March 12, 2019 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for new flights to Croatia with updates from Rijeka, Dubrovnik, and Split.

We reported recently on the truly tragic situation that Ston's precious oysters had found themselves stuck in. In short, this famed gem of southern Dalmatian cuisine had fallen victim to Norovirus after septic tanks weren't being cleaned out properly, and the traditional Days of Mali Ston Oysters, which was due to be held on the 16th of this month, had to be cancelled for health and safety reasons.

While the news was indeed as sad as it was alarming, has a solution to Mali Ston's Norovirus problem been found?

As Morski writes on the 11th of March, 2019, there appears to no longer be any detected presence of the potentially deadly Norovirus in Mali Ston. This was confirmed to Dubrovacki list by dr. Sc. Eddy Listeš from the Veterinary Institute of Split.

The last tests on the matter were carried out last Friday, but unfortunately the paperwork confirming the absence of Norovirus from the area and its beloved oysters has not yet reached those to whom such a document of confirmation is of vital importance.

To briefly recall, back at the very beginning of March, discovered via the regular sampling of the seawater and shellfish (oyster) quality, the presence of Norovirus was established.

Norovirus, otherwise of human origin, is the cause of infections of the digestive system. Norovirus wreaks havoc in the human digestive system, causing violent diarrhoea, vomiting, the inability to hold any food or liquid down, often resulting in dehydration and the need for emergency hospital treatment, and sometimes even in death. It is transmitted from person to person, via the fecal-oral route, typically through food contaminated by the fecal matter of infected persons and contact with surfaces contaminated with Norovirus. Norovirus is highly contagious and its symptoms, which as described above are often severe, tend to manifest quickly.

Having the potentially massive health issues that could be caused by the consumption of Mali Ston oysters which have come into contact with Norovirus in mind, a decision was made by the organiser of the traditional Day of Mali Ston Oysters to cancel the beloved event, writes Dubrovacki list.

Vlado Onofri, a respected senior scientific advisor at the University of Dubrovnik said that septic tanks, which in themselves would not be problematic were the situaton involving just several family houses, were the cause of the Norovirus issue. The situation that has arisen in the Dubrovnik area as a whole is that there are now a lot of apartments and far too many people, without anyone properly dealing with the septic tanks and the dangerous bacteria and viruses that gather there.

"Septic tanks can't withstand that pressure and it (everything that builds up in them) has to come out somwhere. That's it. We've sh*t on ourselves,'' stated Onofri.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle page for more. If it's just Dubrovnik and southern Dalmatia you're interested in, give Total Dubrovnik a follow.

One of the richest people in the Balkans is putting his money where his mouth is in Dubrovnik's picturesque Lapad area, known for its beach, Cave Bar More, and numerous hotels. Tihomir Brajković is kicking off his investment in Dubrovnik with the construction of six luxury villas in this location in the Pearl of the Adriatic.

As Novac/Anton Hauswitschka writes on the 9th of March, 2019, Tihomir Brajković, a well known businessman from Kiseljak, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and one of the richest people in the Balkans, is busy going to work constructing six brand new luxury villas in Babin kuk (Lapad) just above Hotel More. The removal of trees and other rubble has already begun, and excavation work could be next, according to a report from dubrovački.hr.

Brajković, or more specifically his very appropriately named Dubrovnik-based company ''Six Luxury Villas d.o.o.'', is the owner of some very attractive land located along Ulica Kardinala Stepinca (Cardinal Stepinac street) right next to some residential buildings.

Unconfirmed news from Dubrovnik's city administration claims that Brajković has indeed started with the preparation of a land parcel according to the current general urban plan in the construction zone, and it is soon expected that the investor will request the necessary building permits to continue. This procedure, as they say, may take up to a year, but as long as the current spatial plans are properly in place, there is no reason that all of the necessary documentation won't be able to be obtained.

The very few who have seen the conceptual design say that they are buildings that will give their future owners the ultimate sense of total luxury and that their architectural bases remind them of the buildings across on the other side of town in the Eastern location of Sveti Jakov. Novac tried to find out directly from the Kiseljak entrepreneur what will exactly happen when he starts building in Dubrovnik, but contact with him from Dubrovnik failed.

