ZAGREB, January 1, 2019 - Croatia recorded 19.7 million tourist arrivals and over 106 million overnights throughout 2018, which was respectively by 6.5% and 4% more than in 2017. These statistics were presented by the director of the Croatian National Tourism Board (HTZ), Kristjan Staničić, in the resort of Opatija on the first day of 2019.

He said that activities promoting Croatia's tourist trade were being intensively conducted on the markets from which large numbers of tourists usually come to Croatia.

Staničić commented that investments in the tourism sector in 2018 amounted to a billion euro and that the same level of investments could be expected in 2019.

More news on the Croatian tourism industry can be found in our Travel section.

In line with the fact that the Croatian National Tourist Board's budget is facing an increase, the plan is to allocate a hefty amount to strategic promotional campaigns, as well as to joint advertising.

As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 21st of December, 2018, the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) has announced a tender for the selection of PR agencies and media agencies on as many as sixteen different broadcasting markets.

The aforementioned tender launched by the Croatian National Tourist Board for the selection of PR and media agencies will last from December to March.

The total lease budget for all broadcasting markets included in the 2019 tender amounts to more than a massive 42 million kuna, as was decided by the Croatian National Tourist Board's Tourism Council during a recently held session.

As is already well known, there are concrete plans to increase the Croatian National Tourist Board's budget during the coming year, the increase is expected to be one of around 14 percent and will amount to an enormous 331 million kuna, which is a result of the increase of the tourist tax revenue in accordance with the government decree.

Approximately 41 million kuna will be allocated for the implementation of the Croatian National Tourist Board's strategic promotional campaigns across various broadcasting markets, i.e, for strategic cooperation with numerous air carriers and tour operators who have organised programs for Croatia in their packages and offers.

When it comes to joint advertising, as much as 24.6 million kuna will be allocated. After the session of the Tourism Council, the ninth Croatian National Tourist Board parliament session was held, where the aforementioned budget for 2019 was adopted.

Make sure to stay up to date with more information like this by following our dedicated news and lifestyle pages.

Click here for the original article by Marija Crnjak for Poslovni Dnevnik

The Croatian National Tourist Board, in cooperation with the British-Australian production, organized the first Food Box Day this week at the British Square in Zagreb. British chef Jack Stein was the special guest. 

Croatia is becoming an increasingly popular destination for the US market. 

The City of Zadar has always been a popular destination in Dalmatia, boasting the stunning sea organ, and, as Alfred Hitchcock himself once said, the most beautiful sunsets in the entire world. Now Gari Cappelli, the Minister of Tourism, has congratulated this ancient city on its success, stating that the very people of Zadar are the ones who give it its life.

As tourists flock to Zadar from all corners of the world, with numerous airline companies having taken it upon themselves to either increase their flights to this Dalmatian gem or to introduce new lines connecting major European cities to its thriving airport, the city goes from strength to strength across the spectrum, from its entrepreneur success stories to its tourism figures. It seems that Zadar's success hasn't gone unnoticed, at least not by Gari Cappelli, who expressed his warm feelings for both the city and for the ''happy people'' who live there and make it what it is.

As eZadar/Radio Zadar writes on the 23rd of November, 2018, upon welcoming the participants of the session of the Zadar City Council on the occasion of Zadar's city day, Gari Cappelli, the long standing Croatian Minister of Tourism, stated at the beginning of his address, among other things, that Zadar is a city full of of happy people who give it life.

Gari Cappelli recalled the very welcome fact that the highly respected Lonely Planet, one of the most popular and trusted travel guides in the entire world, included Zadar in its announcement of the prestigious ''Best in Travel 2019'' guide, in its recommendations on destinations which should be visited by tourists next year.

Make sure to stay up to date with news from Zadar and far beyond by keeping up with our dedicated lifestyle and travel pages.

Click here for the original article by eZadar/Radio Zadar

On Monday, the Ministry of Tourism held the 42nd session of the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) Tourist Council, whereby members of the Council presented the proposal for the annual work program of the Croatian National Tourist Board for 2019. At the session, a call for expressions of interest for the implementation of the ‘Sportska Hrvatska’ (Sports Croatia) project in 2019 and a proposal for a decision to form the Commission for Sports Croatia was issued.

The Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) and Great British Chefs (GBC), the leading culinary organization gathering over 200 of the UK's top chefs, organized an interactive event in London to promote the potential of Croatian cuisine and wine and dine scene as an important part of the Croatian tourist offer. The event featured some of the British Michelin-starred chefs, reports Večernji List on November 21, 2018.

“This is a continuation of excellent cooperation with Great British Chefs, which aims to promote the Croatian gastronomy on the large and important British market. It is also an opportunity for British colleagues to see for themselves the knowledge and skills of Croatian chefs, but also the quality of our local ingredients and top quality wines. The fact that Croatia has a great potential and a good image in this market was confirmed by the response of many leading media outlets who covered the event, including Mail on Sunday, Sunday Times, Independent, Financial Times, Telegraph, The Guardian, BBC and ITV,” said HTZ director Kristjan Staničić, adding that this year there has been more than 852,000 arrivals and 4.4 million overnight stays from the British market so far, which is 8% more than the last year.

