ZAGREB, 15 June, 2021 - Croatian Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac met with Bavaria's Deputy Premier and Minister of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy, Hubert Aiwanger, in Munich on Monday to discuss ways of increasing cooperation in the tourism sector.

Brnjac said that Croatia and Bavaria would continue exchanging experience and best practice in the digitalisation of tourism services and the development of cultural and rural tourism, her ministry announced in a press release.

"Croatia and Bavaria put emphasis on the development of sustainable tourism, and their cooperation in many areas of common interest has been going on for about 50 years within the Bavarian-Croatian Commission," Brnjac said.

She noted that half of German tourists visiting Croatia come from Bavaria, which is why it is very important for Croatia to convey the information on the activities that are being undertaken so that Croatia is recognised as a pleasant and safe destination.

Bavaria supports Croatia's Schengen membership bid

Aiwanger said there was a lot of space for cooperation between Croatia and Bavaria in the tourism sector, emphasising that Bavaria supported Croatia's accession to the Schengen area next year as an important precondition for facilitating movement of tourists.

The working meeting was also attended by the deputy president of the ADAC motoring association for tourism and finance, Karlheinz Jungbeck.

Brnjac and Jungbeck discussed preparations for the summer tourist season as well as expectations and plans for future development. Brnjac said that the cooperation with ADAC, which has 22 million members, ensured the greater visibility of Croatia on the German market, adding that today's meeting set a framework for future institutional cooperation.

According to ADAC, there is a growing interest in visiting Croatia, notably in the camping segment. This year ADAC included 134 Croatian campsites on its list of the best European campsites, the same number as in 2019, and 13 of the campsites were rated as ADAC Superplatz 2021.

About 42,000 Germans are currently vacationing in Croatia, mostly in Istria. Last year German tourists generated 1.6 million arrivals and 12.7 overnight stays, which was 60 percent of overnight stays made in 2019 when a record 21.2 million overnight stays were generated by German visitors. Last year, the 12.7 million overnight stays made by German tourists accounted for 23 percent of total overnight stays in Croatia.

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ZAGREB, 11 June 2021 - As of Sunday the majority of Croatia will no longer be considered as epidemiologically risky for Germany, the Robert Koch Institute announced on Friday, while the German foreign ministry plans to lift a general travel warning as of the start of July.

After it had removed Dubrovnik-Neretva, Istria, Karlovac, Krapina-Zagorje, Požega-Slavonia and Split-Dalmatia counties from its list of risky areas, Germany's epidemiological institute had taken the remaining counties in Croatia off the list of risky areas with the exception of Međimurje and Varaždin counties.

The decision enters into force on Sunday, which means that anyone returning to Germany will not be required to present a negative COVID test or to digitally register their return. Anyone travelling to Germany by air will still need to have a negative test.

The Robert Koch Institute has removed many European countries from the list of risky areas such as Austria, Bosnia and  Herzegovina, Serbia and the USA. Slovenia is still considered to be a risk area.

Germany's foreign minister Heiko Maas also announced lifting a general travel warning for areas with a 7-day incidence rate of less than 200.

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May 15, 2021 - A German film crew visited Novalja last week to shoot a promotional film called ‘‘My Novalja on the Island of Pag’’, and will premiere in mid-June 2021.

The Tourist Board of the City of Novalja, in cooperation with the company Pointers Travel d.o.o. and in co-production with the German production company Blue Planet TV from Berlin, agreed to collaborate on a 22-minute report on the tourist destination Novalja called Meine Novalja Auf Dem Inseln Pag (My Novalja on the Island of Pag)

As turistickeprice.hr reports, from 6 to 13 May 2021, the German film crew visited the city of Novalja and shot a promotional film that will be shown from mid-June 2021 through a minimum of 30 broadcasts on numerous TV stations throughout the Western European market. Five people from Blue planet TV production and two people from the Osijek company Pointers Travel d.o.o., video and TV production department, took part in the production of this format, and they are also actively involved in the organization of production.

The host of the travel promotional film with the working title "My Novalja on the Island of Pag" is the famous German actor Oliver Hörner, who will guide viewers through a report on Novalja and all its peculiarities.

The report will be shown and promoted through numerous channels, which will achieve multi-million viewers, namely: broadcasting on ANIXE auf Reisen (one of the most popular German travel channels), NTV, RNF (Metropolregion Rhein-Neckar, Mannheim). Also, the report will be distributed via the Waipu TV platform, as well as Amazon Prime and Samsung TV Plus channels.

‘‘Our expectations are that with this project and the recorded report, Novalja will certainly become an even more important destination, which in this way will directly access the German-speaking market and beyond and show all its attractions that make it special and set it apart from other tourist destinations’’, said the Director of the Tourist Board of Novalja, Marina Šćiran Rizner.

