September 6, 2019 - And getting to your destination in Croatia has never been easier thanks to Solo Transfers. 

Croatia has proven to be one of the most popular destinations for a summer holiday, though it’s not hard to see why. While the sweltering sun and sparkling sea are shoo-ins for the summer, Croatia’s capital and continental region offer year-round tourism and an exciting alternative for adventure tourists and cyclists. 

Croatia’s popularity doesn’t look like its going anywhere anytime soon, so it’s no surprise that it didn’t take long for some of the world’s top airlines to catch onto the Croatia buzz and ensure their passengers can get to the destination comfortably, without too many connections, and, perhaps most importantly, with ease. 

Some of Croatia’s biggest markets, like the USA, Canada, and Australia, are luckier than ever to have connections carrying them to Croatia with convenience. 

Recall, travelers in America can be thankful that American Airlines connected the United States and Croatia for the first time in almost 30 years with their seasonal service between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik this summer. The Oneworld member began operations between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik from June 7, which will run until September 27, 2019. The airline will add a fourth weekly flight on Sundays in September and already announced that there is no slowing down next year. Thus, American Airlines will operate the Philadelphia-Dubrovnik route daily in 2020, which will commence on June 4, 2020! 

Copyright Romulic & Stojcic 

Furthermore, back in 2018, Air Canada Rouge commenced its seasonal service from Toronto to Zagreb, which saw the return of the Air Canada brand to Croatia after 27 years. Air Canada operates four times a week between Toronto and Zagreb and runs until October. Air Transat also operates between the two cities on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays during the peak season.

And our friends from Australia haven’t been left out, either. Since many Australians fly over Dubai onwards to Croatia, the daily Emirates connection between Zagreb and Dubai has been a lifesaver. However, FlyDubai will operate the Zagreb-Dubai line instead of Emirates this winter, just as they did last winter. Namely, FlyDubai will replace Emirates for the entire winter flight schedule, and take over operations from October 27, 2019, to March 28, 2020. Thus, after November 11, no flights will run on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while some weeks will have no flights on Mondays. The daily frequency returns around the Christmas and New Year holidays, i.e., from December 13, 2019, to January 13, 2020.  

Because getting to Croatia is now easier than ever, wouldn’t it make sense that getting to your Croatian destination should follow suit? Thanks to Solo Transfers, you can count on a reliable and friendly transfer service to get you where you need to go. Whether you’re flying in from the States to Dubrovnik, or trekking from Canada or Australia to Zagreb, Solo Transfers promises door-to-door service any time of the year. 

You can read more about Solo Transfers here. 

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

September 6, 2019 - The most successful water polo club in Croatia celebrates 95 years. Happy Birthday, VK Jug! 

Some 95 years ago, VK Jug defeated VK Penatur in their first official match with a score of 3:0. On this occasion, a revival match was held at Porporela pier in Dubrovnik between VK Jug and VK Porporela. While Porporela won with a score of 9:8, the result was not the essence of this match, but the celebration of tradition where it all began, writes the club's official website.

"It is a great honor for us that VK Jug responded to our invitation and that we had the opportunity to host the first team. The history of the club started under the red feral (warning light), so the logical sequence was to mark the celebration in the same place. Next year, we celebrate 70 years since Porporela first won the Divlja Liga (Wild League) back in 1950, and we want the younger generations who come to convey that spirit and bring them back to the walls, to the bench, to Porporela,” said Giorgio Knego, President of the Porporela Association.

VK Jug, the most celebrated water polo club in Croatia, boasts 64 trophies and 4 European titles - and their team makes up half of the Croatia national team! 

The 95th celebration began with the release of Željan Konsuo’s book 'Five to One Hundred’, an encyclopedia of sorts for the Dubrovnik club which has long stood as one of the symbols of the city. In the book, an entire chapter is dedicated to artists who have found inspiration for their work in water polo, which is how the idea of linking sport and art was born for the big birthday.

From the very beginning, the symbiosis of Jug and Dubrovnik was evident. Thus, the club decided to go one step further this year and collaborated with Dubrovnik artist Iris Lobaš-Kukavičić who redesigned the equipment for the new season. The new equipment in focus has Dubrovnik as the central symbol, and its graphic solutions blend in perfectly with the story of the city and water polo.