The event, featuring the cuisine of central Dalmatia, was held at the well-known London restaurant "Radici". As part of the programme, one of the best Croatian chefs, Rudolf Štefan, the owner of the Michelin-starred "Pelegrini" restaurant in Šibenik, was introduced to the British media.

“This event is a great opportunity to demonstrate what we have learned in collaboration with GBC and the fantastic chefs. I am glad that the HTZ has decided to support this project which further proves that Croatia is not just a country known for its cultural and natural beauties, but also a country of excellent food and great hosts,” explained Štefan.

The programme also featured stars of the British culinary scene, Francesco Mazzei and Tom Aikens, who recently stayed in Croatia where they were introduced to the local gastronomy traditions. The British duo prepared dishes inspired by the culinary journey during which they discovered authentic Dalmatian culinary traditions of Split, Šolta and Šibenik.

“I am delighted to be able to take part in this event to present our knowledge and experience of the Croatian gastronomy, for now in London, and soon in the whole world,” said Mazzei, while Aikens praised the work of Croatian chef Štefan. “A lot of countries have a passion for gastronomy, but the way Rudi represents Croatian cuisine is unique,” concluded Aikens.

The comments by the British guests showed that the event was a success. Chris Leadbeater of Daily Telegraph emphasized that Croatia was already recognized worldwide by its excellent restaurants and chefs, but that Rudi's approach to food was an invitation for further exploration of Croatian gastronomy. Natalie Bloxham of ITV said that during the event she had gained insight into another part of the Croatian story and that she would soon visit our country.

Positive impressions have also been confirmed by Ollie Lloyd of Great British Chefs. “We have succeeded in achieving what we wanted to do with this event, which is to have two top British chefs use Croatian ingredients and thus show what they have learned about Croatian gastronomy. All this would not have been possible without good cooperation with one of the best Croatian chefs,” said Lloyd, adding that Francesco Mazzei is a significant player in the London restaurant industry and also a TV star with frequent appearances on BBC and ITV television shows. Tom Aikens is the youngest chef with two Michelin stars and the owner of a restaurant empire that spans several continents.

For more on Croatian cuisine, click here.

After finding its place in the country's capital, Hilton is looking for further potential locations and opportunities along the Croatian coast for its Canopy hotels as Cappelli cites an investment in tourism for 2019.

As we reported yesterday, in a huge investment in tourism, Canopy by Hilton has found its way to the Croatian capital of Zagreb, but the search for possible hotel locations isn't over for the highly respected hotel company yet. 

As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 12th of November, 2018, the brand nurtures local culture, and this is Canopy by Hilton's very first hotel in continental Europe. After the opening in Zagreb, such hotels in desirable European capitals are set to open, including London, Madrid, and Paris.

Hotel Canopy by Hilton, a massive eight million euros worth of investment by Hrvoje Pezić's Zagreb City Hotels company, was opened on Monday in Zagreb's Branimir Centre.

The lifestyle brand is, as stated, set to take numerous other European cities. It nurtures local culture, and domestic designers, including Studio Franić and Šekoranja, as well as Croatian furniture manufacturers, who are engaged in decorating the Zagreb hotel, as pointed out from Hilton.

In the hotel itself, you can find various pieces of Zagreb's long history, from folklore to its rich scientific and industrial heritage, as well as some of the capital city's typical traditional dishes presented in a new, modern way at the ReUnion restaurant.

The hotel boasts 151 rooms, a restaurant and bar, a fitness room, a retreat room, a transfer room and two meeting rooms.

''After DoubleTree, we're opening Canopy, and we're expecting the opening of Garden Inn next year. We're exceptionally proud of this hotel and we're happy to have had such good cooperation. Croatia is an extremely important market for Hilton. It has a wonderful coastline and we're already looking to expand there and develop our hotels there, but the City of Zagreb is also of utmost importance because it's growing, and we also want to participate in that,'' stated Alan Mantin, Managing Director of Hilton for the development in southern Europe.

Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli emphasised that this investment with the world-renowned brand will contribute to the even better positioning of Zagreb as well as Croatia as a destination which boasts a high quality offer.

Want to keep up with more news on hotel openings, investments in tourism, or just news in Zagreb? Make sure to follow our travel, lifestyle, and Total Zagreb pages for much more.

Click here for the original article by Marija Crnjak for Poslovni Dnevnik

Croatia has been named the best destination of 2018 by the Association of Travel Agents of Quebec. 

More than 807 films from 91 countries were introduced at this year's Zagreb TourFilm Festival, and the best among them were screened during the last three days at Kaptol Boutique Cinema.