Brajkovic founded the company ''Six Luxury Villas'', based on Vukovarska Ulica (Vukovar street), in the former DTS building, back in 2015. More specifically, the company's founder is his Swiss company PET engineering AG, which is led, at least according to the Swiss register, by Josip Šubašić, while Brajković himself is the director of the Dubrovnik-based company.

It's worth recalling the fact that Tihomir Brajković is the owner of Tibra Pacific and Meso-Impex, and has made his fortune in the construction sector, more precisely in terms of housing construction. In Sarajevo, in the Stup area in August last year, Brajković started building a business-residential complex which consisted of three buildings, while at the same time the media in neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina incessantly ran negative stories on his Meso-Impex company, which allegedly owes the state more than 9 million convertible marks.

Brajković also become better known to the Croatian public when he planned to build a residential building in Makarska back in 2015 with its own state-owned observatory and astro park incorporated into it.

Although Forbes recently listed him on its enviable list of the wealthiest entrepreneurs in the region, Tihomir Brajković himself is a man who seems to consciously avoid the media and other forms of publicity. An individual picture of him is impossible to find, he isn't inclined to making media statements, nor is he inclined to accepting other types of interviews. In recent years however, he has quietly invested heavily in numerous projects and investments and even managed to negotiate the construction of a hydro power plant on the river Bosna with authorities in Zavidovići.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business page for more on doing business in Croatia, investing in Croatia, and the overall business and investment climate within the country.

Click here for the original article by Anton Hauswitschka for Novac/Jutarnji

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

Lopud's stunning Lafodia Sea Resort wows once again, this time taking home a prestigious award. Little else could be expected of this truly beautiful hotel located on an idyllic southern Dalmatian island, just a short boat ride from the City of Dubrovnik.

Winning the prestigious Best Seaside Hotel for Meetings and Events, Lafodia Sea Resort, with more than 150 rooms, showcased its individuality and wow factor. This award means a lot to Lafodia, because the resort has been chosen among seven other hotels some with five stars and chosen by those from within the profession and by people who are the professional organisers of all kinds of event. This welcome recognition means that lafodia Sea Resort is not only recognised by highly appreciated on the market.

The SEEbtm Awards is an awards ceremony powered by SEEbtm magazine, to the best and most prominent hotels and venues in the meetings industry for the current year, based on the votes of the readers, event organisers, and the jury of SEEbtm magazine. The expert jury was made up of 27 representatives of some of the most prominent international companies and each one of them is in charge of the event's organisation.

These awards were established back in 2016 with the idea of rewarding and therefore stimulating positive changes in this very demanding industry and market. SEEbtm magazine specializes in business travel and the events industry in the Southeastern European region, and is supported by the leading regional portal Kongresniturizam.com, which has now been operating for more than twelve years.

Under the expert organisation of the portal Kongresniturizam and the specialised magazine SEEbtm, on November the 15th, 2018, in Belgrade, Serbia, the meetings industry of the region traditionally gathered for the seventh time at the SEEbtm Party, an event which has continued to profile itself as a strong networking platform of key stakeholders in the meetings industry, as well as those in the expert field of event management.

At the SEEbtm Awards gathering, prestigious recognition was given to some of the best hotels and venues in our region in seventeen categories, based on the votes of those who are buyers in the meetings industry, people from the meetings industry from within the region, the clients of the nominated candidates, and the SEEbtm magazine team itself.

What was especially important was the innovation in the voting of an expert jury, composed of the representatives of some of the most eminent companies and organisations which deal with the organisation of events across the region, and their members voted for the best, according to their experience and their valued opinion.

Have Croats managed to destroy their beloved Ston oysters with feces? Maybe. It sounds like another negative and inflammatory headline about how nobody can do anything right, but according to one respected expert, this might really be the case.

Norovirus is a potentially dangerous virus of the Caliciviridae family which causes 19 to 21 million illnesses, 56,000 to 71,000 hospitalisations and as many as 570 to 800 deaths per year according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Often called stomach flu, Norovirus is highly contagious, and is known to mercilessly tear through populations of people in concentrated areas, cruise ships are a particular favourite playground for the virus.