As the highlight of the whole story, Dubrovnik is soon to receive the first water polo museum, which will unite all the sports achievements of the most celebrated water polo club in Croatia, present its rich history, cups, medals, and will have a modern fan shop in which the collaboration with this Dubrovnik artist will continue. 

"We are sure that this collaboration will delight all fans of the arts and sports, who, in an 'incompatible combination', glorify the Dubrovnik tradition, which prides itself on its long-standing water polo history. We are also proud of the first water polo museum that is under construction, because we want to bring everyone, both local guests and tourists, closer to the history of water polo in Dubrovnik and show why we are the most successful club. The club will exhibit 64 cups in the museum that it has won in its 95 years, which is something that few can boast. The club will continue to work for the benefit of the community. We will invest not only in new generations but also in projects that benefit the community as a whole, such as the museum, so that we can return the favor to our citizens for all the years they have followed and cheered us on,” said Tomislav Dumančić, President of VK Jug.

It is interesting that in addition to its visual identity, VK Jug also changes its general sponsor after 15 years, and instead of Croatia osiguranje, it is Adriatic osiguranje. The name change from VK Jug CO to VK Jug AO will be announced by the Assembly in mid-September.

The new season for Jug begins on September 21st when coach Vjekoslav Kobeščak’s side will host Budva in Gruž in the first round.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

September 2, 2019 - Saying goodbye to summer doesn’t have to be sad,  that is, if you let Break Time jewelry cheer you up with September discounts. 

Here we are, at the end of yet another summer season. The grueling temperatures have cooled, the busy streets have thinned, and we welcome a new month that will bring us into a new season. While many of us will miss the season behind us, the summer blues don’t have to thump us this time around. 

Break Time nautical jewelry is giving you a chance to shop smart this autumn with a world of new discounts you can delight in. 

From September 1, 2019, shoppers can enjoy

10% discount off any 2 Break Time nautical bracelets (use code 10OFF at check-out)

15% discount off any 3 (with code 15OFF at checkout)

20% discount off 4 or more (use code 20OFF)

Break Time announced that the offer applies not only for the online orders, but is also available in-store. 

The discount codes will appear automatically at check-out, if conditions are met (10OFF for 2 bracelets, 15% for 3 bracelets or 20OFF for 4 bracelets).

In case you add, for instance, 4 bracelets to the shopping cart and press check-out, you will automatically see the 20OFF discount code applied. However, if you change your mind and modify your shopping cart, for instance, by removing one of the four bracelets initially selected - then the code will no longer be applied and you will have to introduce the appropriate discount code (15OFF for 3 bracelets) manually.

FYI, the offer does not apply to the Zadar key-rings collection or the replacement pins. 

If you're in Croatia and don't need to shop online, you can find Break Time’s five Croatian locations below: 

Ilica 14, ZAGREB

Zadarska 1, SPLIT

Trogirska 8, SPLIT

Antuninska 5, DUBROVNIK

Via Arsenale 10, ROVINJ

To make sure you never miss a Break Time beat, follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. 

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

August 31, 2019 - After Philadelphia, is an American Airlines connection between Chicago and Dubrovnik on the horizon?

American Airlines connected the United States and Croatia for the first time in almost 30 years with their seasonal service between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik this summer. Recall, the Oneworld member began operations between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik from June 7, which will run until September 27, 2019. The airline will actually add a fourth weekly flight on Sundays in September and already announced that there is no slowing down next year. Thus, American Airlines will operate the Philadelphia-Dubrovnik route daily in 2020, which will commence on June 4, 2020.

“Dubrovnik went really, really well for us. We can connect 95% of the United States over Philadelphia, and [at] none of our competitors’ operations in New York or the northeast can they do anything really remotely close to that,” said American Airlines' Vice President for Network and Schedule Planning, Vasu Raja. 

Furthermore, Ex Yu Aviation reports that the Philadelphia connection doesn’t seem to be the only one in the plans for this famous airline. 

“As we go and start things in Philadelphia, and they work, it becomes a means to develop routes for Chicago. Barcelona, Venice, Prague and Budapest all started from Philadelphia, and we realized they could all work from Chicago too, given where the traffic was coming from," Raja added, hinting that the airline could launch a service between Chicago and Dubrovnik in the coming years, as its new routes out of Philadelphia are used as a guinea pig for future operations out of O’Hare airport. Furthermore, the airline will launch seasonal flights from Chicago to Budapest and Prague next year, after operating from Philadelphia for the last two years. 

