July 31, 2021 - After a year of economic losses caused by the pandemic and the suspension of navigation, the Croatian cruise industry seems to finally see a gradual recovery that will continue its course in the coming years.

The Croatian cruise industry sees signs of optimism after last year's traffic disruption due to the pandemic, reports HRT News. This year, cruisers are gradually returning, even to the Croatian Adriatic, while recovery and stronger traffic is expected in 2022 and 2023, says Maria Deligianni, director of the CLIA for the Eastern Mediterranean.

CLIA (Cruise Line International Association) is the world's umbrella association of the cruise industry, whose members are almost all the largest shipping and cruising companies in the world, numerous travel agencies, and others, and in recent years has developed stronger cooperation with Croatia, especially Dubrovnik, and other cities on the Adriatic with larger ports.

After a break of almost a year and a half, large cruisers began arriving in Croatia this year around mid-June in Dubrovnik, where they will continue to arrive, as well as in some other ports.

In the pandemic, the CLIA, with stronger communication and coordination with members, developed security protocols that have now, in a way, become the standard. On cruise ships, no matter how large, there are fewer passengers than before due to the limitation of their number and the implementation of strict measures during navigation and when touring the destination where they dock.

''The measures on cruisers are such that they almost go beyond those carried out in other environments and include various checks, from constant testing of passengers and crew to intensified cleaning'', says Deligianni.

She points out that the gradual lifting of travel restrictions and vaccinations have also brought increased demand, as a result of which about 80 percent of cruisers have announced that they intend to cruise in the next two years.

According to available data, more than a hundred ocean cruises around the world have renewed their service this year, while about 60 will be in Europe, the Canary Islands, and elsewhere in the Mediterranean by the end of July, rising to 72 in August and 81 in September.

"In addition, the CLIA predicts that there will be 270 ocean-going ships in the CLIA member fleet this year, and 20 new ships are expected to be released, while the global order book envisions an investment of $64 billion by 2027", Deligianni said, who also notes that the recovery of the industry with traffic at previous, pre-pandemic levels is expected in 2022 and 2023.

When asked how Croatia is currently positioned on the global map of the cruise industry, Deligianni answered that it is an important European market and destination for cruises, and Dubrovnik is one of the most popular in the world.

''Croatia is an important destination for cruises, through which, according to data for 2019, it was visited by about 1.3 million passengers, of which 818 million euros are 'generated' annually and create more than 14 thousand jobs, and therefore CLIA members highly appreciate the opportunity to return to Croatian ports safely'', says Deligianni.

She says that before the pandemic, Dubrovnik reached about 770,000 cruise passengers a year, which is 60 percent of all passengers from cruises in Croatia, and the CLIA does not expect the pandemic to affect the popularity of Dubrovnik, because it is still highly sought after and safe, for which, as Deligianni points out, the involvement of Mayor Franković and his team, as well as the Croatian Government with decisions on reopening both tourism and cruising, played a major role.

She also reminds that Dubrovnik and CLIA are long-term partners and that they are proud of the Memorandum of Understanding they signed in July 2019 for responsible management of tourism and cruising and preservation and protection of the cultural heritage of Dubrovnik.

Other seaports in Croatia in CLIA consider it important that they can benefit from their unique position 'in the heart' of the Adriatic and increase cruise traffic by further engagement on roundabouts and in the development of unique products for trips to the mainland.

Asked about the business and industry losses due to the pandemic, Deligianni noted that it is not easy, but that in cooperation with ministries and health authorities, port associations and administrations, destinations, and others, much has been achieved in several markets regarding the necessary conditions to continue their business.

However, the losses due to the pandemic are also large in the cruise industry, and the global losses are estimated at 77 billion US dollars for the six-month period of interruption of navigation, from March to September 2020.

Deligianni states that globally, this industry contributed 155 billion dollars a year to the world economy before 2020 and had about 1.2 million jobs, of which about 518 thousand have been lost in the pandemic so far.

In Europe alone, the cruise industry generates 53 billion euros a year in the European economy and supports 435 jobs, which is almost 40 percent of all in the world.

''The cruise industry employs a truly global workforce, and crew members are its 'foundation' as highly trained and dedicated professionals who help ensure health and safety", says Deligianni, concluding that prior to the pandemic, large CLIA cruise ships employed more than 200,000 seafarers from more than a hundred countries, and faced with border closures and travel restrictions in 2020, have also greatly helped in the repatriation of various passengers and even crew members to their homes.

