January the 12th, 2023 - Croatian winter tourism 2022 traffic has managed to reach an impressive 96% of what was realised back during the same period in the pre-pandemic (and record) year of 2019. While 2022 might be in the past, the Croatian winter tourism period is yet to end.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, eVisitor, Croatia's much-praised system for registering guests has returned the aforementioned encouraging data, and from December the 23rd, 2022 to January the 8th, 2023, there were 19 percent more tourist overnight stays realised in the country than there were last winter. On top of that, there were 28 percent more arrivals, and the strongest traffic was again recorded in Zagreb, whose Advent almost returned to the state it was in before the global coronavirus pandemic and the 2020 earthquake.

Almost 600,000 overnight stays were realised across Croatia, and in Zagreb alone, 92 percent of the overnight stays realised before the pandemic and the earthquake, or 31 percent compared to last winter, were realised. The number of overnight stays realised by foreigners had also grown by 35 percent.

Although this year hoteliers were doubtful that they would work over the New Year due to high energy costs, at the end of 2022, 394 hotels remained open across Croatia, which is still 49 less than were open back at the end of 2019. The sunny weather so far in January has also contributed to the biggest jump in visits in the first days of the new year.

"We've entered 2023 with better results than we did back at the beginning of 2019. At the moment, we're recording 32 percent more overnight stays, which includes a 10 percent increase in the continental part of the country, and this is an excellent indicator of continued growth in demand for Croatia and our further positioning as a year-round destination with a diversified, high-value offer.

According to the latest research by the European Travel Commission, Croatia is one of the most sought-after travel destinations in this part of the year, and we want to maintain that status. In our development and promotional activities, we emphasise the offers we have available throughout the year and the fact that by entering the Schengen area and the Eurozone, Croatia is an even easier to reach and safer destination," said Nikolina Brnjac, Minister of Tourism and Sport.

During the Christmas and New Year period, the most overnight stays were realised in Istria (133 thousand), in Kvarner (123 thousand) and in Zagreb (97 thousand).

Looking at the destinations individually when it comes to the Croatian winter tourism 2022 results, during the period of Christmas and New Year break, Zagreb has been recording the most overnight stays with the aforementioned figure of 97 thousand overnight stays, Opatija comes in second with more than 42 thousand, followed by Split with almost 36 thousand overnight stays. Then follows Dubrovnik with almost 35 thousand overnight stays, Rovinj with more than 31 thousand and Porec with almost 28 thousand overnight stays.

In addition to domestic guests who are responsible for the most overnight stays realised in the aforementioned winter period, more than 190,000 were foreign guests. The most overnight stays among foreign tourists were realised by Austrians, Slovenians, Germans and Italians. In Zagreb, the most overnight stays were from people visiting from elsewhere in Croatia, followed by those from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Germany, Slovenia, Serbia and Austria.

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

October the 8th, 2022 - Days of Croatian Tourism (DHT) 2022 is currently being held in the historic Dalmatian city of Sibenik, where the ups and downs of the Croatian tourism picture are discussed, and plans to move forward to a more sustainable future are showcased. One bit of excellent news for 2022 is that the number of Croatian arrivals in September this year were higher than they were back in the same month of pre-pandemic 2019.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, This year's DHT manifestation is being held in the City of Sibenik this year and kicked off in the atmosphere of a good season that filled the budgets and coffers of the tourism sector. Grants from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NPOO) in the total value of 2.2 billion kuna for public and private sector projects are also about to be implemented, for which tenders were announced very recently and will remain open until February 2023.

Those figures on tourist traffic in September are encouraging as the number of Croatian arrivals that month surpassed those of the record year of 2019 by one percentage point in terms of the number of overnight stays realised. According to data from Croatia's eVisitor system, during September this year, 2.2 million Croatian arrivals and 12.9 million overnight stays were achieved across the country. This is equal to 16 percent more arrivals and 7 percent more overnight stays than in September 2021. Compared to September 2019, 95 percent of arrivals and 101 percent of overnight stays were achieved, equal to one percent more overnight stays realised than in September 2019.

In the first nine months of 2022, there were 17.2 million Croatian arrivals and 99.7 million overnight stays realised, that is, 37 percent more arrivals and 24 percent more overnight stays than last year.

