Wednesday, 5 October 2022

Rijeka Boat Show 2022 Huge Success for Exhibitors and Visitors

October the 5th, 2022 - The Rijeka Boat Show's edition for 2022 has yielded great results and a sense of satisfaction for both visitors and exhibitors.

As Morski writes, more than 80 exhibitors using over 5,000 m2 of fair space, over 10,000 satisfied visitors, numerous novelties and premieres - in many ways, the record-breaking Rijeka Boat Show 2022 proved that Rijeka lives not only by the sea but for the sea.

The largest nautical fair in the northern part of the Adriatic, the Rijeka Boat Show, has closed after three intensive fair days at Karolina Rijeka Pier. The thorough organisation and painstaking preparations for this demanding event were almost ruined by an unprecedented storm that engulfed the wider region of Rijeka, submerging the city centre. However, the efforts of the organisers and the perseverance of the exhibitors were still rewarded. On Friday, September the 30th, the rain finally gave way to the sun, and the mayor of the City of Rijeka, Marko Filipovic, officially opened the Rijeka Boat Show 2022.

For this fair, a record 80 exhibitors prepared a truly rich exhibition programme for the visitors. On the crowded pier, on land and under tents, as well as in the sea on numerous moorings, there were attractive brands from the nautical world, including many Croatian-built vessels and additional content.

This year's fair was characterised by numerous representatives from the world of small Croatian shipbuilding, the expansion of the luxury offer and numerous Croatian premieres. Marin Boat presented boats up to 10 metres long to the Croatian market - those that can be afforded by a large number of customers, while Motonoavis premiered the Piranhascraft aluminum vessel, which interested visitors could try out. Demonstration runs of the Sailfin electric hydrofoil board presented by the Plurato company were particularly attractive to visitors.

The largest and most expensive vessel at this year's Rijeka Boat Show, which was also the Croatian premiere, was the MONACHUS 70 FLY - the largest ever series-produced motor yacht in the Republic of Croatia, manufactured by Vineta d.o.o. from the City of Split. This brand new model of a top-performance luxury yacht is just over 21 metres long, and with its impressive appearance, it attracted a lot of attention in the Port of Rijeka.

The importance of a strong nautical fair has been enhanced many times over by ambitious investments in nautical tourism in Rijeka, which should soon get the most modern marina on the entire Adriatic in Porto Baros. This was emphasised in speeches made by numerous partners and sponsors of the fair, representatives of the City of Rijeka and its tourist board, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, the Port Authority and ACI. The director of the fair, Ivan Crnjaric, thanked them, and in particular highlighted the exhibitors without whose trust this demanding project would not have taken place.

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

Wednesday, 28 September 2022

Rijeka Boat Show Begins This Friday With Record Number of Exhibitors

September the 28th, 2022 - The Rijeka Boat Show is set to begin this Friday with a record number of exhibitors set to be present, according to yesterday's press conference.

As Morski writes, this year's Rijeka Boat Show was officially presented to the media yesterday, and over the three days of the fair, from September the 30th to October the 2nd, at the Karolina Rijeka Quay, about eighty exhibitors will present attractive brands from the nautical world, Croatian shipbuilding and a variety of related equipment to visitors.

The media was first addressed by Jana Sertic, head of the Department for Entrepreneurship of the City of Rijeka, who stated:

'''Rijeka needs a strong and relevant nautical fair such as this one. The Rijeka Boat Show is growing, it survived the pandemic and the potential for further development lies in the context of the development of the construction and commissioning of the Porto Baros marina. We're witnessing the transformation of Rijeka into a nautical destination, and the city is increasingly opening up to the sea. Therefore, the support of the City of Rijeka to the Rijeka Boat Show is unquestionable, and I hope for further cooperation in the years to come.''

Vedran Babic, a representative of the organisers, recalled the long tradition of nautical fairs in the City of Rijeka, which began as far back as 1984, and added:

''The success of a fair project is measured, among other things, by the number of exhibitors. When we started, in 2019 there were 25 exhibitors at the fair, all of whom are going to be present this year as well. Today there are as many as 80 of them, so we had to expand the exhibition area, which we're very satisfied with.''

Marko Mikasinovic, head of product development of the Tourist Board of the City of Rijeka, is happy about the significant destination potential of the city, which the Rijeka Boat Show fits perfectly into. He believes that we're sailing on a good course, and that the effects for tourism will be greater.

Drazen Tomic, director of the Legal Affairs and Human Resources Department of ACI d.d. noted that the Rijeka Boat Show is a fair whose importance has grown significantly in previous years, which has also been confirmed by the fact that back during previous seasons, despite taking place in the challenging conditions of the global coronavirus pandemic, achieved significant sales results.