The filming started in Novalja: on its squares, in the churches of St. Catherine and Our Lady of the Rosary within which there is a floor mosaic from the 4th century, in the City Museum from which one enters the unique Ancient aqueduct from the 1st century, on the Rose of the Winds, the city beaches. Furthermore, it was filmed in the Straško camp, the Liberty, Olea and Boškinac hotels, Novaljsko polje, Stara Novalja, the Žigljen ferry port, the Pag bridge and numerous beaches in the City area.

Through the magical Gardens of Lun Olives, where the famous actor was greeted by a girl in traditional costume with a basket of local delicacies, he rode a horse to the oldest olive, tasted raspberry oil, and drank tea from Lun olive leaves.

In the early morning hours, when the team was hosted by extremely kind hosts - the owners of the family farm VIDAS, Mr. Oliver taught the sheep how to make Pag cheese, and for breakfast, homemade delicacies were served, such as Pag curd. At the host family farm Škunca, the team enjoyed the immortelle fields, listening with great interest to the story of organic production and processing of medicinal and aromatic plants.

‘‘This is my first time on your island and I am really amazed by its landscapes and places. I can't help but get the impression that adventures like cycling, trekking, kayaking are waiting for you around every corner. I am also delighted with your cultural and historical sites. I will definitely be back to your beautiful island again’’, Oliver Hörner pointed out with enthusiasm.

All the interesting content listed here, framed in the story that will be told through this film, will surely intrigue and arouse interest in choosing a destination for German tourists for the upcoming summer season, convinced that Novalja will be their first choice.

‘‘Tourists from Germany have been realizing almost the largest tourist traffic in Novalja for many years, and our mission is to constantly invest in promotional activities in the main traditional emitting markets, which in the 2020 season showed their loyalty in choosing Croatia and Novalja as their first summer destinations’’, added Marina Šćiran Rizner.

The promotional film was filmed in the city of Novalja, which is located on the island of Pag, and you can find more information about what it can offer you on your next trip, in Total Croatia’s Pag in a page, HERE. Total Croatia’s articles are now available in your language!

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April 14, 2021 - With the season approaching, the question on everyone's mind is will traveling during the coronavirus pandemic to Croatia bring problems for tourism in the country?' A light at the end of the tunnel still might be possible.

While many high-reputation magazines regularly praise Croatia as a top destination, this summer, the season will be only as strong as the health situation regarding coronavirus – both in Croatia and abroad, from where the country welcomes as many tourists as possible. Sadly, as Croatian National Radiotelevision (HRT) reports, due to the bad pandemic situation, many European countries, including Croatia, are canceling the travel season.

While, as we reported on TCN, many flights are returning and coming to Croatia, the measures are possibly demotivating travelers.

HRT says Croatia is declared as a highly-risked country in Germany, and returning citizens need to show a negative test that is no older than 48 hours which is a change to previous arrangments when Germans could test after returning home.

„The English planned to allow traveling from May 17 but tour operators and others don't have a big number of reservations to make it profitable so everything is postponed until June 24“, said hotelier  Domagoj Tomasović to HRT. 

British tourists were indeed expected mid-May, but as Darija Reić, director of the Croatian Tourist Board in London, said on the "Good Morning Croatia show" on HRT, there are still fines for non-essential travel.

„Travelling outside of UK is still illegal if you don't travel for essential reasons which include traveling for business, education or medicinal purposes. Otherwise, it's possible to be fined 5000 pounds“, explained Reić, as noted by Turizmoteka.

Tonči Glavina, state secretary for Tourism ministry, said for HRT that the UK is not alone in sending a message to its citizens to not travel anywhere and went on to say that may not be bad for Croatia.

pixabay

While the UK stands better in the percentage of vaccinated people than Croatia, Croatians are focusing on reaching the green zone by the end of May. Seventy thousand vaccinated workers in the tourist sector are the goal for the country.

„If that doesn't happen until the start of the season, then we need tests and it would be good if tourist board make testing zones and if we co-finance the expenses of testing to our guests“, concluded Tomasović.

The Ministry of Tourism already secured 20 million kuna to co-finance testing for tourists if Croatia doesn't reach the green zone.

PCR tests currently cost 500 kuna; quick antigen test is 150 kuna, and the translations of the results to English is 125 kuna. Twenty tourists were already tested in Zagreb on Tuesday. 

Learn more about coronavirus: news and travel in Croatia on our TC page.

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March 5, 2021 – As of March 7, 2021, four Croatian counties – Istria, Krapina-Zagorje, Požega-Slavonia, and Bjelovar-Bilogora – won't be on the German list of risky areas anymore.

