May the 19th, 2022 - It's not exactly news that Croatia as a whole is heavily dependent on tourism, with the sector being this country's strongest economic branch. The Dalmatian coast, however, is the most vulnerable location of all in this country when it comes to tourist trend fluctuations.

As Morski writes, the Institute of Economics in Zagreb recently conducted the first comprehensive study called: "The vulnerability of local self-government units of the Republic of Croatia to tourism activities" which reveals interesting trends related to the exposure of the Croatian economy and local units to tourism activities and trends. The study was implemented as part of the Mastercard project Uplift, which is intended for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises with a focus on tourism.

The results of the study, made as a step in promoting sustainable tourism and integrating tourism into the broader context of the country's overall economic development, were presented at a panel discussion.

Croatian tourism and the country's GDP

Tourism is the most important Croatian economic sector. Back in pre-pandemic 2019, tourism activity in Croatia directly generated 11.8 percent of the country's total GDP. At the same time, the gross value added of tourism activities in that year amounted to a massive 82.8 billion kuna, which is 24.4 percent of the total gross value added that year. Croatia is also much more dependent on tourism revenues than its Mediterranean competitors are. As such, tourist revenues back in 2018 and 2019 amounted to as much as 18.3 and 21 percent of GDP, and in 2020 and 2021 were reduced to 8.9 and 15.8 percent of GDP due to the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic on tourist and travel demand. Even such reduced revenues from tourism in the two pandemic-dominated years were still, when expressed as a share of GDP, by far the largest in the entire European Union (EU).

A study by the Institute of Economics in Zagreb further analysed the situation as it was from 2012 to 2021.

Some of the interesting data from the study shows that a comparison of the values ​​of the seasonality index in 2021 compared to 2012 suggests that the shortening of the tourist season was recorded by local units in the Dalmatian hinterland that have started to engage in tourism more intensively during the summer tourist season.

When the value of the index of vulnerability to the concentration and seasonality of Croatian tourism is observed, it grows across most local units in the analysed period. This is happening because the demand for Croatian tourist products is growing intensively, so the concentration of demand in a large part of local units is increasing. The most vulnerable are the local units of Zadar County, followed by Split-Dalmatia County, Dubrovnik-Neretva County, Sibenik-Knin County and Istria County. With only Istria County standing out, it's obvious that the Dalmatian coast is extremely vulnerable to any alterations when it comes to tourism.

In addition, the study shows that the share of private accommodation in terms of total accommodation capacities has increased significantly in the vast majority of local units, while the share of accommodation in hotels, hostels and camps is declining. The most unfavourable structure of accommodation capacities is recorded by Split-Dalmatia County, which has 87.8 percent of private accommodation capacities, and the most favourable is the City of Zagreb, with 52.7 percent of accommodation capacities in hotels, hostels and camps.

Compared to the competition, the demand for Croatia is stronger

Compared to 2012, the number of beds per capita increased by 38.3 percent, which is the largest increase in the concentration of accommodation facilities among Mediterranean countries. At the same time, the number of tourist overnight stays increased by 38.2 percent in the period from 2012 to 2019, reaching 7.05 million overnight stays in 2019.

"The good news is that, compared to the competition across the rest of the Mediterranean, Croatia is also recording a significant increase in demand for its tourism. If we analyse this increase in intensity by counties in more detail, we come to an interesting conclusion: the wave of interest in Croatia spilled over from the usual coastal destinations to the interior, to locations not so much engaged in tourism - such as units in Istria, Dalmatia, Lika and Gorski Kotar, and even in the continental part of the country,'' pointed out Maruska Vizek from the Institute of Economics in Zagreb.

"We're aware of the challenges in the structure of accommodation focused on private renters and the further development of tourism should go in the direction of building accommodation facilities of this type that will allow the extension of the tourist season and create additional value. In coastal areas, the emphasis should be on quality, while in areas that are becoming increasingly interesting for tourism, such as Baranja, Lika and Gorski Kotar, we need both quantity and high quality of accommodation,''said Slavko Steficar from the Ministry of Tourism and Sport.

