A couple of years ago, I was offered my first job since 2003, as a blogger for the Central Dalmatia Tourist Board. I was delighted to accept, and soon afterwards, an email was sent to the 37 tourist board directors of the region from the head office, offering my services for free.

Ten minutes later I received my first (and, as it happened, only) contact from one of the local tourist boards, a lady called Jelena Bilic from Sinj. After congratulating me on the job, Jelena invited me to visit her town, so that she could show me around, throwing in the offer of free transport from Split and lunch. How could a man refuse such a generous offer? 

The day was wonderful, and although I had lived in the region for ten years, this was the first time I had really spent any time in inland Dalmatia. I was hooked, and I wrote my first article about Sinj for Google News that very evening. 

It was hard not to be charmed by Jelena's youthful energy and passion for her job and her clear love of her town, and I went home wondering what other beauties the region might behold for tourists. I did not have long to find out.

Having made that initial contact, Jelena impressed by the organised way she arranged information and contacts for me. Soon after, I was back in Sinj, once more her guest, overnight this time, as she wanted me to experience the Cetina Adventure race, part of the region's strategy to highlight the potential of adventure tourism.

"There are two things I think I may have forgotten to mention," she said with a twinkle in the eye. "The race starts at 06:00, so your photographer and guide will be here at 05:45. Oh, and there is a school leaving party which will finish at 05:30 in the hotel..."

It was a magical day, as the imperious Ilija Veselica gave me the most perfect introduction to the magic of the region, and along the way, we met a young man on his own by a lake. Domagoj Burica ran Dalmatia Explorer, and he was to be a key member of a new English-language website. By the time I had met Ivana Antisic at Lake Peruca for the Lake2Lake regatta, something was clear to me - here was a region full of passionate and dedicated young people who wanted nothing more than to tell the world about it. With a little help from Jelena, Ivana, Domagoj and Maja Zlokic, Total Inland Dalmatia was born, and it is no exaggeration to say that the project would not have started without Jelena's determination and organisation. 

I have made several visits to Sinj over the last couple of years, and each time Jelena has steered me in a new direction, to discover the very best of the town and its surroundings. A guest at Alka, a visit to Ranc Mustang, the wonderful musical festival of Gljevstok, the mills of Grab, the list goes on. 

I have on occasion been critical of some tourist board directors for not doing their job, and perhaps it is because when one looks at the achievements of Jelena in Sinj over a short period of time, one realises the huge potential of Dalmatia as a destination if others followed her shining example. 

In just a few years, Sinj tourism has been transformed. It is one of the best information-rich destinations online, with an active website and own application, and I defy you to try and visit Sinj and escape without a brochure. Its events are well-organised and well-publicised, and the free walking tour each Thursday is the latest example of small initiatives which are making a small but crucial difference. The information signs and new information point are visible proofs of the raising of standards of tourist information in Sinj. 

But the job of a tourist director is also about promotion and the improvement of a destination. Who could have imagined that a Sinj tourist board director would be promoting Alka in Chicago or New York City, or would be accompanying the national tourist board on its tour of European capitals to promote Croatia365. And if the people of Sinj had just the smallest understanding of the enormous work this young lady has done chasing EU and other funds for the town's tourism, they would be more impressed still. 

When Jelena wrote to tell me she had been promoted to run the national tourist board office in Prague, starting in September, I was both proud and surprised. Such appointments usually have a political element to them, but here was something different, a qualified and committed talent with the only agenda to follow being that of promoting tourism. 

While I am delighted for Jelena and wish her every success (she will need no luck), her departure of course leaves a huge hole in inland Dalmatia, but I hope that her legacy and energy will inspire whoever fills her rather large boots, and I am sure that many of the initiatives which she started - including this website - will continue and flourish.

Thank you, Jelena, for introducing me and many others to the amazing world of Inalnd Dalmatia. For your friendship, your high professional standards at every moment, and for showing me and others what IS possible to achieve on small budgets and with lots of dedication. 

From all the team at Total Inland Dalmatia, we wish you all the best in Prague, and we fully expect a Czech invasion of Sinj next summer... Cheers!

The 1st day of September is behind the door. A day, when the current Sinj tourist board director will start her new job running the national tourist board office in Prague.

Jelena is leaving big shoes to fill and we are very curious, who will be replacing her. As it turns out, we will have to wait for a bit longer as according to ferata.hr website, only 2 applications came in and the tourist board council decided to have a second round of the application process to get more qualified people to apply.

So, all of you talented people in Sinj and surroundings, there is still time to apply and to use all of your talent and creativity to help Sinj and Inland Dalmatia on their path as an attractive tourism destination.

We wish the tourist board council many new application. Choosing the new Sinj tourist board director will not be easy..