The Pearl of the Adriatic for some, King’s Landing for others, walled city Dubrovnik is UNESCO World Heritage Site perfection for all. Tips for travel, food, accommodation, sights & things to do can be found in Total Croatia's Dubrovnik in a page. Read it here, now in your language!

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ZAGREB, 10 June 2021 - SV Golden Horizon, a steel-hulled five-masted rigged tall ship, which is intended to be used as a cruise ship, left the Brodosplit shipyard on Wednesday, the Split-based dock reported on Wednesday afternoon.

The  Brodosplit company that built the vessel reported on its website that "this luxurious vessel can accommodate up to 272 passengers and will provide the service under the Tradewind Voyages from the UK."

"As far as itineraries are concerned, it is designed for voyages according to 'where the wind and sea currents take it."

The clipper is 162 meters long and 18.5 meters wide. It has five masts with 36 cross sails with a total area of ​​6,347 square meters. The vessel's carrying capacity is  2,000 tons.

On Wednesday also, the unfinished "Onega Gulf" oil/chemical tanker was towed to the Split dock for finalization.

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May 2, 2021 - In a press release, the candidate for the mayor of Dubrovnik, Andro Vlahušić, asked for experienced people and professionals to save the cruising season.

As Dulist.hr reports, Andro Vlahušić has requested a staff solution regarding the Dubrovnik Port Authority director, Blaž Pezo, through an open statement from his platform, Dubrovnik our city:

‘‘Dubrovnik is, among other things, a city of sailors. In history, they created a network of trade and connected the city with the whole world. Even today, Dubrovnik naval officers have impressive captaincy and managerial careers at the world's largest companies. That is why in 2017, it was easy to find someone professional and experienced to come to the head of the Dubrovnik Port Authority. However, HDZ decided on the completely opposite approach and appointed a person who has neither a day of work experience nor an hour of education in maritime affairs. Although he did not meet the conditions of the tender, HDZ party operative (which was once called the party commissioner) Blaž Pezo was appointed director of the Dubrovnik Port Authority. The Dubrovnik public protested then, but the commissioner rubbed his hands together. For obedience and loyalty, he was awarded a respectable position upon which hundreds of jobs depend in Dubrovnik. Aware of the way in which he was appointed, he continued to deal exclusively with the party, not professional tasks. That is why cruisers bypass Dubrovnik today. There was no one in the Port Authority to prepare and develop the epidemiological protocols that are a prerequisite for receiving ships on cruises’’, Vlahušić said in a statement and continued:

‘‘Unfortunately, Mayor Franković did not do anything in the preparation of the protocol of visiting the City, entering museums, the walls or movement in organised groups in an epidemiologically safe way. And hundreds of jobs have become compromised. Buses, taxi drivers, guides, souvenir shops and restaurants will remain without income for the second year in a row. They will not be able to survive it. The responsibility of the irresponsible director Pezo, but also of those who appointed him even though he is not qualified, is simply such that the minimum of decency is to admit a mistake, dismiss him, and appoint someone who has knowledge of ships and seafaring in his place.

The Dubrovnik our City platform calls on Minister Butković to find a staffing solution for this catastrophic situation without delay because Dubrovnik cannot afford that the income that once remained in Dubrovnik today goes to Greece and Cyprus just because someone does not know that his job is to negotiate with directors of shipping companies, not pay for beer to party cadets. And with every cruiser that will not sail into Dubrovnik, a million kuna is lost.

The people of Dubrovnik still remember how the Dubrovnik hospital became a central place for examinations and medical treatments of the world's largest cruising company at the time when it was headed by Dr. Vlahušić.

The Dubrovnik our City platform and candidate for mayor, Andro Vlahušić, have been proposing and appealing for months that epidemiological protocols for receiving ships and visiting the historic core be developed, defined and implemented, and this will be our first task as soon as we come to power and thus create preconditions for the return of cruisers and job preservation.

In the year in which the Olympic Games are being organised, this is very possible. We just need to appoint serious people, experienced professionals and work with all our strength to make that happen’’, Vlahušić and his platform Dubrovnik our City point out.

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April the 8th, 2021 - The Zadar cruise ship season for this summer is being called into question owing to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Many worry that cruise ships won't be docking in that particular Dalmatian city until autumn.