Symptoms, which include chronic vomiting and diarrhoea can become very severe very quickly, rendering a person unable to hold anything down, eventually leading to extreme weakness, sudden weight loss, dehydration, and the need for emergency treatment. Now we've covered the basics of this microscopic devil, how has the presence of Norovirus managed to infiltrate Ston's long oyster-based traditions? Perhaps more importantly, just how have the Croats succeeded in allowing such danger to seriously threaten Ston's most prized gastronomic offer?

As Index writes on the 5th of March, 2019, Vlado Onofri, a scientific advisor at the University of Dubrovnik spoke to Libero portal and explained that the Croats have indeed managed to destroy southern Dalmatia's internationally adored gourmet delicacy. He said that the cause was the unsolved issue of the area's sewage network, more specifically septic tanks that are full, and not being emptied. Such conditions lead to the presence of potentially dangerous viruses and bacteria, including the potentially fatal Norovirus.

Because of the presence of Norovirus on three of the five control points on which Ston's beloved oysters are grown, the Day of Mali Ston Oysters, which was supposed to take place on March the 16th, has now been cancelled for health and safety reasons.

"I'm sorry for the hospitality and catering facilities and for oyster lovers, I know they'll lose out on a lot because of this, but some things need to be said in order to start sorting things out," said Vlado Onofri rather bluntly, who claims that when it comes to Croatia's very unfortunate oyster situation, there's nobody to blame but the Croats themselves.

"There will certainly be a reaction after all of this, but come on, have someone show me that they've paid for the emptying of the septic tanks! Nobody will show you that! Except the Koruna restaurant, which I know keep their oysters in pools and they're absolutely fine for consumption. That's the only example [of that] in Ston.

The entire area hasn't had its sewage situation solved adequately, and it was the obligation of the state to resolve it at the beginning of the eighties when the sewage [system] was being done. Mali Ston and Veliki Ston were meant to be connected to the entire sewage system, this wasn't done and now after so many years, it's time to pay! You know how it goes with septic tanks, when there were small households, there were small quantities, but now there's a lot more, it's all too full up, and nobody is emptying them!" Onofri said.

This isn't the first time a virus has appeared in these oysters.

"Three years ago, there was a problem. People got food poisoning, started having diarrhoea, vomiting... that's Norovirus, viruses aren't harmless things, that virus can live for hundreds of years in sludge, when it comes across live tissue, it becomes virulent again (a pathogen's ability to infect its live host) because it crystallises its capsomer (a covering of protein that protects the genetic material of a virus). I'm good with virology and I know what I'm talking about because I did a Master of Science in the 1980s, and later a doctorate in Ston,'' Onofri explained, backing up his claims.

"We're dependant on the whims of humans and nature"

He also provided a response to the question of how long this dire situation might last:

"The oysters can quickly get rid of the virus if they're in clean water, meaning that we need purification pools that we don't have. There was an idea to make them in Bistrina, and I personally brought plans from France to show what this should look like. There were ideas thrown around about doing that, but it hasn't been done. This is an absolute necessity, for when such things do happen, to end up with a sanitised and proper product. Now we're depending on the whims of humans and nature when it comes to how our products end up! The pools weren't made because of a protected reserve where nothing at all can be constructed,'' stated Onofri.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated lifestyle page.

March 6, 2019 - Continuing our healthy look at the Great Outdoors with our favourite active one man and dog team, Outdoors Croatia hits the old walls of Dubrovnik.

I really hope that these guys from Outdoors Croatia are getting some nice official financial support for the incredible work they do. 

The one man and dog team have seemingly covered every inch of this beautiful country - traversing its mountains, rivers, lakes and seas, all the while filming spectacular footage. As an advert for adventure tourism for Croatia, there is nothing better online, at least in my opinion. Check out the entire YouTube collection on the official channel. 

In their latest video, they have some in from the wilds and visiting one of Croatia's top attractions, the UNESCO World Hertiage Site and old city walls in Dubrovnik. 