As reported by Romeo Draghicchio, the Croatian National Tourist Board director in Germany, the German Robert Koch Institute of Health removed four Croatian counties from the list of risk areas. Counties that, according to German estimates, are no longer risky are: Istria County, Krapina-Zagorje County, Požega-Slavonia County, and Bjelovar-Bilogora County.

Accordingly, the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs also lifted the negative warning for travel to these counties. This means that when returning to Germany from the mentioned four Croatian counties, a negative PCR test does not have to be presented and no quarantine is required.

The said decision shall enter into force on March 7, 2021.

The news is also listed on the Croatian Interior Ministry's (MUP) website.

"According to the notification from the Robert Koch Institute and the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany, dated March 7, 2021, the following counties are not on the list of risky areas: Istria, Požega-Slavonia, Bjelovar-Bilogora, and Krapina-Zagorje. A warning has been issued for other counties and the City of Zagreb, asking citizens not to travel if it is not necessary," reads the notice on the MUP's website.

In these four Croatian counties, a small number of people infected with coronavirus were recorded today. Krapina-Zagorje County has seven new infections today, Požega-Slavonia County six, and in Istria and Bjelovar-Bilogora County, only one case of coronavirus infection has been recorded.

The Istria County Civil Protection Headquarters continues to call for caution and responsibility in order to maintain a favorable epidemiological situation in that Croatian county.

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September 28, 2020 – The tail end of 2020's unparalleled summer offers opportunity for pause, contemplation and appreciation, as it's loyal and not luxury guests that have saved this year's Croatia tourist season.

In this day and age, things always have to get better. There's no room to sit still. Life without improvement is deemed a failure. Nowhere is this more true than the Croatia tourist season.

The numbers of overnight stays in the Croatia tourist season sometimes seem to be the only measure by which its success is judged. Year after year, the numbers must rise. Any decrease is unthinkable. At the same time, hungry eyes still want more. Some want to reposition themselves. A new class of guest is wanted, from faraway nations. They must be of a better quality. They must stay longer, in more expensive dwellings. They must spend more.

Incredible initiatives are undertaken to turn this want into a reality. But, at the end of the 2020 Croatia tourist season, perhaps it's time to pause and reflect. For this year, it is undoubtedly loyalty and not luxury that's saved the Croatia tourist season.

In the year the coronavirus pandemic hit, arrivals by charter plane and cruise ship were seriously curtailed. So much for the flying visits of premium guests from far-flung lands. Instead, the tourists who came were from much closer to Croatia.

The English language that most on the coast are so familiar with was this year useless. On the beaches of Istria and northern Dalmatia, it was Slovenian, Polish, Czech, German, Slovakian and Italian that was heard. The packed bars of Makarska echoed with the familiar call of 'Đe si, bolan?' (where are you, bro? - in Bosnian dialect). Many of those who came drove to Croatia. And many do so every year.

© Jeremy Segrott

Sighs and light-hearted jokes about some of these guests persist in some places. “That family come every year, but they only ever order one pizza to share between the four of them.” The choice of footwear of some German-speaking and Czech visitors frequently draws chuckles, in particular, the classic sock and sandal combo. But, just where would the 2020 Croatia tourist season have been without the 60,000 Czech and Slovak visitors who this year arrived by train?

Just two days ago, Jutarnji reported on phenomenal numbers of Polish visitors this year. Would anyone else really have taken the place of the returning family of four sharing a pizza? Just what would the season in Makarska have looked like without bolan?

Croatians are famously very appreciative hosts. On the ground, there's no doubt that such loyal guests are warmly welcomed and thanked each year by accommodation renters, restaurateurs and others. They greet returning visitors with smiles of familiarity and reserve for them their favourite place. In September 2020, gratitude to such guests was echoed by The Croatian National Tourist Board as they launched a new campaign 'Thank you', directed at the tourists who this year chose Croatia.

Perhaps it is time to ensure that this gratitude extends into any grand new initiatives for growth in the Croatia tourist season? Such loyal guests should not be taken for granted, nor forgotten.

Initiative within the Croatia tourist sector is vital. The unlocking of continental Croatia's potential is simply a must. That too of the Dalmatian hinterland and inland Istria. The exploitation of world-class Croatian assets such as nature, agriculture and health and wellness services are also perfectly on-point. The desire to attract a better class of bigger-spending visitor to luxury holidays on the Croatian coast should surely be a lower priority. After all, eyes that covet can all too frequently fail to appreciate that for which they should already be thankful.

