4 July, 2021 - As Index.hr reports , Croatian Minister of Tourism, Nikolina Brnjac, published a tweet declaring over 500000 tourists currently in Croatia.

Istria and Kvarner regions, as well as Split-Dalmatia County and Zadar County are leading the list with the most guests at the moment. Considering the majority of them are coming from Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and Austria, it is safe to assume most of these guests arrived by land. Airport destinations like Dubrovnik are still lagging behind in numbers, but with the recent start of Delta Air Lines and United Airlines direct flights to the city, this too is likely to change.

Dalmatian Destinations Rise

Makarska is doing well at the moment. With 6500 guests on record this popular seaside town is up a whopping 100% when compared to last year. This is still a far cry from 2019 though. This number only makes up about 50% of guests visiting Makarska in the same period two years ago.

Split is seeing the benefits of train connections to Central Europe. Since late May the city has seen direct trains to Prague, Bratislava, Vienna and most recently Budapest. Numbers at Split Airport are also rising. 160 airplanes are due to land in Split this weekend, 120 of them being commercial flights. At the same time, the Split Ferry Port is expected to receive over 40000 passengers and 11500 vehicles. Incoming tourism seems to definitely be picking up for Dalmatia's capital city.

As already mentioned, Dubrovnik is seeing two American airline companies connecting it directly to New York. Both companies started flying this week with airplanes full to capacity. This is a big step towards giving American tourists a chance to take over the position of Dubrovnik's most numerous guests from the traditionally strongest British market. Speaking of the British, they are the ones much of Croatian coast, especially Dubrovnik, are still waiting for. As of now, it is still unclear how, when and in what numbers will the British visit Croatia this year.

In the north, Rijeka region is seeing the return of Lufthansa flights as well as low-cost Eurowings flights. These will be a huge boost for the numbers from German market as the two companies now connect this part of Croatia to Frankfurt, Munich, Düsseldorf, Berlin and Hamburg.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

8 June, 2021 – CNN's Richard Quest is in Dubrovnik preparing his story on the city and Croatia's travel industry. He seems to still find time to have some fun in the process.

Big time celebrities are nothing new in Dubrovnik. Still, when one of them is travelling to actually do a report about the city, it inevitably raises plenty of interest. Richard Quest is a CNN International news anchor and editor. His show Quest Means Business is vastly popular.

Dubrovnik is hosting Mr. Quest for a few days as he is currently doing a piece on the state of city's tourism. Today, the local Tourism Board released some interesting photos from the filming in the city's historical centre. Lazareti, ancient quarantine complex just outside of the Old Town centre, is the home for Folklore Ensemble Lindo. This organisation preserves traditional folk songs and dances as well as historical costumes of the area. It is synonymous with Dubrovnik local culture. In the photographs Quest is seen visiting Lazareti and interviewing one of the members of Lindo. He also apparently joined in during the rehearsal as we've also seen him in full traditional costume.

 Photos Courtesy of Dubrovnik Tourist Board:

(With Dubrovnik Tourist Board director, Ana Hrnic)

Important Promotion at the Crucial Moment

It seems like the filming is going well and everybody is in high spirits, which only makes us more impatient to see the end story. We have reported earlier on the main topics of CNN's Dubrovnik story. The discussion will mainly revolve around the most important questions of the day for many citizens of Dubrovnik. These include lifting of COVID related restrictions in Croatia and the state of the travel industry.

With important topics like this, amazing backdrop of medieval Dubrovnik glistening in the sun, and Richard Quest in his full local costume, this promises to be a very interested promotion for Dubrovnik and Croatia. With the rise in the interest of travellers from American market, this is certainly the type of news Dubrovnik Tourist Board was hoping for at the beginning of the summer. Don't miss CNN's report from Dubrovnik on Thursday 10th of June.

For more news like this, make sure to follow our lifestyle section.

Are you looking to get to and from Dubrovnik this summer?

April 22, 2021 - The Representation of the Croatian Tourist Board in Italy, in cooperation with the Zadar County Tourist Board, is holding a virtual presentation intended for Italian travel agents and B2B media. The topic of the virtual meeting is the tourist offer of Croatia, with emphasis on the offer of Zadar County.  