For more, make sure to check out our travel section.

May the 17th, 2022 - Croatian luxury tourism is becoming more and more popular with visitors from across the globe owing of course to Croatia's stunning coastline, but also because of one other important factor.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Eastern European agents now consider rich and untouched nature, as well as fresh clean air a huge advantage when it comes to luxury tourism and what those with deeper pockets are on the lookout for. Croatian luxury tourism is, as a result, very much on the radar globally.

The segment of so-called luxury tourism has proven to be the most resilient to the crisis which the unprecedented global coronavirus pandemic caused. Although it occupies only a small share in the total traffic, the revenues from this type of tourism are very noticeable, as reported by HRT.

"We noticed that not only Dubrovnik but the whole of Croatia is becoming increasingly popular as a place for luxury holidays. We realised that this is the right time to promote it as a luxury destination,'' said Alexander Vanyukov, the organiser of the Adriatic Luxury 2022 event.

"For this luxury segment, we're still not an expensive destination, we're still cheaper than Italy, I don't know, Sardinia, Spain, the French Riviera, we're still cheaper than all these destinations," said Iris Domazet, the owner of a travel agency in Dubrovnik.

"Safety, comfort, good service, this is what our clients most often ask for and they can find it all in Dubrovnik. In addition, Azerbaijan has its own sea, but it is completely different from this beautiful one here,'' said Rufat M. Hajiyev, President of the Board of the Association of Travel Agencies in Azerbaijan.

Back in pandemic-dominated 2020, a significant increase in the number of Ukrainian guests was recorded in the Republic of Croatia, especially those with higher purchasing power. Clients of Ukrainian agencies may have now left the war zone that Ukraine has tragically become since February, but not the habit of travelling.

"Most of them, mostly women and children, have now left Ukraine. They found accommodation elsewhere in Europe. Certainly, when the school year ends, they will want to go somewhere on holiday somewhere because this is something which is completely normal for all of them during the summer,'' said Anastasia Netrebchuk.

Meetings of hoteliers and travel agents as part of the Adriatic Luxury 2022 conference, which will be held in Istria next year, could soon open some new markets to see Croatian luxury tourism as a lucrative segment for the future.

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

May the 16th, 2022 - It appears that the interest of American citizens for Croatian customs and tourism is growing year on year, with the number of people lining up outside the Massachusetts Avenue Croatian Embassy increasing.

As Morski writes, after a two year break caused by the unprecedented global coronavirus pandemic, which saw international travel, at least for tourism and leisure purposes, almost grind to a halt, embassies in Washington are now open to the public on Saturdays in an attempt to arouse US citizen interest in visiting various different countries across the globe.

This popular event is called "Passport DC'' and sees the many countries that have diplomatic missions located in the capital of the United States present themselves to people there in order to attract and interest them further when it comes to travel and tourism throughout 2022.

There are more than 175 foreign embassies and consulates in Washington alone, and European Union (EU) countries opened their doors to American visitors this Saturday.

Judging by the long line in front of the Croatian Embassy on Massachusetts Avenue, the interest of Americans in Croatia and as such Croatian customs and paying a visit to this country is growing every year, as reported by HRT.

In the first part of Saturday alone, the Croatian diplomatic mission was visited by more than a thousand US citizens who wanted to learn more about Croatian customs, cities, food, history and the country's very rich tourist offer.

For many people, a visit to the Croatian Embassy in Washington as part of the ''Passport DC" event is a prelude to going to the Republic of Croatia on holiday, so for a lot of those visiting, a decision has likely already been made to cross the ''pond'' and arrive in Croatia in the coming weeks and months.

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

May the 10th, 2022 - Opatija tourism figures are encouraging indeed so far, placing this beautiful coastal town dominated by stunning Austro-Hungarian architecture at the top as the most successful destination in Kvarner.

As Morski writes, so far, the year 2022 has marked by domestic guests, but also visitors from nearby Austria and neighbouring Slovenia, which recorded a significant increase in terms of the number of overnight stays compared when to 2019. Overall, every fourth night in Kvarner over the past four months was realised in Opatija, which is fantastic news for Opatija tourism figures this year.