As Morski writes, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic completely paralysed the cruise ship industry last year. Due to the impossibility of securing the necessary epidemiological measures, the world's largest cruise companies moored almost all of their gigantic vessels. Data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) shows that in the circular tourism sector in 2020, there were only 26 arrivals, which is 700 trips or a mindblowing 96.4 percent less than there were in 2019, all as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and the numerous problematic restrictions on international travel.

The data also shows that there were cruises of foreign ships taking in the first three months of last year, then there was a complete cessation of travel until the month of July. Five trips were made in August and September, after which the cruise industry stalled completely by the end of the year. In 2020, cruisers sailed only in ports in Dubrovnik-Neretva and Istria counties. Unlike large international vessels, small cruise vessels from Croatian agencies and companies did make several voyages in late June and early July, following the easing of epidemiological measures in Croatia back at that time

Skific explained the situation with the interruption of cruise ships and problems in the last year, as well as the potential and prospects for the upcoming tourist season.

''Last year will probably be recorded as one of the most difficult years we've ever had, especially in the segment of international passenger traffic. The coronavirus pandemic practically wiped out all cruise ship announcements as well as international liner traffic in the space of a mere few weeks in March, not only in all Croatian ports but in all ports across the world. It's been a global crisis, and cruise companies have been hit the hardest by the pandemic, even more so than the aviation industry. It's impossible to dock in more or less all of the world's ports, and the only type of activity that remains in the ports has become the acceptance of ships without passengers on them, vessels which are at rest,'' explained Skific.

''Out of the announced slightly more than 200,000 passengers back in 2020, only 714 passengers arrived, and all of this more or less happened before the start of the pandemic in March. An additional limiting element in the acceptance of cruise ships during 2020 was the Decision of the National Civil Protection Headquarters on the ban on entry of passenger ships carrying more than 200 passengers into Croatian waters.

For most of the year, there were one to two cruisers of the Marella Cruises company (Dream and Discovery 2) in the ports, in their lay-up (at rest) status,'' he added.

Compared to pre-pandemic 2019, revenues in the cruise ship segment decreased by approximately 5 million kuna. When compared to the announcements for 2020, the decline in revenue should have been even more pronounced. Zadar Port Authority lost so much at the expense of collecting port fees. Broadly speaking, the lost revenue of all our concessionaires that are directly related to the provision of services to cruise ships are very high,'' noted Skific.

The Zadar cruise ship season this year is being called into question, and this industry will have the hardest time of all when it comes to recovery

Experts predict that the cruise ship industry will have the hardest time recovering from the consequences of the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Unlike airlines, which, in the absence of passenger transport, shifted their operations to freight, cruise companies had no choice but to "drop anchor" and wait. Due to the uncertain situation with the coronavirus pandemic, the Zadar Port Authority hasn't yet published its list of announced cruiser arrivals. They say that when a trip is actually realised, they will publish the data day by day.

''The announcements of arrivals for this year aren't relevant because the data changes from day to day and this is completely unreliable data, given that even cruising companies don't know if and when they will start implementing their own respective itineraries for 2021. In the announcements, we had a little less than 200 voyages on which about 320,000 passengers were to arrive, counting on the full capacity of the vessel. Realistically, we expected about 280,000 passengers in 2021, of course, this was according to the announcements before the coronavirus pandemic struck,'' explained Skific.

The Zadar cruise ship season for 2021 will depend entirely on the epidemiological situation at any given time

The biggest challenge for cruise companies in 2021 will be to gain the trust of both tourists and employees. Holidays in a situation where the proper epidemiological measures aren't one hundred percent guaranteed are now no longer attractive at all. No company is interested in repeating last year's situation in which the passengers and crews of cruisers found themselves, when it was discovered that the virus had appeared on vessels in the United States and in Japan.

Passengers and crew in such situations were forced to either carry out quarantine on board the ships or in the country where the ship was granted permission to anchor. Some countries such as Thailand and Malaysia have banned the landing of cruisers in their ports. Such a situation also leads to diplomatic conflicts between countries whose citizens are infected on a cruise ship and countries that aren't ready to take care of the sick or at least arrange to ensure their return to their home countries in accordance with all epidemiological measures.

Skific was asked about the existence of instructions and protocols on the entry of vessels under foreign flags if there are infected crew members or passengers on them.

''According to the announcements, a general instruction of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure on the treatment of infected passengers is expected. However, it's also expected that in agreement and coordination with the National Civil Protection Headquarters, different approaches will be present depending on the destination, city or port. It will all depend on the current epidemiological situation in certain destinations,'' he said.

