January the 2nd, 2022 - The Croatian Plava Laguna company is going to be spending 2022 strengthening its brand, and there is quite the change coming to its hotels.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, as of this brand new year, the facilities operating under the Croatian Plava Laguna brand in Umag will no longer operate under the brand of the Spanish Melia, instead, all of the the facilities of the company will be repositioned under the brand and name Plava Laguna, the company recently reported.

As has since been learned from the Croatian Plava Laguna company, this will not mean a complete ''break up'' with the well known Spanish hotel chain, as their cooperation is set to continue according to the new model, which includes only sales being carried out through the Melia channel.

“After Plava Laguna's rebranding back in 2018, the company is continuing to strengthen the brand. As such, from the 1st of January, 2022, we're going to be moving the current Sol and Melia facilities from Umag to put them under the Croatian Plava Laguna brand. This means that from the beginning of 2022, all facilities in Umag with Melia and Sol in their names will officially operate under the brand and name exclusively under Plava Laguna,'' it was explained in their company announcement.

As is already known, the Croatian Plava Laguna inherited the contract with Melia from Istraturist, which the Luksic group purchased way back in 2014 from Zagrebacka banka.

Zagrebacka banka initially joined Istraturist in 1996 after the transformation of the company, and two years later, Melia Hotels International was hired for sales and operations to apply international standards to their tourism services. This remained Melia's only engagement in all of the Republic of Croatia. Plava Laguna then launched the new brand into business in 2018, as a completion of the merger of Umag's Istraturist.

"With this merger, one of the largest tourist companies in all of Croatia was created, which manages four resorts (Park, Plava, Zelena and Stella Maris), as well as nine camps, which operate on the market under the brand ''Istracamping'' by Plava Laguna. Thus, Plava Laguna will enter 2022's summer tourist season with a unique portfolio under its belt, which will enable the strong standardisation of processes and activities, as well as the creation of new and unique Plava Laguna products and services,'' the company pointed out.

For more, check out our dedicated business section.

December 3, 2021 - After cooperating with the Ironman group in 2019 and two Plava Laguna 5150 Poreč Triathlons from the Ironman competitions, Plava Laguna will organize the 70.3 triathlon in Poreč next year, one of the world's most prestigious competitions in this sport.

Plava Laguna IRONMAN® 70.3® in Poreč will be held on October 16, 2022. A few days before, from October 13, Poreč will live in the spirit of the triathlon, and the day before the Ironman 70.3 competition, on Saturday, October 15, there will be an IronKids race, reports HRTurizam.

"After two successful editions of the Plava Laguna 5150 Triathlon, next year we will experience the Ironman 70.3 in our Green Resort in Istria, Poreč, and thus bring the Ironman brand to Croatia. One million competitors finish the race under the Ironman brand every year, and the Ironman.com website has over 30 billion visits a year. This tells us that this event will be a great promoter of Poreč, Istria, and Croatia. We are very pleased with the fact that the cooperation has deepened and that the Ironman team has full confidence that our team will be great in organizing 70.3," said Dragan Pujas, President of the Plava Laguna Board. 

Ironman 70.3 means the distance in miles that athletes have to cover in three disciplines - 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles of cycling, and 13.1 miles of running (expressed in km it is 113 in total, 1.9 km swimming, 90 km cycling, and 21.1 km running). The start and finish are planned at the Green Resort.

"Croatia is the perfect destination for every triathlete who wants to experience a spectacular destination and a unique culture during their competition. Croatia has a great community of triathletes, and we are looking forward to even more competitors experiencing the IRONMAN 70.3 race in Poreč," says Thomas Veje Olson, Director of the IRONMAN Group for Europe, Middle East, and Africa.

The start itself, which starts with swimming, begins in front of the Hotel Parentium, the transit zone is planned in front of the Hotel Molindrio, and the bike route will extend to Buzet and back. Finally, the last racing route starts in the transit zone in the Green Resort, to the old town of Porec and back and Funtana and back.