However, new connections from the US are no surprise. 

"This pilot project with American Airlines will grow over the coming years to include more American cities as well as new airlines. We have been working intensively on the US market for years. The American market is the second most strategically important for us in terms of visitors, just behind the United Kingdom. We expect flights to be extended throughout the season first and then for new routes to be added,” said Romana Vlašić of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board. 

The American Airlines service between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik operates using a 209-seat Boeing 767-300ER aircraft with a capacity of 28 seats in business class and 181 seats in economy class, and Wi-Fi services are available throughout the entire flight.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

August 29, 2019 - The Croatian boutique hotel Villa Dubrovnik, which is owned by the Doğuş Group, has been awarded the Green Globe environmental certificate for the promotion of ecological practices.

HRTurizam reports that it is an internationally recognized certification that today has over 500 members in more than 100 countries around the world. It is awarded to companies that use technological innovations to manage all consumption and minimize environmental impact effectively.

Guided by internal environmental policies, Villa Dubrovnik has implemented a number of practices to conserve energy and reduce its negative impact on the environment, such as continuous evaluation and reduced use of water, electricity, paper and other resources, as well as encouraging the use of recycled materials and the primary use of environmentally friendly chemical products. In addition, Villa Dubrovnik is focused on promoting and developing a culture of environmental awareness of its guests, as well as the local community in which it operates, both through guidelines for desirable ecological behavior and by holding workshops and training for guests and the local community.

“Efficient energy management is in line with the vision of Villa Dubrovnik, and we are constantly focused on applying the best practices and respecting the principles of energy efficiency. The Green Globe certification is another confirmation that we operate on environmentally sustainable principles and will continue to do so in the future. We are truly proud because it is also a motive to continue providing our guests the highest level of quality accommodation and services,” said Mirna Stražičić Lončar, director of Villa Dubrovnik.

The Green Globe includes a structured assessment of business sustainability performance, which includes 44 major criteria supported by more than 380 compliance indicators, and the overall standard is reviewed and updated twice in a calendar year.

The Green Globe certification system today includes hoteliers, airlines, car rental companies, tour operators, travel agencies and offices. The Green Globe logo is recognized throughout the world as an international symbol for the protection and promotion of the environment.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

August 25, 2019 - Dubrovnik Airport is set for another record year. 

Ex Yu Aviation reports that Dubrovnik Airport was the fastest-growing airport in the Ex-Yu region in the first sixth months of 2019, adding 157,184 passengers during this period. 

Recall, on Friday, Dubrovnik handled its two-millionth passenger, which came 19 days earlier than 2018. 

Namely, Amanda Lynn Lowe from San Diego, California arrived on Friday by a Croatia Airlines flight from Zurich, Switzerland. Dubrovnik Airport director Frano Luetić congratulated the two-millionth passenger, pointing out that the airport continues breaking records. 

"Reconstruction and improvement over the last six years have brought us growth in traffic. In these seven and a half months, our traffic has increased by 14 percent. In July, we reached a record over half a million passengers, and on August 3, we had a daily record with more of 24,000 passengers,” Luetić emphasized. The airport hopes to reach three million passengers by the end of the year. 

But there are more than a few factors that have contributed to the success of the airport this year, like the new American Airlines seasonal service that connected the United States and Croatia for the first time in almost 30 years. The arrival of popular low-cost carrier Ryanair made an impressive contribution, too.

Furthermore, the third and final phase of the airport's runway overhaul was also completed this year, though the airport modernization is far from over. Namely, Ex Yu reports that the construction of two new rapid exit taxiways, the apron expansion and the construction of new commercial and general aviation aprons, a small general aviation terminal, the development of aircraft, maintenance and operation facilities, and a multi-story car park for 700 vehicles will be the focus of the airport this winter. 

In the first six months of the year, Dubrovnik Airport welcomed the most passengers from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, and Croatia. The airport expressed that this rise in passengers should continue until the end of the year, and especially going into the end of the holiday season. 

"This winter we expect to see British Airways, Aegean Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Trade Air, Turkish Airlines, Vueling and Croatia Airlines maintain flights to Dubrovnik,” Dubrovnik Airport said. 

Recall, British Airways will run four weekly flights from Gatwick this winter, and Aegean Airlines will connect Athens and Dubrovnik two times a week until January 4. 

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

This year, Dubrovnik Airport welcomed its two-millionth passenger 19 days earlier than last year. 