The best tourist results in all of Kvarner in the first four months of this year were achieved by Opatija, which was the most frequent choice for people wanting to spend holidays in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. From January the 1st to April the 30th, Opatija recorded 71 thousand arrivals and 190 thousand overnight stays, which is 23 percent of the total number of overnight stays spent in all of Kvarner. In other words, so far in 2022, every fourth night in Kvarner was realised in Opatija, as reported by the local portal RIportal.

Of the total number of overnight stays, 58 thousand or 30 percent were realised by domestic guests, who, according to this criteria, are in the first place. Compared to pre-pandemic 2019, the number of overnight stays realised by domestic guests increased by 13 percent. Foreign guests realised a total of 132 thousand overnight stays, and the largest share in this number were visitors from Austria. Having realised 43,300 overnight stays, they "improved" their 2019 result by 6 percent.

After the Croats and Austrians, the neighbouring Slovenians came third in share with 19,000 overnight stays realised and growth of 16 percent when compared to the same period of the last "pre-pandemic" year (2019). A significant increase in the number of overnight stays for Opatija tourism figures was achieved by guests from the USA with growth of 33 percent, Switzerland with growth of 11 percent and neighbouring Hungary with growth of 10 percent.

When it comes to the choice of accommodation, Opatija's guests mostly chose hotels, which hold an impressive 83% share in terms of total overnight stays realised, equal to a massive 158 thousand overnight stays. With 28,000 overnight stays realised, Opatija's private accommodation "incorporated" a 15 percent share into the town's total score, while the rest fell on non-commercial accommodation.

''We can be more than satisfied with the current part of the tourist year, which has shown that Opatija is a sought-after destination and one which operates throughout the year. The interest of guests, along with our natural beauty and rich cultural and historical heritage, we've managed achieved through targeted promotional campaigns, as well as already known programmes from Advent, Valentine's Day, and then Easter. We're optimistic about the summer season, because the announcements so far are good, and the abolition of epidemiological measures has allowed us to reorganise large and well-attended events such as RetrOpathy, which is set to return in late June,'' said the director of the Opatija Tourist Board, Suzi Petricic.

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

May the 4th, 2022 - Who exactly can access Resilience and Recovery cash from the Croatian tourism sector? This huge amount of money, intended to be paid out to help EU member states get back on their feet with respective plans following the coronavirus pandemic, can be obtained by a select few within Croatia's main economic branch.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, within a maximum of two weeks, the Ministry of Tourism will send its proposals for e-counseling related to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (Croatian: NPOO), with specific criteria that will need to be met by all those who want to get their hands on a chunk of this large amount of money.

This was revealed by Sandra Herman, State Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism at the Days of the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies (UHPA), which has been being held in Opatija. The Croatian tourism sector has been waiting to hear what these criteria are for a long time now.

"We'll send our proposals for calls related to the NPOO, namely 900 million kuna for public tourism infrastructure and 1.2 billion related to the private sector. These are two separate calls, especially public infrastructure, and especially the private sector. Travel agencies will be able to find space for their candidacy through the allocation for the private sector, which refers to clusters and innovations, and which is worth 180 million kuna. This money will be directed mainly towards capital projects,'' explained Herman.

Hoteliers will also find space for their own candidacy in the amount of 1.2 billion kuna, but this involved many different allocations and it will depend on whether the company is small or medium. However, what will surely interest potential users of this cash sum is that there will be a difference in criteria for developed and underdeveloped tourist areas.

"The money is focused mainly on the renovation, ie raising the quality of existing accommodation capacities in tourist developed areas, while on the continent or in undeveloped areas it will be possible to use funds to build new accommodation capacities," explained Herman.

The e-consultation will include a concrete call for proposals, as has been agreed at the moment with the European Commission (EC). After the e-consultation, possible changes will be made and the EC approval will be sought again, and a call will be published in the second half of this year.

For more on the Croatian tourism sector and funding from the NPOO, make sure to check out our politics section.