This competition is completed by the best athletes within 4 hours, while the race's time limit is 8 hours. Goran Vrus, the director of the race, also announced the upcoming registration fee for the event: “We have even bigger challenges ahead of us next year because we want to set as many goals as possible. We are looking forward to the organization of Ironman 70.3, and I am happy to say that the registration fees for the event will be on sale through the ironman.com page from Tuesday, December 7."

Istria County Prefect Boris Miletić emphasizes that he is thrilled that the prestigious and world-famous Ironman 70.3 race will be held in Istria and adds: "We confirm that our region is recognized as an excellent destination and partner for organizing races at the highest possible level. Congratulations to the Plava Laguna organizer."

The Istria County Tourist Board director, Denis Ivošević, adds that Istria is ideal for sports.

“That is why it is important to invest in sports tourism because it brings us not only growth in terms of the number of overnight stays outside the main season but also an international presence and visibility; also thanks to our precious territory, which due to its conformation is suitable for numerous sporting events," emphasizes Ivošević.

Croatian Tourist Board director Kristjan Staničić also spoke about the importance of branded sports events in Croatia: “Continuous promotion and positioning Croatia as a quality, safe and well-prepared destination in today's circumstances are a basic prerequisite to attract guests and tourist traffic successfully. Congratulations to Poreč and Istria; hosting such a prestigious and internationally recognized race is great for Croatia. This will give our country popularity, additional visibility, but also a quality tourist offer, which makes events like this one richer and more attractive."

The director of the Poreč Tourist Board, Nenad Velenik, agrees and is thrilled that one of the Ironman destinations in 2022 will be Poreč, not only because of the tourist traffic in the off-season also because of the enormous marketing value of such a project.

It is excellent that Croatia can be proud of another big event in 2022, emphasizes the Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac and adds: "This speaks of the attractiveness of Croatia as a tourist destination, especially in the off-season, which we are constantly working on. Sports tourism is great for extending the tourist season, with the additional promotion of Croatia through the Ironman brand. We are glad that Croatia has succeeded in recognizing that big brands are a safe tourist destination."

The best at the Plava Laguna IRONMAN 70.3. Poreč will also secure spots for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships in Lahti, Finland, on August 26-27, 2023. For more information on the IRONMAN brand and global series of events, visit www.ironman.com/im703-croatia

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

April 24, 2021 - Reuters reporters visited Plava Laguna Parentium Hotel in Poreč and seemed happy with preparations for the upcoming tourist season. 

International media praise Croatia as a lovely holiday spot, and many foreign reporters visited Croatia to check the field with their own eyes. And 2021 is no different.

As Istria Terra Magica reports, journalists from Reuters visited Parentium Hotel, a member of Plava Laguna Hotel Group.

„Reuters reports that Poreč streets are empty for now, but thanks to measures to keep tourists and tourist workers COVID-free, a good tourist season is in preparation“, says Istria Terra Magica.

The site adds that in the following weeks 80,000 tourist workers are planning to be vaccinated, and Covid-19 tests will be offered to the guests as well.

The full article about visiting Croatia is available on the Reuters website.

Dnevno.hr covered the story too and added that „Reuters is a news agency spawned across 200 locations worldwide, and a synonym for independence and integrity“. 

Plava Laguna hotel group is one of the most influential accommodation companies in Istria, with four resorts, 25 hotels, and 13 apartments across Umag, Poreč, and Rijeka.

„At Plava Laguna, everyone is welcome. From the moment they arrive to the moment they leave, we want our guests to feel the warmth of our hospitality. So we introduce them to our beautiful Istrian countryside and the wonderful Adriatic sea. We share the delights of our national cuisine and fantastic wines. We show our guests the best of Croatia“, says their official website, available in Croatian, English, German, Slovenian, and Italian language.

The website also concludes that regardless of staying in a two-star or a five-star hotel, every visitor is considered a VIP guest.

Learn more about Poreč on our TC page.