"This year, we're going to be placing special focus on the importance of developing sustainable tourism, as well as on doing sustainable business in Europe as the most competitive regional tourism market in the entire world. There can be no competitive tourism without high-quality and professional personnel, therefore we're giving the opportunity to young high school students who will present their own projects and solutions as to how tourism can combine tradition and new technologies in a very innovative way, as well as offer challenges and solutions.

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

August the 31st, 2022 - How can Croatian numbers tallied up during the summer tourist season be accurate if as many as 40% of visitors are allegedly not even being registered properly?

As Morski writes, the Republic of Croatia has just passed the peak of the height of the summer tourist season. Forecasts say that income from tourism could reach an enormous twelve billion euros, that is, it will exceed the previous record set back in pre-pandemic 2019 by at least 800 million euros. However, not everyone in tourism did equally well. Travel agencies aren't keen on opening the champagne just yet. They're not at 2019's levels and for them, this season isn't exactly a "record" one.

Among those specialising in "organised tourism", this year also saw a major consolidation of the market. A major global player in the private accommodation segment recognised the potential of smaller renters, this was commented on by the president of the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies, Tomislav Fain.

He said that tourists have arrived at various Croatian destinations as evidenced by the congestion on the roads and at the airports, adding that the post-season now stretches until November the 1st, which is the result of the work of both the public and private sectors.

Croatian numbers aren't even close to accurate

''I'm extremely satisfied with the tourist season and we have a large number of guests here, however, the Croatian numbers that are displayed through eVisitor, which we have at our disposal, aren't even close to being accurate. The actual numbers of guests are up to 40 percent higher because a large number weren't even registered at all,'' he pointed out.

''I don't think any agency operating along the coast can possibly complain about July or August this year. Even if this year ends like 2019 did, we can't forget that we had two years in which we worked at a mere 10 to 30 percent, and just one normal season isn't enough for travel agencies to recover from what happened. In order to keep hold of our clients, property was sold, debt was incurred and it will take at least 4.5 years to recover,'' he said.

''School trips are coming back, and as the situation was uncertain, everyone showed up at the last minute. At one point, we couldn't respond to all the needs of the market. I hope that with the beginning of this school year it will also normalise. As for congress tourism, one part of that was completed in April and May, and in September and October, we can expect that additional boom in that regard,'' Fain believes.

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

August the 3rd, 2022 - Tomislav Fain, the president of the Croatian Association of Travel Agencies, has claimed that private accommodation renters/landlords renting out their properties to tourists during the summer season aren't bothering to register as many as 40 percent of their guests via the eVisitor system at all.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the problem being currently faced by the wider area of Zadar County is illegal accommodation renters and illegal work/earning in this sector. The president of the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies, Tomislav Fain, has recently stated that up to forty percent of guests are staying in the country undeclared, pointing out that it is necessary to strengthen inspection supervision to curb this trend.

Tomislav Fain told HRT that a large number of landlords who have a categorisation on their properties for renting them out to foreign visitors during the summer for some quick and easy cash, do not register their guests via the eVisitor system or even attempt to do it in the ''old way'' with MUP.

"It's very simple, we have a certain number of capacities in a particular place, and when we look at the application that goes through eVisitor, we arrive to some very simple data, that forty percent of guests are simply not being registered at all.

We also need to be aware of the fact that in addition to those renters that aren't registering their guests, but have a categorisation, we also have a certain number of accommodation facilities which don't have a categorisation, and yet they still continue to receive guests and still advertise their apartments for rent on platforms,'' he said.

Tomislav Fain emphasised the fact that this figure is even higher, and creates various problems, from communal ones to the development of a specific destination. Therefore, incorrect data is obtained, and the preparation of upcoming tourist seasons cannot be carried out with quality or accuracy in mind.

''Some individuals who don't register guests don't bother issuing an invoice for the guest either, so they're not in the VAT system, and therefore they're paying less to the state. Some individuals are careless, they simply forget to register their guests and don't do it with any underhand motives in mind. They should be appealed to, to not be so careless,'' he said.