April the 26th, 2022 - Croatian pre-season tourist traffic has been excellent so far, with three times more having been recorded in comparison to the same period last year. This is a strong signal that the summer season will bring great numbers.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Jadranka Dozan writes, over this year's Easter holidays, spending across the country measured by the value of bills and receipts issued by all those within the fiscalisation system was significantly higher than last year.

Higher prices also contributed to the percentage increase in the value of bills and receipts issued, from those for purchases in stores to those in tourism and hospitality services. After an annual increase in the number of issued bills and receipts by 24 percent and the value of fiscalised turnover by 42 percent in the pre-Easter week (with Easter falling two weeks earlier last year), last week's turnover was almost a quarter higher (24 percent) than it was last year.

While trade (wholesale and retail) with four percent fewer receipts increased fiscalised turnover by 13 percent, the data on reported turnover in tourism-related activities (accommodation and food service activities) confirm a significantly different picture of Croatian pre-season tourist traffic. Back during this time last year, it was more than weak due to the global coronavirus pandemic. As such, those within the fiscalisation system operating within these activities issued 74 percent more bills and receipts, and their amount was almost three times higher (an increase of 190 percent) than back during the comparable week of 2021.

Comparisons of last week's turnover with 2020 primarily reflect the "lockdown" which took place during the month of April of that year, meaning that over the past seven days, companies operating within these industries reported turnover which was as much as fifteen times higher.

However, if last week's figures are compared to those for the comparable week of the pre-pandemic, record year of 2019 (which was the week of pre-Easter spending that year), the Tax Administration's data shows a 12 percent decrease in the number of bills and receipts issued, but at the same time, their value was 18 percent higher.

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

April the 25th, 2022 - A lot of Croatian kuna is being purchased in Britain, which signals a fantastic season ahead as Croatia's favourite Northern European visitors are set to arrive en masse in the hopes of some sunshine. With the United Kingdom having dropped all of its epidemiological measures some time ago now, Brits are hungry for travel.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, the Republic of Croatia and the Caribbean are at the top of the most desirable holiday destinations for Britons, according to a new quarterly edition of the analysis of currency sales by the Royal Mail's Travel Department.

The sales of a number of foreign currencies increased in the first three months of 2022 when compared to the first quarter of pandemic-dominated 2020, with strong growth in purchases for the Croatian kuna and the Caribbean currencies, suggesting that they will be popular destinations for tourists from the United Kingdom throughout 2022.

Namely, the purchase of Croatian kuna during the first quarter of this year in the United Kingdom increased by 137 percent when compared to the figures recorded two years earlier. Caribbean currencies also recorded high growth rates, mostly the Barbadian and Jamaican dollars, and the Mexican peso and the East Caribbean dollar also have a strong plus.

"We're used to seeing a spring increase in Croatian kuna sales, but the growth during the month of March was unprecedented, which indicates that the Republic of Croatia is facing another very successful tourist year," said Nick Boden, head of travel.

A review of food and beverage costs by destination showed that due to the weak Turkish lira, prices in Marmaris are by far the lowest - a three-course meal with a local bottle of wine costs around £16! The Republic of Croatia has the fifth highest prices of 11 destinations.

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

April the 21st, 2022 - The post-coronavirus tourism optimists appear to have been correct in their predictions for this year, with Croatian Easter tourism having seen such good numbers that we can hopefully breathe a sigh of relief this summer.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, those who predicted good forecasts for Croatian Easter tourism were right, despite the very uncertain geopolitical circumstances that continue to threaten tourism across Europe owing to the war in Ukraine.

According to eVisitor, from Friday, April the 15th, to Monday, there were about 135,000 arrivals and about 493,000 overnight stays realised, of which foreign tourists realised more than 412,000 overnight stays. Last year, a third of that traffic was generated for Easter, due to the difficult epidemiological situation with the coronavirus pandemic, which is why the pre-season was almost nothing to speak of last year, but it's also worth mentioning that Easter itself came two weeks earlier than it did this year.