As htz.hr reports, the virtual presentation gathered more than 60 participants. The presentation included information on the national safety label Safe Stay in Croatia and all measures implemented for the safe stay of tourists in destinations.

"While we are waiting for the full opening of Italy and the possibility of uninterrupted travel, activities such as virtual presentations are an ideal opportunity to, in cooperation with county tourist boards, present the tourist offer of Croatian regions for which Italy is one of the most important markets. In these uncertain times, it is essential to maintain presence and visibility on the market and continuously communicate all current information to partners and the media", said Viviana Vukelic, director of the CNTB Representation in Italy. 

Vukelic added that the Safe Stay's information campaign in Croatia would soon be launched on the Italian market, followed by a B2B campaign in specialized tourist media, and then the main invitation campaign for Italian tourists.

The gathered partners and media representatives were also greeted by the director of the Croatian Tourist Board, Kristjan Staničić. "Good expectations from the Italian market for this season are based on the feedback of the main partners from the Italian market, as well as on the announcements of new shipping and airlines that will connect Croatia and Italy this season," said Staničić.

The presentation of the potential of Zadar County to Italian agents and the media is especially focused on three products, namely outdoor, nautical, and gastronomy.

"Italy has always been our loyal market, which was, unfortunately, the most affected by the epidemic last year, and for which we still expect a good response this year. The Italians greatly appreciate our indented coastline and beautiful archipelago. On this occasion, we reminded the interested partners of our strengths and introduced them to the offer of various opportunities that can be experienced in various parts of the county. Nautics, i.e., islands, with an emphasis on gastronomy, capacities, and various tools to make it easier for our guests to organize their stay, are just some of the prominent topics. We are extremely pleased and optimistic about the great interest shown by the partners for our destinations, which is proven by this virtual meeting", said the director of the Zadar County Tourist Board, Mihaela Kadija.

Regarding traffic connections, along the international ferry line Zadar - Ancona, from July 24 to August 29, 2021, the fast ship of the tour operator Gomo Viaggi with 374 seats will connect Pesaro and Cesenatico with Mali Lošinj and Novalja and Cesenatico with Rovinj. The ship will operate three times a week in July and four times a week in August. The same partner confirmed that it would keep the airline from Ancona to Split in August. Other routes of companies such as EasyJet, Volotea, Ryanair, and Vueling will connect Croatian airports with Rome, Milan, Napoli, Bari, Palermo, and Venice. The cruise company MSC Crociere will start traveling again from June 2021, and Croatia is included in their program. It is planned that their cruisers from Venice, Trieste, and Bari will stop in Dubrovnik and those from Venice and Bari in Split.

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

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

Find more information about Zadar HERE and everything you need to know about the Zadar airport HERE. 

April 8, 2021 - Nautical tourists will now be able to pay the fees related to their stay online thanks to the digitalisation of nautical fees as Croatia continues dragging itself into the modern era.

Tourist fees for nautical tourists in Croatia can now be paid online, reports Goran Rihelj for Hrturizam. The website Nautika E-visitor, available in English, Croatian, German and Italian, offers the ability to accept payments according to the size of the vessel, which can stretch from 7 to over 20 metres in length, as well as by the number of people. These options are aligned with the Tourist Tax Act.

The site was launched last year as a service of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport, and Infrastructure and allowed tourists to pay and download an electronic confirmation of payment of navigation safety fees online. The entire system has been updated in regard to the digitalisation of nautical fees, and there is no longer an option to pay the fee in person, which was the only way to do it previously.

''Croatia has a fleet of 4,300 vessels, more than 140 nautical tourism ports with over 17,000 berths and over a million cruise passengers. The average consumption of nautical tourists is 126 euros per day, and in the charter sector, 183 euros per day. More than 30 percent of that money is spent on other forms of tourism, from cultural content to wine and gastronomy,'' reads the article on HRturizam.

port, pixabay

It goes on to remind readers that Croatia.hr, the main website for information on tourism owned and run by the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ), also has a subsite for nautical tourits. The subsite, just like the main site, is available to view in Croatian, English, German, Italian, Czech, French, Japanese, Hungarian, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Slovakian, Slovenian, Spanish, and the Swedish language.

An important step in digitalisation development of Croatia has proven and continues to prove especially useful during the ongoing global pandemic, which makes frequent physical contact with other people risky.