For those who deliberately avoid their obligations, inspection supervision should be strengthened and the proper punishments should be doled out, Fain believes.

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

June the 3rd, 2022 - Croatian tourist arrivals are showing some very refereshing numbers following two pandemic-dominated years in which things were extremely slow and concerning for all stakeholders in Croatia's strongest economic branch.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, more than 190,000 tourists are currently staying across the Republic of Croatia, continuing the good trend from May with 1.3 million arrivals and 4.9 million overnight stays, which is 178 and 155 percent more than was recorded back during same month in 2021.

Of the current 190,000 tourists in Croatia, about 175,000 are foreigners, most of them Germans, Austrians and Britons. Tourists from Croatia, Poland, Slovenia and the USA follow, according to data from the country's eVisitor and eCrew systems.

When it comes to the most recent Croatian tourist arrivals, most visitors are staying overnight in hotels and camps, with slightly less staying in private accommodation, while in May most overnight stays were recorded in hotels, 1.8 million of them to be precise, followed by private accommodation with 1.1 million, in camps more than a million overnight stays were recorded, and in the nautical charter, 326 thousand overnight stays were officially realised.

Back during the month of May 2022, with a total of 1.3 million Croatian tourist arrivals and 4.9 million overnight stays realised, the level of 78 and 86 percent of the traffic from May 2019, considered by all to be a record year, was successfully and very encouragingly reached.

During the first five months of this year, there were almost 10 million overnight stays recorded, or 153 percent more than in the same period last year, during which Croatia officially recorded 2.9 million overnight stays. When compared to the pre-pandemic, record year od 2019, that’s 77 percent of the results in terms of Croatian tourist arrivals and 88 percent in terms of realised/recorded overnight stays.

Croatian tourist arrivals throughout the height of the summer season are expected to continue to be excellent, as long as nothing drastic changes in regard to the coronavirus pandemic, which is barely being considered as an issue at all anymore, and as long as the ongoing war in Ukraine doesn't escalate even further.

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

February the 22nd, 2022 - The new and updated version of the frequently-praised Croatian eVisitor system has been created as part of the much wider Croatian Digital Tourism project.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, as part of the Croatian Digital Tourism project, which is being carried out by the Ministry of Tourism and Sport and co-financed by the European Union (EU) within the Competitiveness and Cohesion Operational Programme 2014-2020 from the European Regional Development Fund, a new and upgraded version of the Croatian eVisitor system was created, which is intended for the registration of tourist traffic and for the calculation and control of tourist tax collection.

"One of the segments of the Croatian Digital Tourism project is the upgrade of the award-winning Croatian eVisitor system in order to be even more efficient and better adapted to the needs of its users. New functionalities have been introduced that will improve business processes, so it will no longer be necessary to physically go to the tourist board to register a non-commercial facility (cottage), and communication between landlords and tourist boards has been improved. Ultimately, the Croatian Digital Tourism project will create a complete digital story, a set of innovative tools to facilitate the business of stakeholders in the tourism system.

The Croatian Digital Tourism Project, along with the Croatian eVisitor system, envisages the development and improvement of public e-services in tourism through TURegistar - a Central Register for Hospitality and Tourism Services, TUStart - Registration of activities and business start-ups in the field of tourism and hospitality, TURiznicu - an allocation system available support in tourism and Croatia.hr - Tourist Information Portal,'' said the Minister of Tourism and Sport, Nikolina Brnjac.

The Croatian eVisitor system has positioned the country at the very top of the world in terms of innovative technological solutions when it comes to tourism, and the most significant innovations include a completely new design that is in line with the design of the wider Croatian Digital Tourism project. Additionally, it has been made possible to display basic information about tourist membership fees, download payment slips for said tourist membership fees, and it is now easier to edit and post pictures of accommodation facilities on the Croatia.hr portal.

"The Croatian eVisitor system is a domestic product that makes this country unique in comparison with the rest of the world. The fact that this is an exceptional technological solution has been confirmed with the winning of an award from the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), which this project won in the category of innovation in research and technology. Now we've further upgraded and improved the system, functions have been introduced that will further contribute to the ongoing development of the Croatian tourism sector, while for many users the system will be an even more powerful tool in developing tourist offers, ie defining their marketing and promotional activities,'' explained CNTB director Kristjan Stanicic.