Namely, Amanda Lynn Lowe from San Diego, California arrived on Friday by a Croatia Airlines flight from Zurich, Switzerland, reports N1.

Dubrovnik Airport director Frano Luetić congratulated the two-millionth passenger, pointing out that the airport keeps breaking records. 

"Reconstruction and improvement over the last six years have brought us growth in traffic. In these seven and a half months, our traffic has increased by 14 percent. In July, we reached a record over half a million passengers, and on August 3, we had a daily record with more of 24,000 passengers,” Luetić emphasized.

The airport hopes to reach three million passengers by the end of the year. 

"The number itself is not so important to us, but we place importance on the quality of service. We hope for good financial results as well," Luetić said.

Croatia Airlines commercial director Slaven Zabo is pleased that the two-millionth passenger arrived in Dubrovnik on the flight of the national airline, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.

Croatia Airlines, he added, is connecting Dubrovnik directly with eight international and three domestic destinations this year.

This year's two-millionth passenger at Dubrovnik Airport, a professional bodybuilder, has come to Croatia for an active vacation and will participate in a wellness seminar on the island of Lopud.

This is the third year in a row that Dubrovnik Airport has registered their two millionth passenger - the first time was on September 29, 2017, and last year on September 11.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

August 23, 2019 - Scenes from Gruž port in Dubrovnik on Thursday suggest anything but an improvement in buckling down on the city's cruise ship tourism.

On July 8, 2019, TCN published the results of the "Transportation and Environment" Association, which, along with the support of numerous similar environmental foundations, including the European Commission (EC), conducted extensive research on air pollution in European destinations in ports which accept cruise ships in 2017. The study revealed alarming stats about the pollution levels in Croatia's top destination - Dubrrovnik.

Namely, 27,173 vehicles were registered in Dubrovnik in 2017. During that time, in the port of Gruž, forty such massive vessels sailed in while taking round trips, spending a total of 2,791 hours moored. Thus, 2,523 kilograms of contaminated particles were discharged into Dubrovnik's air.

During that same time, the aforementioned 27,173 vehicles registered in the Dubrovnik area released 11,561 kilograms of exhaust gases into the air. Translated into basic percentages: 20.1 percent of the air pollution in Dubrovnik comes directly from cruise ships.

When considering the release of harmful compounds such as sulfur and nitrogen oxides, the data for Dubrovnik is as follows: During those 2,791 hours of cruise ships being moored in Gruž, cruise ships released a massive 140,259 kilograms of nitrogen oxide into the air, while 27,173 registered vehicles during that same year released 100,174 kilograms of the same harmful compound.

Furthermore, during their stay, cruise ships released 6,344 kilograms of sulfur oxide into Dubrovnik's air, and passenger cars released 331 kilograms of the same compound during that time.

Exactly one month later, on August 8, 2019, TCN reported the following cruise ship statistics according to the Croatian Bureau of Statistics:

In the first six months of 2019, 272 journeys of foreign vessels on cruise were realised in Croatia.

In the period from January to June 2019, there were 54 foreign vessels on cruise that arrived in Croatian seaports, which realised 272 journeys. There were 409 thousand passengers on board who stayed for 554 days in Croatia.

The highest number of cruises was realised by vessels under the flags of Malta (72 cruises) and Italy (45 cruises), while the highest number of passengers on board the arrived vessels were under the flags of Italy (108 thousand passengers) and Panama (100 thousand passengers).
 
Out of a total of 272 journeys of foreign vessels on cruise, the majority was realised in the County of Dubrovnik-Neretva (60.3%) and the County of Split-Dalmatia (25.3%), which makes up the total of 85.6%. The remaining 14.4% of journeys were realised in the following counties: Zadar (5.9%), Istria (4.8%), Primorje-Gorski kotar (2.6%) and Šibenik-Knin (1.1%). 

The most visited seaport was the seaport of Dubrovnik, followed by the seaports of Split and Zadar
 
The majority of visits of foreign vessels on cruise were realised in the seaport of Dubrovnik (195 visits), followed by the seaports of Split (104 visits) and Zadar (45 visits). 

In the period from January to June 2019, the number of journeys of foreign vessels on cruise increased by 10.6% and the total number of sojourns by 6.1%, as compared to the same period of 2018. In the aforementioned period of 2019, the number of passengers on board increased by 14.8%, as compared to the same period of 2018.