In the last pre-pandemic year of 2019, Easter came a week later, closer to Labour Day, which always means better traffic. As such, in the same period back in 2019, on the eve of Easter, there were 5 percent more overnight stays realised in Croatia than this year with Easter traffic. Still, this is a result that heralds a good rest of the year, the sector believes. Equal optimism reigns in the rest of the Mediterranean and in neighbouring Slovenia.

"In addition the excellent results achieved during the extended Easter weekend, we're also pleased to note that about 145,000 tourists stayed in this country on Saturday. It's also the day with the largest number of tourists recorded on a daily basis this year, and we expect positive trends in the continuation of the pre-season, ie during May and June,'' said the director of the Croatian Tourist Board, Kristjan Stanicic.

The Germans were the most numerous over the Croatian Easter tourism period

Traditionally, the best traffic realised during Easter was always up in Istria (about 188,000 overnight stays), Kvarner (more than 90,000 overnight stays), Split-Dalmatia (more than 55,000 overnight stays) and then Dubrovnik-Neretva County (more than 43,000 overnight stays). When looking solely at overnight stays, most were realised in Porec, Rovinj, Dubrovnik, Zagreb, Split, Umag and Zadar.

At the same time, the largest number of overnight stays realised over the Croatian Easter tourism period was realised by guests from Germany, followed by those from the Croatian market and guests from Austria, Slovenia, Italy and Slovakia. Also common for the pre-season, most overnight stays were realised in hotels (more than 210,000 overnight stays), followed by household/private/family facilities (more than 112,000 overnight stays) and campsites (more than 99,000 overnight stays).

"We've exceeded the number of 3.6 million overnight stays since the beginning of the year, which is 120 percent more overnight stays than in the same period last year, but also 95 percent of overnight stays in the same period back in 2019. These results confirm the strengthening of the recognisability of Croatia as a year-round destination of added value, which is our strategic commitment.

Tourists perceive Croatia as a destination in which to have a pleasant and quality holiday, so we focused our activities on maintaining that status, but also on developing Croatia as a sustainably responsible destination,'' said the Minister of Tourism, Nikolina Brnjac.

Veljko Ostojic, the director of the Croatian Tourism Association, says that comparisons of traffic with last year's Croatian Easter tourism numbers aren't so important now, as these results are an indicator of that good trend that we wished for, but with great caution.

''We entered this year with great caution due to the war in Ukraine, but these results show that Croatia is an attractive destination and that people really want to travel. Therefore, we have no reason to be dissatisfied, even though we're facing a challenging May, and we've been equipping tourist companies to open the season at the end of May,'' said Veljko Ostojic.

For more, make sure to check out our travel section.

April the 20th, 2022 - The blossoming Croatian nautical tourism sector has high hopes for the upcoming summer tourist season, with reason to believe that 2022's summer season could be even better than the record one of pre-pandemic 2019.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, if there are no major surprises in the geopolitical and epidemiological field, all indications are that for Croatian nautical tourism in 2022 in Croatia, traffic could exceed the pre-pandemic year 2019, with this sector already receiving its very first guests.

Good occupancy

According to eVisitor, from the beginning of the year until Easter itself, 13,000 arrivals and 61,000 overnight stays were realised in the Croatian nautical tourism sector, which marks an increase of 115 percent in terms of arrivals and 130 percent in terms of overnight stays when compared to last year.

Compared to the same period back in pre-pandemic 2019, it is also an increase of 6 percent in arrivals and 10 percent in overnight stays. The highest number of overnight stays in the Croatian nautical tourism sector are being realised in Split-Dalmatia, Zadar and Sibenik-Knin counties, and the highest number of overnight stays has been being realised by Austrians, Germans, Czechs, Poles and Slovenes.

"The charter lists are already pretty well filled. A significant number of departures on the booking lists are set to begin from the end of May, with June, July and August generally being filled with more than 70 percent of the capacity. September is traditionally a well-filled month, and because the prices are slightly lower than they are in the main season, and the crowds in the marinas aren't as heavy as they are during the very height of the season. Given the situation over in Ukraine, charters did notice a stalemate in reservations for the month of March. Despite that, it's good that the charters this season have mostly not resorted to approving big discounts on reservations,'' said Selma Cmelik, the founder of the čarter.hr/charter.hr platform.