The wildly popular walls, made even famous at the setting for Game of Thrones' Kings Landing, attract over a million visitors each year. 

And so the chance to get them to yourself is pretty rare. 

All the more beauty, then as this energetic one man and his dog, armed with a drone and trademark fabulous sunny Dubrovnik day, make their way around the historic walls. Fabulous.

Croatian airports did not slow down even in February when they continued recording stellar results.

Mediterranean Fair of Healthy Food, Medicinal Herbs and Green Enterpreunership will be held again this year in the period between 14th and 17th of March in Hotel Tirena in Dubrovnik.

One of the facts which give Croatia a lot of advantage is its location: being located right on the border of continental and Mediterranean climates enables the production of top quality medicinal plants and organic food.

That's why, in 2004, a fair which was supposed to attract producers from all over Croatia and neighboring countries was started in Dubrovnik, and it has grown substantially in previous years, to now become one of the leading such gatherings of producers of healthy foods and medicinal plants and herbs in the region.The fair is organized with several goals in mind, which include raising consciousness of the importance of producing and consuming healthier foods, ecological standards in the food production, sustainable development, and balance between the nature, economy and people. Those goals are achieved each year through education in lectures, workshops, round tables and scientific congress meetings. To promote higher quality of exhibitors’ presentations and ecological products, the organizers have established rewards for the best presentation, the best product, the best herbal product, and contribution for promotion of eco–economy in Croatia. 

Each year, organisations participating in the fair include the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Tourism, Croatian National Tourist Board, Croatian Chamber of Commerce, Croatian Chamber of Trades and Crafts, Dubrovnik–Neretva County and City of Dubrovnik. In addition to those institutional participants, numerous leading Croatian and international scientists and reputable producers in the field have confirmed their attendance at the fair.

So, if you are in any way interested in activities aimed to promote sustainable development and healthy way of living by using ecologically acceptable products, you should consider going to Babin Kuk and Dubrovnik for the Mediterranean Fair, as it is probably the best place in Croatia to learn more about the healthy foods production in the Mediterranean region.

Mljet has been given the responsibility of caring for Dubrovnik-Neretva County's very first firefighting boat, which has been procured thanks to EU funds.

As Morski writes on the 2nd of March, 2019, Dubrovnik-Neretva County prefect Nikola Dobroslavić handed over the first firefighting vessel in Dubrovnik-Neretva County in Dubrovnik's port on Friday. The vessel is named Sveti Florijan, named after the patron saint of Linz.

The vessel was handed over by the prefect to the mayor of Mljet, Đivo Marketa, who immediately presented and subsequently handed it over to commander of Mljet's fire brigade, to Mario Dabelić.

Prefect Nikola Dobroslavić stressed that this is an excellent example of good use of the money made available to Croatia from European Union funds.

''The ship is largely financed by EU funds through a project conducted by Dubrovnik-Neretva County. This is the first firefighting boat in our county, and JVP Mljet (Mljet fire brigade) will be responsible for it, but of course it will be available to the whole of this southern area. Another firefighting vessel is coming to the City of Dubrovnik soon and this is a significant addition to the safety and the possibility of interventions being made at sea. This ship will be used for firefighting on boats, as well as in some other emergency situations,'' stated Dobroslavić, among other things.

Sveti Florijan is the first firefighter in Dubrovnik-Neretva County, otherwise Croatia's southernmost county, area acquired by the southern Dalmatian county as part of the scope of the European project AdriaMORE, which is otherwise one of the projects currently being implemented by the Interreg Croatia-Italy cross-border program.

The project activities of Dubrovnik-Neretva County are worth around 350,000 kuna, of which 85 percent are being co-financed with the very welcome funds of the European Regional Development Fund, and the remaining 15 percent are financed by the county's own funds.

A shipbuilding contract, worth about 950,000 kuna, was signed last September with Damor d.o.o., and, as previously mentioned, the new firefighting vessel will be taken care of by Mljet's fire brigade and by Mljet Municipality.

Dubrovnik-Neretva County organised the ceremony as part of the activities on this year's International Civil Protection Day, which was marked on March the 1st.

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