As such, nautical tourists generally have an edge when it comes to being able to self-isolate and enjoy their holidays safely with a chosen group of friends or family on their private vessel. This is yet another argument for them to visit Croatia, along with the breath-taking coastal landscape accompanying clear Adriatic sea.

Learn more about sailing in Croatia on our TC Page.  

For more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 7 April, 2021 - The Croatian Embassy to the Russian Federation has received initial applications for tourist visas from Russian citizens and currently there is a good interest on the Russian market in vacationing in Croatia, the Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ) said on Wednesday.

Russian national airline Aeroflot will fly from Moscow to Pula, Dubrovnik and Split every day from the start of June to the end of September, the HTZ said in a statement.

Currently, Aeroflot flies between Moscow and Zagreb once a week and plans to introduce a second weekly flight as of May, while in the summer it will operate on this route three times a week.

S7 Airlines will fly from Moscow to Pula and Dubrovnik from late April to late October, while Nordwind will connect Moscow and Zagreb during the same period.

The head of the HTZ office in Russia, Rajko Ružička, said that there is a growing demand on the Russian market for safe summer destinations, and that Croatia is one of them.

Russians can enter Croatia with a negative PCR or antigen test, a certificate proving that they have recovered from COVID-19 or a certificate showing that they have been vaccinated against COVID-19, Ružička said.

A great interest in Croatian destinations has also been shown at the recent MITT travel show, the HTZ said.  

For more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 12 March, 2021 - The tourism season requires good preparation by the sector and destinations, including setting up VOVID testing stations, inoculating workers in tourism and ensuring safety protocols at border crossings, Minister of Tourism Nikolina Brnjac said on Friday, meeting with directors of regional tourist boards.

During the video conference, which was also attended by the head of the Croatian Institute for Public Health, Krunoslav Capak, he spoke of the current situation with the pandemic and touched on so-called green passports which should represent a health document facilitating crossing borders.

He explained that the certificate would contain information on inoculation against, recovering from and being tested for COVID-19, which should ensure a balanced procedure in EU member states regarding conditions to cross borders.

Capak underscored that an agreement had been reached at the EU level on acceptable fast antigen tests, however most member states, including Croatia, still require a PCR test in order to cross the border.

He said that tourist boards would be issued with information on how to obtain a licence to conduct tests and on issuing credible certificates of testing, the ministry said in a press release.

The ministry underscored that it expects tourist boards to submit their proposals for testing stations for tourists in individual counties in coordination with regional public health institutes.

A list of testing stations will then be advertised on the www.safestayincroatia.hr web site.

Both Capak and Brnjac underlined the importance of inoculation in the tourism sector because workers in the sector generate a lot of contacts and are the first contact point with tourists.

"Inoculation in the tourism sector is an important message of additional safety and responsibility in that sector, which contributes to better positioning Croatia as a safe destination," underscored Brnjac.

"We hope that we will reach an agreement soon on how to facilitate travel for tourists," said Brnjac, referring to tourists from countries outside the EU.

For more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 10 March, 2021 - The Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) has launched a new promotional campaign "Croatia, your new office!" with the aim of promoting Croatia as a suitable destination for digital nomads.

As part of the campaign a special landing page Croatia your your new office was created in English on the Croatia.hr website together with the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, which contains all the important information related to the permit application process and stay of digital nomads in Croatia, the HTZ says.

At the end of November 2020 the Croatian parliament adopted the Aliens Act, which entered into force at the beginning of 2021 and the legislation enables digital nomads to be granted temporary residence in the country for up to a year.

"Croatia is one of the first members of the European Union to regulate a one-year temporary stay for digital nomads, and this is the result of the cooperation between the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Tourism and Sports," Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac was quoted as saying.

"Digital nomads are an excellent opportunity for the Croatian economy, and we are pleased with the fact that digital nomads are showing increased interest for numerous Croatian cities," the minister said, adding that she is sure that Croatia will impress digital nomads with its natural scenery and cultural heritage.

"I wish all current and future digital nomads a warm welcome to one of the most desirable and unique European destinations - Croatia," Brnjac said.