Currently, the biggest problem for the Croatian nautical tourism sector is the overall increase in costs for external service services, such as cleaning services, gas suppliers, and spare parts. As Cmelik explained, charters cannot increase the price of their services, because all reservations have so far been paid in advance.

It is also not popular to increase rental prices when the season has already begun. Sean Lisjak, president of the marina association at the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK), explained that the competition across the rest of the Mediterranean has already started, which is why marinas here in Croatia will mostly stick to last year's prices of services this year. For now, the marinas are expected to surpass 2019's enviable figures.

"Although we don't have all the aggregate data for last year's business, we already know that the sector achieved almost the same amount in terms of turnover from 2019 last year, and according to announcements and reservations, this year should be even stronger if there are no major shocks elsewhere in Europe. Sailors are specific guests, they are loyal to this type of vacation, they have their own boats, nothing really bothered them during the pandemic because they're separated from other tourists,'' explained Lisjak.

The national marina chain, ACI, also pointed out that the previous season was already very good when compared to 2019, especially in the third quarter, when the most significant results were achieved.

"When we talk about the coronavirus pandemic, Croatian nautical tourism has really proved to be the most resilient type of all. People can stay undisturbed on their own or rented boats practically in isolation, and a safe holiday and stay in our marinas is guaranteed by the Safe stay in Croatia label, which is boasted by all ACI marinas. We're also witnessing a situation where an increasing number of countries have fully opened up or are opening up in the context of epidemiological measures and travel. When we talk about the geopolitical situation in Europe and its impact on the tourist and nautical season, it's too soon to say too much, but we expect the continuation of positive tourist trends this season as well.

At the moment, everything is in favour of things going well. The Croatian nautical season usually starts around Easter. So far, there have been no significant cancellations and all activities in the marinas are taking place as usual. Therefore, we can say that we're optimistic about the beginning of the pre-season and the season itself,'' they stated from ACI, which enjoyed growth in 2021 in terms of sales revenue of 35.9 million kuna, or 21 percent more when compared to 2020.

For more on Croatian nautical tourism, make sure to check out our travel section.

April 19, 2022 - The 2022 Croatian Easter tourism figures are impressive, with most tourists visiting from Germany, Slovenia, Italy, and Austria and many domestic tourists, too. 

The director of the Croatian Tourist Board, Kristjan Staničić, said that we could be more than satisfied with the 2022 Croatian Easter tourism results, reports Dnevnik HRT.

"We recorded even more than 140,000 overnight stays on Saturday, which is the largest number so far in this part of the tourist year. Most guests were from Germany, Slovenia, Italy, and Austria and domestic guests. We must be satisfied because we have exceeded last year's Easter figures many times over," he said.

He reminded us that we had not had a pre-season for the last two years due to the pandemic, while this year is different.

"We have a trend that we have been following since the beginning of the year. We are above 90 percent of realizing tourist traffic, our goal this year. We are now at 96 percent. Today, there are over 120,000 tourists in Croatia, and I hope that we will have a good May and June and enter the main tourist season on a good basis," said the Croatian National Tourist Board director.

Many European countries have a strong campaign to promote holidays in their own country due to inflation and fuel prices.

"In the last two years, we have shown that we know how to resist all challenges. I believe that the tourism sector will know how to respond to price competition. It is important to stick to quality and provide something more for a certain price, and I believe that even then, results will follow," he said.

When asked if we could relax and believe in a good season, Staničić said there was no time for relaxation.

"This is the first passing time, and so far, we can be satisfied, but the main work is yet to come. We will intensify promotional activity, marketing campaigns, and tourism markets. Minister Brnjac and I are convinced that we have an excellent position in the Czech market, which also applies to Austria and Germany. We will take it a step further and present Croatian tourism in the USA. We have over 460 announced airlines, which is the level of 2019, but there is no relaxation; there is a lot of work ahead of us," he concluded.

For more on Vir tourism, check out our travel section.