Additional connections with other systems and institutions are planned, such as the Joint Land Registry and Cadastre Information System, the State Inspectorate, the OIB system, etc, while the connection with the Central Tourist Register will significantly change the current process of the registration of commercial facilities. On top of that, the business of tourist boards, private renters and other users of the Croatian eVisitor system will be greatly facilitated and improved.

For more, check out our travel section.

February the 15th, 2022 - Croatia certainly loves to sit back and count the overnight stays during the tourist season, but as sustainable tourism becomes the direction in which more and more countries are heading in, how much can other countries look towards the Croatian eVisitor system for inspiration?

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, in the near future, EU member states will no longer measure their tourism results through arrivals and overnight stays being registered, but with the help of digital technologies and artificial intelligence, unique, standardised tools will be developed to monitor EU-wide social, environmental and economic impacts.

So far, the deadlines for the introduction of these new metrics haven't been defined, which will include changes in legislation and a number of new infrastructure solutions, but national tourist boards will play a key role in this.

The experience of the Croatian eVisitor system could have a significant impact on the process, as has since been learned. The plan for the introduction of new statistical methods for monitoring the results of tourism, with the introduction of sustainable solutions and digitisation is the most important topic of the just published report of the European Commission (EC).

It is a document that confirms the agreement of EU tourist boards to implement new tourism metrics and to give priority to both residents and tourists when it comes to tourism services, instead of harmfully imposing the number of nights as the only criterion for growth and development.

The report was created together with the destinations of the European Union and industrial players. Some analysts of global trends suggest it could be a turning point for the future of EU tourism, while others are skeptical about its future implementation, which has not yet been defined.

"We believe that European national tourism organisations should be the European Commission's main partner and play a major role in implementing these solutions in the coming years. While most have well-established tools to provide a wide range of key performance indicators related to the quantitative economic aspects of tourism, most still struggle with the lack of a broader picture of the impact of tourism,'' said Luis Araujo, President of the European Travel Commission.

He is convinced that expanding metrics and coordination at European Union level will significantly facilitate the sustainable transition of destinations. The Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB) will also actively participate in the process.

"This is a document created in the context of pandemic-induced disorders and which, among other things, emphasises the need for more sustainable tourism and tourism that is more resilient to crises. Green and digital transitions stand out as key, especially in areas such as sustainable competitiveness, legislation and policy, technical solutions and infrastructure. Great emphasis has also been placed on the collection of other types of data, such as tourist traffic, as well as environmental, economic and social indicators.

In this regard, the ETC and national tourism organisations are already working to establish a single set of indicators that could monitor and compare European Union destinations in terms of the impact of tourism and tourism sustainability,'' the CNTB revealed.

They also added that the CNTB can contribute to the collection and processing of this data with existing solutions, such as the world's unique technological solution for monitoring and analysing tourist traffic, the Croatian eVisitor system, but also by developing new smart digital solutions and services and improving knowledge and skills, as well as the further development and management of tourist destinations and products.

They also added that various national documents that are being drafted, the Strategy for the Development of Sustainable Tourism until 2030 and the National Plan for the Development of Sustainable Tourism from 2021 to 2027 should also contribute to the process.

For more, check out our travel section.

July 29, 2021 - The latest report from the eVisitor system gives an impressive and hopeful number for Croatian tourism: one million tourists are currently in Croatia!

According to current data from the eVisitor system, there are currently more than 1 million and 6 thousand tourists in Croatia, of which 866,000 are foreign tourists and 140,000 domestic tourists, reports HrTurizam.

Most tourists currently stay in Istria (273,000), Split-Dalmatia (191,000), and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County (187,000). It is followed by Zadar County (168,000) and Šibenik-Knin County (77,000) and Dubrovnik-Neretva County (62,000). Most tourists are currently in Rovinj, Vir, and Porec.

In terms of markets, the largest number of foreign tourists currently in Croatia come from Germany (203,000), Slovenia (140,000), Poland (86,000), Austria (75,000) and the Czech Republic (61,000).