Both ports and cruise companies are required to provide security and safety protocols

''From the very beginning of the pandemic, we've taken a number of measures to protect the health of employees - all according to the instructions of the Headquarters - from disinfectants in each office to having it at the entrance to the Port Authority. The entrance door to the premises of the Zadar Port Authority is locked so that we strictly control who enters and exits, we keep our distance at meetings and wear masks, we also do the same in our offices if more than one person is working in the office at any one time.

There are few of us and it's very important for us to preserve the health of every single employee given the large amount of work and projects that this Port Authority implements. Additionally, in the case of smaller controlled events with more than one person involved, the body temperature of each of the participants is measured,'' he assured.

Cruise ships are practically prisons at sea, which is hardly an attractive idea to anyone. Last year, due to a lack of information about the novel coronavirus, and due to not finding a way to prevent the virus from entering ships, cruise companies were brought to their very knees in the form of bankruptcy. This year, the main task of cruise companies is to provide healthcare and safety protocols to protect both passengers and crew.

The most important part of these protocols is to test all passengers and crew members for the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, before departure. One of the ways to reduce the possibility of exposure to the virus is to abolish the stay outside the vessel during a vessel's time in ports or to arrange organisations referred to as ''Bubble trips", in which passengers and guides don't come into any contact with any people who haven't been on board.

In terms of hygiene standards, the use of hospital disinfectants, which destroy 99 percent of the virus, is now recommended. Reducing the number of passengers to ensure social distance is another important item to take into consideration although this will also hurt the already empty pockets of the industry. It is also being recommended to determine isolation units for guests and crew with suspected coronavirus infection.

With all of the above in mind, Royal Caribbean, together with the Israeli health and tourism authorities, offered the first round trip on which the crew and guests over the age of sixteen must be vaccinated against COVID-19.

A properly controlled corridor

''Cruise ship companies have adopted a number of very strict protocols - from PCR tests after the first and after each subsequent entry into the vessel, some companies will only allow vaccinated passengers to book, excursions are being organised in strictly controlled conditions and for some, it will not be possible for people to leave the ship freely with some individual arrangements.

Passengers who don't respect this will simply be sent home if, contrary to the ship's protocol, they go beyond the agreed rules. Such events have already been recorded in the few test itineraries organised with a limited number of passengers involved. In addition, companies will only fill part of their capacitis, and bus trips with more than 50 percent of their full capacity utilised will not be allowed on excursions.

Individual departures from the vessels in the next short-term period will not be possible at all. The protocols are such that in the destination they actually take us as a bigger threat to passengers than they could be to us,'' Skific pointed out, adding that COVID-19 protocols of cruise companies currently don't and won't allow for the uncontrolled arrival and departure of passengers.

''A controlled corridor with security guards measuring body temperatures, disinfectants and masks inside the terminal in that short passage time to the bus at this point seems quite sufficient. Travel and maritime agents, drivers and everyone from the destination who is in contact with passengers will have to adhere to the same protocols. However, depending on the epidemiological situation, the introduction of additional measures is not excluded,'' he warned.

Although the Zadar cruise ship season is in doubt, luckily, the Zadar Port Authority doesn't depend exclusively on cruise ships

''More or less all cruise ship trips before the end of June have been practically cancelled, and the big question is what will happen in the second half of the season. According to informal talks with these cruise companies, they don't expect a significant number of trips to actually happen before the end of August and the beginning of September. Let's hope that the vaccination of the population will do its thing - by improving the epidemiological picture across Croatia by the end of the summer, we could reach at least autumn with the arrival of some cruise ships.

Back at the very beginning of this year, we thought that about one-third of the planned arrivals would be realised, however, as things currently stand, we'd be pleased with the very fact that traffic is starting to actually kick off again. Luckily we aren't quite as exposed to the need for revenues from cruise ships like some other ports in Croatia and the world are, our revenues are prudently dispersed into several segments of traffic and activities, however, in case the pandemic fails to calm down by the end of the year, we'll all have cause for concern,'' warned Skific.

One thing is for sure, even if the coronavirus pandemic were to suddenly end tomorrow, all cruise companies will need a lot of time to regain the trust of customers and potential employees after this absolute disaster.