© Oddman47

Lead image adapted from an original photograph by © Marco Verch

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The stand of the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) with its 24 exhibitors is the largest at this year's Munich Tourism Fair, with the tourism potential of both Zagreb and Slavonia having special emphasis placed on them. Gari Cappelli believes that continental tourism is the future for Croatia's tourism offer.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 21st of February, 2019, through the variety of Croatian snacks prepared by famous Croatian chefs, master chef Branko Ognjenović and the chef of the Croatian football team, Tomica Đukić, numerous visitors to the International Tourism Fair f.re.e 2019 - which, as we reported recently, is being held in Munich, Germany, from the 20th to the 24th of February this year, had the opportunity to get better acquainted with the gastronomic offer of Slavonia and the City of Zagreb yesterday at the stand of the Croatian Tourist Board.

The Slavonian gastro scene showcased Ilok cellars (Iločki podrumi), Kutjevo, Belje, Brzica and Feravino. The promotion of Croatian tourism also includes some of the legends of FC Bayern - Slavonia native Ivica Olić, Giovani Elber, and Andreas Jung.

The f.re.e. tourist fair is otherwise the largest and most visited tourist fair in Bavaria, stretching to over 88,000 square metres, and this year, boasting as many as 1,300 exhibitors from 70 countries across the world, it is bigger than ever before.

The Croatian Tourist Board's stand, with its 24 exhibitors, was the biggest at the fair. Unlike in previous years when Croatia promoted its popular destinations on the coast mostly, this year the often overlooked Croatian continent, more specifically the capital of Zagreb and the Eastern region of Slavonia, which both have a lot to offer to tourists, are taking the limelight. The promotion of Slavonia as a desirable tourist destination is an excellent move for the Days of Croatian Tourism, which is set to be held on 4th to 9th October in the Slavonian region of Osijek.

Croatian Minister of Tourism Gari Cappelli, and Director of the Croatian Tourist Board Kristijan Stančić participated in the presentation of the Croatian tourist offer along with the director of the Zagreb Tourist Board, Martina Bienefeld, Osijek-Baranja County Prefect Ivan Anušić and the domestic manager of the tour operator for Croatia, Selimir Ognjenović.

''Of the three million tourists coming to Croatia from Germany, 1.2 million of them come from Bavaria. So I can say that the Munich Fair is always some sort of indication for us to know what's going to happen this year in regard to tourism. The Germans are the type who appreciate the quality of Croatian tourism, because when those three million tourists return home to Germany, there's a lot to talk about.

Interestingly, we're not presenting the coast but the continent, because I think that's the future through health tourism, special forms of tourism, hunting, fishing, cyclotourism...'' Gari Capelli told Poslovni Dnevnik.

Nera Miličić, head of HTZ in Germany, says that there is a sense of pride in announcing the expansion of the Croatian tourist offer with "The most beautiful Croatian tourist secret" - Slavonia, and the triple winner of the most beautiful European advent - the Croatian capital city of Zagreb.

''We're especially delighted to have organised the largest presentation of the Croatian continent in Bavaria with our partners so far,'' noted Miličić.

''Given that for Croatian tourism, Germany is the emitive market from which we have the largest tourist turnover, we've created a rich and original event program at the Croatian stand that is attracting the attention of numerous visitors.

This is also the confirmation of a well-founded cooperation with FC Bayern Munich which gives us additional promotional value on the Bavarian market, where every other German tourist comes to us from,'' commented HTZ director Kristjan Staničić.

As a tourist destination, Croatia is a serious competitor on the German market. During these times of major changes, an increase in the amount of airline passengers from Germany to Croatia has been recorded, which has positioned Croatia among the most competitive destinations, alongside Spain, Turkey, Greece, Portugal, Egypt and Tunisia, countries which many tourists seeking package deals are usually attracted to.

Although Croatia was otherwise perceived as a destination to drive to from Germany, through the country's camping and private accommodation offer, it has also entered into the package holiday segment (hotel, transfer, flight) which is sold through a tour operator network. All in all, the interest of German tourists for Croatia remains very high indeed.

Numerous tour operators are continuing to expand their programs, smaller operators have begun ''selling'' Croatia, and some airlines are continuing to announce new lines.

The Germans are still in the leading position when it comes to the number of overnight stays realised by foreign tourists in the Republic of Croatia. In addition, the largest number of tourists from Germany come from the regions of Nordrhein-Westfalen, Bavaria, and Baden-Württemberg. However, the Germans typically enjoy more family oriented holidays, often bypassing potentially more ''specialised'' types of tourism on offer.

Therefore, the presence of Croatia's more specialised tourist offers at such fairs is crucial to boost the awareness of German tourists to the country's more numerous tourist offers, and in particular to awaken tour operators to Croatia's more luxurious package of arrangements,'' stated Dragan Kovačević, Vice President of Agriculture and Tourism at the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK), who is also representing Croatia's tourist offer in Munich.

Make sure to stay up to date with more on continental tourism, the Croatian Tourist Board and Croatia's various tourist offers by following our dedicated travel and lifestyle pages.

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