''One of the most significant investments in nautical tourism in Croatia, the construction of ACI Marina Rijeka, can certainly give the fair even greater momentum and further strengthen it. We believe that in the coming years, both ACI Marina Rijeka and the Rijeka Boat Show will grow together and profile the City of Rijeka as a relevant nautical destination,'' he concluded.

The director of the commercial affairs department of the Rijeka Port Authority, Captain Rajko Jurman, spoke about significant investments in the port basin and the development of the Port of Rijeka into a modern transport "hub" with the help of funds from the European Union (EU) funds programme.

The organisers expect over 10,000 visitors over the three fair days on the 5,000 m2 surface. The working hours of the fair are on Friday and Saturday from 10:00 to 19:00, and on Sunday from 10:00 to 17:30. Ticket prices are 15 kuna for visitors aged 10 to 18, 30 kuna for adults, while children under 10 can enter for free.

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

Friday, 24 September 2021

Fiumare Festival, Rijeka Boat Show Open

ZAGREB, 24 Sept 2021 - The ninth Kvarner Fiumare festival of the sea and maritime heritage and the Rijeka Boat Show, featuring nautical and boat equipment, opened in Rijeka on Friday.

The Fiumare festival, taking place at several venues in downtown Rijeka, will be open until 29 September while the Rijeka Boat Show will run until 26 September at the Caroline of Rijeka pier.

The Rijeka Boat Show's theme is "The City is the port, the port is the city", and visitors can see new small vessels made in Croatia as well as world brands and nautical and fishing equipment.

"Rijeka's potential has been recognised by the world's largest groups - the attractiveness of the marina in Porto Baroš has been recognised by the Lürssen Group, the world's biggest producer megayachts. The Zagreb Pier future container terminal has been recognised by Maersk, the largest shipping company in the world. That means that in the next three to four years, Rijeka will definitely change its face as seen from the sea," Mayor Marko Filipović said.

The Fiumare festival will feature lectures, exhibitions, interactive workshops, rowing demonstrations, presentations of historical events and a fair of autochthonous products from the Kvarner region.

For more on travel, CLICK HERE.

Thursday, 26 September 2019

Croatian Innovation: Taxi Cat Drops Passengers Directly Onto Beach

As Morski/Iva Vlasimsky writes on the 25th of September, 2019, as part of the 2019 Rijeka Boat Show, which will take place this weekend, a new, interesting Croatian passenger ship called Taxi Cat will sail into Rijeka's port, which can drop guests off directly on the beach.

This is yet another success story from the shipping company ''Agena Marin'' from Biograd near Zadar, whose main purpose is short-haul transportation, such as taxi and excursion transportation, scuba diving, commercial fishing and public needs. This ten-metre-long catamaran can carry up to twelve passengers at a time, and since it doesn't require mooring, it can establish a hop on, hop off express transport line, save time and enrich the tourist offer by connecting coastal towns to previously inaccessible locations.

Mladen Peharda, the owner of Agena Marin, explained that the Croatian Taxi Cat allows passengers to be dropped off in a wide variety of places, and because of this, there's no time wasted in mooring, tying and untying the vessel.

The specific hull design and composite structure of the vessel, which deals easily with potentially turbulent waters and doesn't take so much of a hit from the waves, has provided Taxi Cat with a double benefit: for passengers, an incomparably more comfortable ride compared to similar boats in this category, and significant fuel savings for the owners.

The Croatian Taxi Cat was created in response to the growing needs of tourist destinations for better quality and more economical sea transport, and the fact that this is a very successful business model has been proven by the customers of this boat in Dalmatia, Istria and across the Adriatic sea in nearby Italy.

On the island of Korčula, for example, after acquiring Taxi Cat, the ''Memula'' company managed to raise the island's complete taxi boat service to a far higher level, offering a modern ''hop on and hop off'' mode for tourists and locals. Travellers have thus been given the option of purchasing one-day tickets, which allow for unlimited circular journeys.

''We have a regular timetable that is accurate to the minute and runs like a bus service does. Considering the limited parking spaces and other problems of communication of tourists during the season, Taxi Cat provides an additional opportunity to navigate through the Korčula archipelago, and the boat itself is extremely safe and comfortable to sail,'' said Memula's CEO Norbert Žaknić.

Otherwise, Agena Marin is known to the general public for its semiSUBMARINE glass-bottomed semi-submarine project, whose recognisable vessels have enriched tourist offer throughout the entire Adriatic, as well as in eleven attractive international destinations such as the Maldives, Seychelles, the Caribbean, and much closer to home in Greece and Italy.

Make sure to follow our dedicated travel and Made in Croatia pages for more information on getting around when in Croatia and Croatian innovation.

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