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March the 5th, 2021 - Dubrovnik is very well known (both in a positive and a negative sense) for its cruise ships, and with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic still holding a firm grasp on tourism, just where do things stand? It seems that the Dubrovnik cruiser trends are improving, be that good or bad.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, after the government lifted a previously introduced ban on large cruisers entering Croatian ports a few days ago, which was entered into force last year to fight the coronavirus pandemic, conditions were created for preparing for a tourist season that could be significantly better than last year for Dubrovnik, Croatia's main cruise destination.

According to the announcements of global cruise companies, Dubrovnik could generate 80 percent more cruise traffic throughout the year 2021 than it managed last year, or 60 percent of the pre-pandemic traffic seen back in 2019, but only if the epidemiological situation stabilises and the conditions for crossing European Union (EU) borders are properly defined as soon as possible.

In addition to the above, protocols for dealing with various possible scenarios should be introduced as soon as possible, from how to act in the case of an infected passenger onwards. Dubrovnik cruiser trends for this summer are hanging on many factors being properly accounted for, both at the national and at the European Union level.

The City of Dubrovnik has therefore prepared a draft protocol that Mayor Mato Frankovic sent to the Croatian Government on Wednesday, modelled on what both Greece and Cyprus boast, as these are currently the European countries most active in their work and efforts to see tourism make a comeback along their shores in summer 2021.

"We´re monitoring what our competitors are doing across the rest of the Mediterranean and we have used their solutions to compile our own protocols for action, and we expect to have the quick support of the Government, which responded to our request to define the situation with cruisers. We met several times with representatives of the World Association of Cruising Companies (CLIA) and agreed and defined everything, which was very important to do on time. That´s why we insisted, along with the Government, on the conclusion of a proper decision as soon as possible allowing large ships to enter. It is very important that shipping companies know their destinations on time, so that they can start selling tickets,¨ explained Frankovic when discussing 2021´s potential Dubrovnik cruiser trends.

Although there are a lot of inquiries when it comes to Dubrovnik cruiser trends for 2021, there is still work to be done to reach the maximum potential of the summer tourist season, according to the mayor, who mentioned the current bad epidemiological situation in Dubrovnik-Neretva County, which has already jeopardised some previously planned programmes.

“We should always keep in mind that Dubrovnik is just one of the destinations on any given cruise route and that everything will depend on the epidemiological situation. Thus, for example, the idea of ​​cooperation with American Viking failed, due to the bad epidemiological situation in the county. In addition, some companies have launched programmes under some bilateral agreements between countries. For example, Royal Carribean has launched programmes for Greece, but only for guests from Israel, and only vaccinated ones,¨ Mato Frankovic pointed out.

Sales are beginning despite all uncertainties...

Royal Caribbean International has announced that it will launch a voyage from Israel in May, with a combination of a three- to seven-night cruise programme on the Greek islands and then on to Cyprus. Ticket sales start on March the 9th, and the cruises themselves will begin departing as of the month of May.

The programme is the result of a bilateral agreement to introduce the controversial ¨Covid passports¨ between Greece, Cyprus and Israel, and a mitigating circumstance is the high vaccination coverage of Israeli residents. On their new ship "Odyssey of the Sea", for which this is the premiere voyage, everyone over the age of sixteen will have to have been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2.

In fact, as discriminatory as the request for vaccination of tourists may seem and most do not officially advocate it, it seems that most cruise companies will ask their guests to be vaccinated against the new coronavirus at the time of boarding, to avoid "hostage crises" and additional related health complications.

Last week, the same move was announced by luxury travel company Crystal, which found when undertaking market research that this would be one of the criteria for their customers to choose a cruise. Prior to them, back in January, the British cruise company announced that it would ask all guests to be vaccinated two weeks before boarding.

The same criteria are being introduced by U.S. river cruisers, after their potential guests also said they would feel safer with fellow travellers who have been vaccinated against the virus. Frankovic pointed out that this actually suits the destinations that the ships are heading to.

"It will actually be convenient for us as destinations, and it will facilitate all of the needed protocols. For guests who have not had the vaccination, we will introduce a protocol for them to visit the city in small groups, as well as all institutions, museums, walls, for which there will be no need for vaccinated guests. There will certainly not be opportunities for cruise guests to tour the city individually like they did before,¨ he explained.

Frankovic is more than aware that the level of vaccination against the novel coronavirus in the destinations these enormous vessels head to is also of paramount importance. That is why the people of Dubrovnik are very active in getting everyone vaccinated as soon as possible, in order to welcome the summer tourist season as safely as possible.