"Croatia is a country where English is widely spoken, a country that offers a unique way of life with authentic experiences, has a good internet connection, favourable climate and beautiful natural surroundings, good proximity and is easily accessible to the rest of Europe, highly affordable compared to European standards and good and affordable healthcare," the HTZ Director Kristjan Staničić said.

"The above has also been recognized by many foreign media outlets, including the world's leading brand of travel guides Lonely Planet which dedicated a recent article to the topic of digital nomads and the conditions that foreigners must meet to spend a year in Croatia as digital nomads, while the reputable magazine Forbes, in both the French and American editions, published an article about our country as a desirable and open destination for digital nomads. Also, many American media list Croatia and Dubrovnik as extremely desirable destinations for digital nomads," the HTZ says on its website.

For more about digital nomads in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 6 March, 2021 - The brand awareness of Croatian tourism destinations on foreign markets has increased by 50% in the last seven years, the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) director Kristjan Staničić has said in an interview with Hina.

The enhancement of the recognisability of the Croatian tourist industry is one of the targets of the last Croatian tourism strategic marketing plan and Staničić announces the preparation of the new plan for the 2021-2025 period this autumn.

Findings of the regular annual Brand Tracking survey conducted in late 2020 by the HTZ on ten European markets among 5,000 respondents aged 18 to 65 show that the brand awareness of Croatian tourist destinations increased from 3.3 in 2013 to 5.0 in 2020.

The respondents eligible for the survey were persons who had spent at least two nights on holidays abroad before the survey and who planned to travel abroad in the following five years.

In the survey, Croatia was compared to its Mediterranean peers -- Spain, Greece, Turkey and Italy, -- and our country fares best in terms of the preserved scenery and the value for money criterion.

The findings show that Croatia was also associated with terms such as security and family-friendly destination.

Staničić points out that Croatia was to the lowest degree associated with mass tourism, which he finds as a positive thing.

ZAGREB, November 29, 2020 - The annual meeting of the European Travel Commission's (ETC) market intelligence and marketing group will be held in Croatia in April next year, the Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ) announced in a statement earlier this week following the 100th ETC general meeting.

HTZ director Kristjan Stancic attended the meeting, which was held online, in his capacity as ETC vice-president.

The HTZ highlighted the importance of next year's ETC meeting in Croatia for the promotion of the national tourist industry and for strengthening cooperation with European counterparts.

"We expect that the meeting in April will bring together about a hundred marketing and market research experts as well as the heads of the national travel organisations of the ETC member states," Stanicic said, adding that this was a great recognition for Croatia.

He said that the general meeting focused on the post-pandemic recovery of the tourist industry, the importance of implementing healthcare and hygiene protocols, and the promotion of tourism and tourism products through joint promotional campaigns.

"In the time ahead the ETC will promote sustainability, climate-neutral travel and travel aimed at  reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It also underlined the importance of establishing a common European travel protocol to facilitate travel and include tourism in national recovery plans," Stanicic said.

The ETC has four representative offices overseas - in China, Canada, the United States and Brazil - and is planning to open two more - in Japan and Australia.

Franka Gulin, the director of the HTZ office in China, has been appointed vice-president of the ETC office in China. She stressed the importance of China for Europe's tourist industry.

"The ETC has big plans on the Chinese market in the coming years, especially in the context of promoting Europe as a tourist destination. I am very glad that, as part of the leadership of the ETC office in China, I will have the opportunity to even more strongly represent the interests of our country on the large Chinese market, which will be the most potent in the post-pandemic period," Gulin said.

ZAGREB, November 28, 2020 - The Tourism Council of the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) on Friday adopted the programme and financial plan for 2021, and the revenues for next year are projected in the amount of 285 million kuna, the HTZ said in a press release after its online meeting.

The HTZ is set to ramp up marketing and PR activities next year to offset a decline in the intensity of marketing activities at the level of local HTZ branches.

The press release says that according to data collected by the e-Visitor system, over 54 million tourist nights have been registered year-to-date, which is half as in the corresponding period in 2019.

The HTZ is a national tourist organization founded with the aim of creating and promoting the identity and reputation of Croatian tourism domestically and internationally. 

Its activities "include both planning and implementing the promotional strategy, as well as proposing and implementing promotional activities that are of common interest to all entities in tourism, and raising the level of quality of the entire Croatian tourist offer," the HTZ says on its website.