The Tourist Board of Sinj in the heart of Central Dalmatia is one of the most progressive tourist boards in the region. Director Jelena Bilic has been in the job about 2 years and has embraced social media and other forms of modern communication to entice tourists away from the beach, just half an hour north of Split. Total Split went to meet her.

1. Central Dalmatia. Sun, beach and the pristine Adriatic. Why should tourists head inland to visit Sinj?

Tourists should visit Sinj because of its rich cultural heritage: it possesses real historical jewels - the clock tower Kamičak, Old Town Fortress, the magnificent Church of the Miraculous Madonna of Sinj, the greatest Marian shrine in southern Croatia; a tombstone Gaius Laberius built into the front wall of a house, the Sinj boy holding a ball, proof that the Cetinska Krajina Region is the cradle of the second most important thing in the world and the place where football was first played; The Archaeological Collection of the Franciscan Monastery; the Museum of the Cetinska Krajina Region, the central place of research and exhibition of its rich cultural and historical heritage; the Alka Knights Court, the former barracks (Kvartiri), today a splendid complex and the home of the Sinjska Alka, in which the Alka Museum is waiting to be opened to the public in 2015; untouched nature clear and cold waters and mysterious mountains, gastronomy, there are countless opportunities for active holidays – from hiking, horse riding, cycling, canoe safari on the river Cetina, hunting, fishing, parachuting and paragliding.

(photo by Filip Ratkovic)

2. The region north of Split is virtually unknown. What does it possess for the curious tourist?

All info about Town of Sinj curious tourists can find on www.visitsinj.com and social network: Facebook Sinj Tourist Board, Twitter Visit Sinj, Pinterest Visit Sinj and Youtube channel Visit Sinj. Mobile app Sinj Guide will be also finished before summer 2014. All info about the region north of Split tourists can also find on the brand new portal Total Inland Dalmatia with interesting blogs about events and interesting places for visiting in Knin, Drniš, Vrlika, Trilj, Imotski, Vrgorac and Sinj.

3. How do you see the profile of tourism changing in Dalmatia in recent years?

In the last 2-3 years in Dalmatia there have been many individual tourists who are booking accommodation by themselves and finding info about destinations online, mainly through Tripadvisor. The sea, sun and sand is not enough for them, they want to experience something traditional, want to be active. They are visiting islands or national parks and they do not have enough info about Inland Dalmatia which is still undiscovered. But, Inland Dalmatia also has its pioneers in tourism operating like Mustang Ranch (Horse Trails), Adventure Zagora (kayaking, paragliding, paintball); Dalmatia Explorer (Photo Jeep Safari and Cycling Tours through Dinaridic springs ) and Tourist Agency Potissimus is organizing ATV-Quad Adventure in Vrdovo.

4. Next year sees the 300th anniversary of one of Croatia's most important events - the Alka in Sinj. Tell us more, and what plans are there to mark this specialevent and what is new for 2014?

Next year Town of Sinj is celebrating 300 years of Alka Tournament of Sinj which is under the protection of UNESCO as world intangible heritage. We are expecting the promotion of EU funded project Medpaths, cycling paths whose primary objective is the protection and revitalization of local heritage (cultural and natural) along the Adriatic coast. Another EU funded project is in progress „Our Lady of Sinj Route“ which has been approved according Programme IPA Croatia-BiH and its implementation started in 2013. The project will last for 24 months. The aim of the project is to enhance joint tourist offers based on common cultural identity in the Croatian-BiH space in order to improve competitiveness of the local tourism economy.

The pilgrimage trail The Our Lady of Sinj Route will connect Rama (BiH) to Sinj and Solin. The Town of Sinj has the support of the Ministry of Tourism for the renovation of the - clock tower Kamičak and Sinj Tourist Board is finalizing the project of installation info plates and tourist signalization supported by Croatian National Board. We will organize lots of events throughout the year, and the biggest tourist attraction will be opening of the Alka Museum.

5. It must be frustrating to be director of such a fascinating tourist region that few tourists visit? What efforts are you making to attract more people to the region?

I am are aware that the growth of the tourist arrivals should increase slowly because tourist infrastructure should also follow up, last year overnights increased 30%. We are producing promo videos, organizing events like the Rural Products Fair, The 1715 Siege of Sinj - history revival, hosting foreign journalist and bloggers, promoting the destination through social networks, distributing promotional materials through info points in Split and Trogir,developing new projects like free climbing.

(photo by Ilija Veselica)

Thanks Jelena. Sinj is a fantastic place, so do check it out - more info on www.visitsinj.com 

The Croatia National Tourist Board's young and energetic director Jelena Bilić in Prague talked to the Czech media on February 19, 2016. Here is what she had to say.