March the 28th, 2023 - One luxury Istrian resort is set to raise the level of its offer this year, with a special emphasis placed on enticing golf lovers to the beautiful Istrian peninsula.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, one luxury Istrian resort, known as a prestigious five-star golf and spa resort, is opening its doors this year again. Located in Istria, near Savudrija and Umag, Kempinski Hotel Adriatic is bringing in some new content with which it will raise its business to an even higher level.

From this year on, this popular luxury Istrian resort will offer its services throughout the entire year, which will allow guests to enjoy the charms of Istria and indeed the rest of Croatia during the winter months as well.

Another piece of business news that will delight all passionate golfers is the rebranding of the golf course and the exclusive news that Golf Adriatic has become the first "PGA National Golf Course" in Croatia and in this part of the region.

"The PGA" is the first association of professional golfers in the world, founded way back in in 1901. The organisation provides support to its members and their work is aimed at promoting golf. If you've ever followed many of the blunders Croatia has got itself into when it comes to creating certain golf courses (think Dubrovnik, for example), you'll know that this will definitely be a plus for golf lovers across Europe and indeed the rest of the world.

As part of this prestigious organisation, Golf Adriatic has the right to absolute exclusivity as the only PGA certified golf course in the Republic of Croatia and the possibility of organising golf tournaments on an international level.

Being a part of such a prestigious organisation will contribute to further development and growth, as well as enhanced recognition of this luxury Istrian hotel on an international level.

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

November 7, 2019 - Croatia is home to the 2018 World Cup runner up team captained by the ageless Luka Modric. Hoisting the banner through their miraculous 2018 run was only one of many opportunities for free publicity. Shows like Game of Thrones recognized the natural countryside beauty and feature the rolling hills of Croatia. In 2013, Croatia had put a plan in place to build 30 golf courses by 2020. This is an attempt to bring Croatia back into the global golf market. 

Tourism on the Rise

With deliberate enhancements focusing on boosting Croatia’s tourism have worked, growing the total from 2013 tourism numbers from 9.7 million to 11.1, an increase of 14.4%. International phenomenons like Game of Thrones and the World Cup final run have put Croatia on notice for increases in tourism. 

Croatia is more known for its beaches, exotic ports on the Mediterranean, deliciously diverse culinary experience. PLans to grow the Croatian golf infrastructure have been underway and are making the area closer to a full-service getaway. The other accommodations rival some of the best the world has to offer. The question Croatia's golf superintendents, financiers, and managers will have to ask:

Will they Come to Golf?

Croatia is nestled only a few hundred miles east of northern Italy. This geographic location presents favorable year-round temperatures with winter lows hovering around the fifties and summer temperatures reaching the eighties, the climate is perfect for year-round golf. Many golfers in the summer are looking to escape the brutal summer temperatures of the more southern parts of Europe. 

Additionally, since Croatia is still a growing tourism destination, golf courses won’t be as crowded for many golfers looking for a mild weather experience. In addition to new golf courses being built every year, Croatia has a unique blend of beaches, mountains, and rolling rural hills. 

The pristine landscape is only matched by world-class accommodations. Golfers can go from course to adventure in a matter of minutes. An experience can be customized to match the desires and needs of the group. Croatia is easy to travel across quickly, whether backpackers, golf travelers, dog lovers, or perhaps a family vacation. A visitor’s experience can go from golf in the mountains to golfing on the beach in only a few hours. One can even bring a dog or adopt one. 

Favorable Exchange Rate

As travelers look for ways to stretch their dollars, they look to leverage exchange rates to their benefit. Currently, the Croatian Kuna has a very favorable exchange rate of 7:1 for the Euro, meaning travelers can get more out of their vacation.

Golfing can be an expensive activity and a favorable exchange rate works to attract tourists to the courses. A combination of the newly designed golf courses, luxurious scenery, high-class accommodations, and the ability to stretch visitor dollars are a recipe for growing the golf tourism market. 