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

This year, the Plava Laguna tourism company has realised the most significant capital budget in its history with half a billion kuna. In 2019, it will continue to invest heavily, with about 300 million kuna to be spent in destinations such as Poreč, Umag and Rijeka, announced the company on Monday, reports Poslovni.hr on December 17, 2018.

The company emphasised this year's investments in the Park Resort in Poreč worth 245 million kuna. It is a family resort consisting of 309 accommodation units, including 154 hotel rooms and suites, 91 garden suites, 43 apartments and 21 villas.

In Umag, the company invested in the complete reconstruction of the Stella Maris camp, which was a project worth 84 million kuna, and in Garden Suites & Rooms Sol Umag in the amount of 35 million kuna.

“Key investments for the next year include the construction of a new office building in Poreč and a thorough reconstruction of a campsite in Savudrija, which includes new, additional facilities. The estimated value of the investment in the camp is 46 million kuna. That will be the largest investment of Plava Luga in Umag in 2019,” announced the company. It added that Camping Savudrija would become a camp for families and couples with an "active vacation" offering. Mobile homes and glamping tents will be introduced.

The most significant part of the investment is the construction of a new pool complex that will improve the level of service and quality and significantly extend the tourist season. Also, with this investment, the camp will get an entirely new profile and provide guests with a remarkable destination experience as well as with conditions for a great vacation.

Next year, Plava Laguna will also invest in the Park Umag campsite, in the total amount of 6.2 million kuna.

Also, Plava Laguna will invest in an office building in Poreč, which will be located at the Facinka business zone at the very entrance to the town. This investment will amount to 86 million kuna. The company will also invest in six additional villas in the Bellevue facility at Plava Resort.

In Poreč, Plava Laguna will also invest in the camping segment (Puntica, Zelena Laguna, Bijela Uvala and Ulika), and there will be an intensified investment in extending and modernising the existing capacities for the accommodation of workers in Poreč and Umag.

"Looking at 2018 and 2019, Plava Laguna's investments will amount to more than 750 million kuna, which is the highest figure in the company's recent history,” concluded Plava Laguna.

More news on Croatia’s tourism can be found in our Travel section.

Translated from Poslovni.hr.

December 2, 2018 — While high-profile conferences about tourism investment hightail out of Croatia, Plava Laguna (Blue Lagoon) plans to invest another HRK 300 million in 2019, according to hrturizam.hr.

The Poreč-based company announced next year's investments will focus on a new administrative building, rejuvenating camps and improving workers’ quarters, as well as other expenditures.

The announcement flies in the face of complaints of a lackluster investment climate; one so bad it reportedly led the Adria Hotel Forum, a hotel investment conference, to flee from Zagreb to Belgrade next year.

Plava Laguna’s spending is part of a larger re-branding scheme which aims to put its various locations and offerings across Istria under one large umbrella.

Plava Laguna will build 150 new two-bed accommodations for their workers, following a summer in which it increased employees’ wages. It will also buy 60 mobile homes, to be distributed across its various locations.

The company’s investment in its camp “Stella Maris” will increase its capacity and offerings, adding a pool complex and mobile homes.

The company spent about HRK 487 million in 2018, culminating in a new hotel called “Park Resort” in Poreč. The EUR 35 million-project included a complete tear-down of an existing resort, Laguna Park. It was one of the company’s largest investments to date.

In Umag, the company dismantled its old bungalows and replaced them 54 new accommodations.

Istria continues to draw strong, long-term tourism investments. It has seen accommodation capacity grow across several sectors of the industry, including camping and hotels.

Read more about investment in Croatia on our dedicated page.

Good news for Plava Laguna employees.

Plava Laguna (Blue Lagoon) recently opened a new complex in the popular Istrian town of Poreč, marking the company's biggest investment so far, worth a massive 35 million euro.

This is one of Plava Laguna’s largest investments in recent history.

ZAGREB, February 21, 2018 - Plava Laguna on Tuesday signed several agreements and an annex to the collective agreement whereby salaries of employees of that Poreč-based hotel company would increase by 7% on average.

Some signs of long awaited recovery in Agrokor as shares belonging to the ailing company continue to grow strongly.