Just yesterday, on August 22, 2019, Dalmacija Danas published a photo that perfectly presents the shocking reality of cruise ship tourism in Dubrovnik today. 

You can have a look for yourself below. 

Photo by Boris Bašić 

”Contracts with cruise companies are signed for next year, so that throughout the whole week, from Monday to Sunday, we will have a maximum of two cruisers a day. Sometimes there will be only one, sometimes two will arrive at one or one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. We aspired to that, and now we have achieved it,” the mayor of Dubrovnik, Mato Franković, said last year.

However, Thursday’s view of Gruž reveals an entirely different reality; one where there were twice as many cruisers as promised at the port.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.

August 10, 2019 - The Dubrovnik Veterans are now four-time World Champions! 

The best in Christchurch (New Zealand) in 2002, the best in Rimini (Italy) in 2012, the best in Montreal (Canada) in 2014 and now the best in Gwangju (South Korea) in 2019. For the fourth time in the history of the Dubrovnik club, which was founded in 1997, the Dubrovnik Veterans (Dubrovacki Veterani) are the world champions! Thus, this celebrated veteran team has won a total of six medals from the World Championships (four gold, one silver, and one bronze) and a total of twelve medals in major competitions, reports Dubrovački Vjesnik.

The Dubrovnik Veterans thus secured the gold medal in the category for men older than 45 years of age. On Saturday, the Croatian side was equal in points with YBL-Octopus from Hungary 7:7. In that match, the Hungarian side led only once, and that was at the start for 1:0. Then, YBL Octopus made an incredible comeback, with Dubrovnik leading 2:1, 3:2, 4:3, 5:4, 6:5, and 7:6. One minute and 25 seconds before the end of the game, the Hungarians equalized at 7:7 with an extra man.

Just four hours after the duel against YBL Octopus, the Dubrovnik Veterans were scheduled to play against the weakest team in the tournament - the last-placed BT Guam from the USA, who scored no points and convincingly lost the previous five games. However, the American side forfeited the match, thus giving Dubrovnik 3 points and the top spot of the championship. 

The Dubrovnik Veterans scored 16 of 18 possible championship points. It was their only appearance at the World Championship in the 'plus 45' category without a defeat, with five of the six matches won. YBL Octopus is (currently) in second with 13 points and also concluded their appearance at the Championship. Spandau 04 is in third with 12 points and one match less, but has only three points more than the fourth place team, AMPA ECP from Brazil, who play against each other in the last game of the tournament. A win or a draw for the German side will secure them the second place of the tournament, thus pushing the Hungarian club to third. However, a defeat would leave Spandau 04 without a medal, give the Brazilian club the third while keeping the Hungarian club in second. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

As many of you are already aware, American Airlines connected Croatia and the United States for the first time in 28 years this year. Namely, the Oneworld member began seasonal operations between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik from June 7, which will run until September 27, 2019. The American Airlines service operates using a 209-seat Boeing 767-300ER aircraft with a capacity of 28 seats in business class and 181 seats in economy class, and Wi-Fi services are available throughout the entire flight.

After the airline already boosted operations this year to add a fourth weekly flight on Sundays in September, it looks like the airline has no signs of slowing down for next year. 

Namely, Ex Yu Aviation reports that American Airlines has announced that it will boost operations between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik for the 2020 summer season - and while there is no flight schedule announced yet, the airline’s Vice President of Network and Schedule Planning, Vasu Raja, said that there would be a daily increase on the service.  The service is also expected to run longer next year. 

However, this news should come as no surprise. American Airlines' Managing Director for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa Sales, Tom Lattig, said back in April that there could even be additional flights next year. 

"Wherever we see opportunities and demand, we'll go. As with the opening of our Dubrovnik - Philadelphia line, we are very specific about demand. Central Europe has the greatest growth potential. We are preparing to add more and more new links. We want to continue to lead the market. We will look closely at the results for the first year of operations. We are always looking at new opportunities to grow our network to ensure we offer service to where our customers wish to go,” Lattig said. 

Furthermore, the head of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board, Romana Vlašić, also teased the idea. 

"This pilot project from American Airlines will grow over the coming years to include more American cities as well as new airlines. We have been working intensively on the US market for years and it seems that this work is starting to bear fruit".

Once American Airlines announces its 2020 summer flight schedule, we’ll know exactly how the airline plans to increase operations. 

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.