Concerns of the EU

As the EU destabilizes with BREXIT looming, tourism could become more complicated for visitors out of the United Kingdom. The potential ripple through Europe could include a retraction of the power of the British Pound and the Euro, these tourists have the most and easiest access to Croatia. A destabilizing of the EU could spell disaster for tourism not only in Croatia but also across the EU. 

Western European Reputation

The home of golf resides in the northern United Kingdom in Scotland, there are many American tourists that want to visit courses with tradition and legend like the Old Course at St. Andrews making it hard for other countries to draw the lure of tourism dollars for golf. The allure of new picturesque golf course may appeal to some golfers but many hardcore golf travelers will tend to gravitate towards Western Europe where several European tour events are held. 

European Tour Aspirations

Croatia has the accommodations, infrastructure, and emphasis on golf courses makes them a prime new destination to hold a European Tour event. People will travel for high profile events. Consider the tourism numbers for tournaments like the Masters and Open Championship. Will high-quality golfers, people will travel across the world to watch some of the best perfect their craft. 

Invest in Golf Instruction

Considering the explosion of Asian golfers onto the international stage, K.J. Choi put South Korea and Asia on the golf map almost overnight with several top finishes, alluring personality, and growing fandom, local audiences tune into golf and head to courses to emulate their international heroes. The golf industry has boomed over the past few years, rebounding from a rough few years after the financial collapse. 

Similar to governments investing in their Olympic programs, Croatia can invest in the golf market. Many training resources are available around the world and to the earlier point of fair year-round weather, outdoor training is possible almost 365 days a year. Getting exposure in larger markets is important to bring additional interest and capital to golf tourism. A single individual making it on the tour can be worth millions in tourism and golf marketing dollars.

Croatia shows exceptional promise in growing its tourism and golf market. The natural beauty of the Croatian landscape is enough to lure prospective travels to the shores and mountain peaks of the Croatian countryside. There are some concerns about the marketing challenges and stability of the largest tourism base in the EU facing issues. 

Currently, the market conditions are favorable as the Kruna remains a balanced currency and travelers from European and US markets are able to leverage exchange rates to extend their travel itineraries. Since blockbuster media and sports successes have showcased Croatia as an accommodating and capable infrastructure nation, a European Tour or other special event featuring the world’s best golfers to promote the beauty of the Croatian landscape. 

The Croatian government and tourism department is working diligently to improve local golf tourism through the enhancement of the current golf infrastructure. An increase in Croatian tourism is a signal of its growing interest in the country as a tourism location. Time, strategic growth, and expansion of the Croatian commerce industry will be the seal on the future of golf in this Eastern European country. 

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

July the 23rd, 2019 - Golf in Croatia is a touchy subject the past few years. For a country with such a scenic coastline and lots of land ripe for development, Croatia has surprisingly few golf courses. The Croatian coastal climate is also perfect for the sport, as summers are warm and breezy, and winters are moderate enough to allow for golf most of the year. 

According to Globe Newswire, golf tourism has begun booming, with North America and Europe enjoying the biggest growth in the past few years. And it’s projected to continue: a rise in global golf tourism spending of 11% is expected by 2023. Croatia could poise itself as an exciting, new golf destination but instead is foundering under setback after setback. 

While Croatia is supposedly in the midst of a 7-year-plan to increase golf tourism, we’ve nearly arrived at year seven and there’s still not a single new golf course under construction. Despite promises of 30 new golf courses to open by 2020, no ground has been broken towards that end. 

Not only is there a lack of new courses on the way, the course that’s long been known as Croatia’s finest course, Dolina Kardinala, is no longer in operation. So instead of gaining 30 courses, Croatia’s gained none and instead lost its best one.

Enter professional golfer Daniel Popovic. The 30-year-old golfer has been playing professionally since 2012, when he enjoyed his biggest victory, a win at the Australian PGA Championship. At the time, he rose to the rank of 363rd in the world and seemed poised to have a promising worldwide career.