"There are currently more than a million tourists in Croatia, which is 220,000 more than at the same time last year. These figures are the best confirmation that all previous activities and preparations of the tourism sector for this year were of high quality and that our guests recognized it. We are still in the period with the largest influx of tourists in the year and I call on everyone to remain responsible, adhere to epidemiological measures and recommendations, and thus protect ourselves and others, "said Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac.

Also, a new ECDC map is expected today, for which we all hope that the Adriatic will remain in orange. In the event that the Adriatic turns red, it will certainly immediately affect the reservations, but still, it should not be as drastic a situation as last year. The biggest problem will be if the states put the need for quarantine to return from Croatia, in case the Adriatic ends in the red.

For more on Croatian tourism and destinations that you might want to pay a visit to in the near future, make sure to follow our dedicated travel section.

April the 30th, 2021 - GDPR in Croatian tourism must be as respected as it is in all forms of society. The protection of personal data is of paramount importance when taking information from guests, but just how is GDPR used, respected, and above all not violated in Croatian tourism?

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Suzana Varosanec writes, the processing of personal data of guests for the purpose of putting the detais of a guest into Croatia's well known eVisitor system is based on the Tourist Tax Act and the Ordinance on the eVisitor system, and as such represents a legal obligation of private accommodation owners/managers. In the event that a guest refuses to provide information, the service provider has the right to refuse to provide the service. However, this situation can be circumvented by informing guests in advance about the processing of data through, for example, a privacy policy online.

If GDPR in Croatian tourism is being looked at through the eyes of private accommodation providers who own their own websites, care should be taken to ask for consent for cookies (other than the necessary ones) and a short information notice about them should be provided. Such renters should also have a policy or privacy statement available.

All of the above information was provided during training on personal data protection and harmonisation with the GDPR in Croatian tourism, as part of which an online interactive workshop organised by the Personal Data Protection Agency (AZOP) and the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK). The information was presented to 230 participants who were interested in the correct processing of personal data and specifics in the tourism industry.

Furthermore, the copying and scanning of personal documents and their archiving is not allowed unless OCR scanning methods are used which automatically process only the data that are allowed to be taken and absolutely nothing else. Those guests who pay for excursions (such as in active tourism) don't need to give consent, but must, in accordance with the Law on the Provision of Services in Tourism, be informed both verbally and in writing before the excursion takes place.

The aforementioned training session's aim is to support enterprises in the Croatian tourism industry in harmonising all of their business processes with the provisions of the sometimes confusing GDPR. This form of training was one of the activities conducted by this Agency, within the implementation of the EU project ARC (Awareness Raising Campaign for SMEs), with the same the goal, which is to support SMEs in aligning their business processes with GDPR rules.

For more on Croatian tourism, make sure to follow our travel section.

ZAGREB, September 21, 2020 - In August 2020, there were over 1.75 million beds in tourist accommodation, including 1.2 million in commercial and 555,000 in non-commercial accommodation, down 0.7% and up 10% on the year respectively, according to eVisitor.

Commercial accommodation accounted for 79.4% of all overnights (16.7 million), down 40% from August 2019.

Private accommodation, with 615,500 beds, accounted for 51.6% of all commercial beds, although it had 14,000 fewer beds than in August 2019. This type of accommodation accounted for 46% of all overnights (9.6 million), down 31.2% on the year.

Campsites accounted for 15.3% of all August overnights (3.2 million), down 47.6% on the year, although they offered 3,000 more beds, 255,200 in all, accounting for 21.4% of all beds.

Hotels had 176,500 beds, 1,100 more than in August 2019, accounting for 15% of all commercial beds and for 12% of all overnights, i.e. 2.5 million, down 51% on the year.

Accommodation on family farms had 2,600 beds, 182 more than in August 2019, and recorded 26,000 overnights, down 15% year on year.

Other commercial accommodation had 132,400 beds, 2,450 more than in August 2019, and recorded 1.3 million overnights, down 41.5% on the year.

Nautical tourism recorded 586,000 overnights in August 2020, down 25.1% on the year.

Non-commercial accommodation recorded 3.7 million overnights, down 16.5% on the year, accounting for 17.7% of all August 2020 overnights.

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