So far, about 4,000 people have been vaccinated in Croatia´s southernmost city and tourist Mecca, a mass vaccination of about 1,000 citizens is planned for Monday, and by June, the majority of Dubrovnik´s residents plan to be vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, according to Dubrovnik Mayor Mato Frankovic, who still hopes Dubrovnik cruiser trends will manage to rescue some of this year´s tourist season down in southern Dalmatia.

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ZAGREB, September 5, 2020 - As a result of the global coronavirus pandemic, foreign cruise ships made as few as 16 trips to Croatia in the first seven months of 2020, which is a decline of 95.6% compared with the same period of 2019, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (DZS). 

The 16 trips were made by seven cruise liners, whose number fell by nearly 88% compared with last year. Fifteen of the trips were made in the first quarter of the year, while one was made in July. The July trip brought 25 passengers who stayed in Croatia for six days, while in July last year 96 such trips were made with a total of 156,000 passengers.

In the first seven months of this year, the cruise ships brought slightly fewer than 3,800 passengers, which is a decline of 99.3% compared with the same period of last year when 368 trips brought 565,000 passengers.

Unlike the previous years, when cruise ships visiting the Croatian Adriatic flew the flags of more than 20 countries, this year they sailed under the flags of only five countries - Belgium, Greece, Italy, Malta and the Marshall Islands. Maltese-flagged ships maintained the lead over the years as 12 of the 16 trips this year were made under the Maltese flag.

The majority of the trips, or 75%, were made to Dubrovnik-Neretva County and the rest to Istria County.

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Cruise ships are a doubled-edged sword for Dubrovnik, and it seems resolving matters isn't quite as straight forward as one would have hoped. Could a new daily per passenger fee be the answer the southern Dalmatian gem is looking for to avoid going the same way Venice did?

As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of March, 2019, as of 2021 the City of Dubrovnik will introduce a daily tax for guests of cruise ship passengers in the amount of one euro per person, from which the city will be able to turn about 950 thousand euros into cash in just one year. The main part of the revenue will be intended for the maintenance of the city's road, as the mayor of Dubrovnik Mato Franković revealed to Poslovni Dnevnik at the ITB Tourism Fair in Berlin, Germany.

On Wednesday, he met with the representatives of large cruise companies like Carnival, and one of the topics was the new tax that they are preparing for the Pearl of the Adriatic.

After dealing with the tight timetable of large cruise ships, the guests of which typically visit Croatia's tourist Mecca for just one day, this will be an extra move in Dubrovnik's efforts to break free of the damaging consequences of not only the major tourist crowds in Dubrovnik, but the environmental damage being caused by the massive vessels themselves, with the aim of increasing revenue for the strengthening of the city's infrastructure.

In line with that same goal, Dubrovnik has already been one of the few this year to use a legal option and increase the flat tax for property renters to 750 kuna per bed, and next year, this amount is planned to see yet another increase, to a maximum of 1500 kuna, from which the City of Dubrovnik will make 12.5 million kuna in revenue. Otherwise, Dubrovnik allocates twelve million kuna annually for road maintenance.

Discussions about the need to introduce a tax for cruise ship passengers has been going on for more than five years now, and now it will be possible to change the Law on Residence Tax which is in the second reading.

"All cities that receive cruise ships will now finally have the right to charge a one-day-resident sojourn tax, which we have been able to introduce at the City Association level, and we're pleased that the Ministry has incorporated it into the law. Companies have nothing against the taxing, they just asked us to give them enough time to prepare for it, as the tax will be charged to agents who will need to calculate it into the price of the whole arrangement,'' explained Frankovic.

The move will limit the number of cruise ships in Dubrovnik to two daily, so that no more than 5,000 visitors will arrive in the city in any one day. This is the result of intense negotiations between the City of Dubrovnik and the largest cruise companies in the CLIA association, which took place to attempt tp solve the problem of up to seven cruisers a day entering Dubrovnik, which would bring up to 10,000 passengers into the city per day.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated travel page. If it's just Dubrovnik and the extreme south of Dalmatia you're interested in, give Total Dubrovnik a follow.

Click here for the original article by Marija Crnjak for Poslovni Dnevnik

The vessel, carrying over 1,000 passengers, arrived in Šibenik yesterday.

Dubrovnik is becoming a victim of its own success, and its placing on a less than desirable list of ''places to avoid'' does it no particular favours.

The cruise ships just keep on coming, and in spite of its issues with this type of tourism, Dubrovnik remains the most popular of all Croatian destinations.