While he’s struggled a bit since then (his world ranking currently stands at 2020), he’s still in a unique position to help Croatian golf. The Australian-born golfer has a deep Croatian heritage, so he tries to help out junior programs by making instructional appearances as well as sending equipment, such as gloves and balls, back to Croatia to help kickstart the sport.

However, there’s more that he could do to help grow the game and perhaps facilitate investment in Croatia’s golf tourism economy.

One option would be to follow the path created by PGA Tour golfer Rory Sabbatini. Sabbatini is a South African-born golfer who also holds a UK passport and US citizenship. His wife and children, however, hold Slovakian citizenship.

In 2019, Sabbatini obtained Slovakian citizenship, saying he was doing so with the intent of helping to spread the game of golf to Slovakia. There’s also speculation that he’s attempting to gain entrance into the 2020 Olympic Games as a representative of Slovakia; while Sabbatini denies those claims, it wouldn’t surprise anyone to see him competing under the Slovakian flag in 2020.

Sabbatini is enjoying his best year in a long time, making cut after cut and climbing up the world rankings. Blogs are even referring to him as “The Boy From Bratislava”, which is helping to put Slovakia in the golf world’s spotlight.

Daniel Popovic could follow that same path, and perhaps even compete for Croatia in the 2020 Olympics. Both Australia and Croatia offer dual-citizenship, so it can be done. Since the Olympics use the Official World Golf Rankings to select the top players from each country, Popovic doesn’t have a chance of representing Australia. Superstars like Jason Day, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith are likely to compete for Australia in 2020.

But Popovic could conceivably represent Croatia if he obtained a dual citizenship and managed to gain a few more world rankings points between now and June 2020. He’s clearly got the game to play golf at an elite level internationally, and perhaps the encouragement of an entire country could help revitalize his game.

Even a step as simple as updating his Wikipedia page to reflect his Croatian heritage could help put some attention on golf in Croatia. For now, all it states is that he’s an Australian-born golfer with a win in 2012. A few updates to explain his Croatian heritage and the youth outreach he’s doing in the country would improve the results when Google-ing “Croatia golf”. 

While the road to the Olympics would be a tough one, it would be a major boon if Popovic was able to qualify and participate in them. The whole world watches the Olympics, especially when they have someone representing their own country.

Perhaps that could be the impetus to get golf development projects out of the doldrums they’ve been stuck in, and get them moving towards actual construction and completion. 

With the worldwide growth of the game of golf and a huge increase in the already billions of dollars spent on golf tourism and travel in Europe every year, Croatia is missing out on a prime opportunity to put its neglected, uninhabited land that’s perfectly suited for golf to good use. Golf courses provide jobs in many sectors, from groundskeeping and landscaping to retailing and hospitality. Golfers need places to stay, eat, and drink, so where there are world-class golf courses, there are world-class hotels and restaurants that flourish. Golfers also purchase lots of equipment such as rangefinders or clubs that can help the golf economy take off.

And if a golf resort is located along a gorgeous coastline, golfers will bring their non-golfer family members, who will want to take advantage of the local beaches and waterfront activities that tourist destinations provide.

Popovic could be the face of these golf resorts, perhaps even offering clinics or hosting a tournament to bring more attention to the developments. 13 years ago, Jack Nicklaus was set to be the face of Croatian golf development when a 200-million-Euro project was announced that would bring a Nicklaus signature course and resort to Istria. However, that endeavour seems to be kaput, with no contact between the development company and Nicklaus’ company for several years. Like so many other Croatian golf projects, it showed a lot of promise but ultimately nothing came of it. 

It’s time for a new face of Croatian golf to emerge, and Daniel Popovic is uniquely poised to be that face. With his involvement and some forward progress on golf course development, golf tourism could bring millions of dollars each year to the local economy.

Text by Jordan Fuller

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