dubrovnik tour guide Vesna Celebic is reported to have told the Guardian journalist. “The old town is definitely the place that the locals reclaimed. Now you see a lot of kids riding bikes and playing soccer in some of the public squares, you hear the locals again. You hear the local language.”

However, Celebic's words are not wholly optimistic. In the article, she acknowledges that economic difficulties are looming.

“While I think this is a disaster and economically it’s scary, I think it’s also a moment to pause and reflect,” she said to the newspaper in conclusion. "Tourism should be a pleasure, not only for those coming in but also for those staying in and residing in [the city]."

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.