The Belgrade Tourism Fair is one of the largest in the region, and this year it was held from 21 to 24 February. It was an ideal opportunity to present the tourist offer of Slavonia and Baranja. Visitors were introduced to the European Amazon bicycle route, the Osijek and Subotica Art Nouveau tourist route, the Green Pathways of the Danube and Drava rivers, and the Central Danube Tour – the Central Danube Tourist Destination.

The European Amazon bicycle route stretches from the Alps to the Pannonian plain along the most extensive natural river system in Central Europe. It covers Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Croatia and Serbia and nearly one million hectares of highly-valuable natural and cultural landscapes and more than 1,000 kilometres of cycling trails.

The Art Nouveau tourist tour of Osijek and Subotica links these two Central European towns of similar size and common historical heritage. Art Nouveau, as a new architecture style, appeared in Osijek in parallel with its emergence in Vienna. Apart from the construction of Art Nouveau housing and industrial buildings, Osijek proudly boasts the tradition of Art Nouveau physical planning as well, since it started with the policy of planned street and park construction in the early 20th century. The most impressive examples of the Art Nouveau in Osijek are the European Avenue, with a unique series of Art Nouveau houses with front-yards, the Postal Palace, the Sakuntala Park, the Urania cinema, and the Art Nouveau fountain.

The Green Pathways of Danube and Drava combine cycling, hiking, kayaking, canoeing and horseback riding, and stretch from Belišće, on the river Drava, for 54 kilometres to Erdut, where the river joins the Danube. On this route, the visitors can learn about the cultural heritage of this region and visit, for example, the Erdut Tower, the sacral heritage (the sanctuary of Our Lady of Consolation in Aljmaš and the sanctuary of St. Anna in Bistrinci), the industrial heritage of the town of Belišće, and of course the natural heritage, the flora and fauna of the Danube and the Drava rivers.

The Central Danube tourist destination stretches from Baranja in Croatia to Kovilj-Petrovaradin marshes in Serbia. This destination integrates multi-ethnic heritage, natural and cultural resources and landmarks into a single package visible in the local, regional and international markets. The common package of tourism products and services was presented through thematic cross-border routes. This destination offers tourists a mix of Danube natural wealth and the Pannonian way of living. Its contents include mystical Pannonian legends, the cultures which have left traces about their existence from prehistoric times to the present day, the picturesque nature with the varied animal and plant species, the scents and tastes of gastronomy which bases its uniqueness on the mix of peoples and has given birth to the wealth of dishes rarely seen elsewhere.

The wine offer of this area is represented by Baranja, Erdut, Ilok and Sremski Karlovci. Baranja and Erdut are rural wine destinations, while Ilok and Sremski Karlovac are urban destinations steeped in history. The rich history of this region is best presented by the Museum of the Vučedol Culture. The Kopački Rit Nature Park, located on the left bank of the Danube, has its counterpart in the special nature reserve of Gornje Podunavlje situated on the right side of the Danube, and a bit farther away is the special nature reserve Kovilj-Petrovaradin marshes.

The Belje wines, which are produced in Baranja, cover the largest area of vineyards in Croatia (650 hectares), while Zmajevac is widely known for its “surduks”, “gators” and events such as the Wine Marathon. The Erdut wine area is particularly well-known for its great Danube meander, the largest wooden wine barrel in the world still in use, and the Bike&Wine event. Ilok is famous for its medieval town core, the country estate of Principovac, and the Ilok Grape Harvest event.

In addition to the destinations and topical tours from the eastern part of Croatia, visitors of the Belgrade Tourism Fair were also very much interested in similar routes from the wider Pannonian area, such as the Vojvodina Wine Paths, and the Trail of Cheese and Honey, located in the Žabalj municipality in Vojvodina.

More news about Croatian tourism can be found in the Travel section.

The stand of the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) with its 24 exhibitors is the largest at this year's Munich Tourism Fair, with the tourism potential of both Zagreb and Slavonia having special emphasis placed on them. Gari Cappelli believes that continental tourism is the future for Croatia's tourism offer.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 21st of February, 2019, through the variety of Croatian snacks prepared by famous Croatian chefs, master chef Branko Ognjenović and the chef of the Croatian football team, Tomica Đukić, numerous visitors to the International Tourism Fair f.re.e 2019 - which, as we reported recently, is being held in Munich, Germany, from the 20th to the 24th of February this year, had the opportunity to get better acquainted with the gastronomic offer of Slavonia and the City of Zagreb yesterday at the stand of the Croatian Tourist Board.

The Slavonian gastro scene showcased Ilok cellars (Iločki podrumi), Kutjevo, Belje, Brzica and Feravino. The promotion of Croatian tourism also includes some of the legends of FC Bayern - Slavonia native Ivica Olić, Giovani Elber, and Andreas Jung.

The f.re.e. tourist fair is otherwise the largest and most visited tourist fair in Bavaria, stretching to over 88,000 square metres, and this year, boasting as many as 1,300 exhibitors from 70 countries across the world, it is bigger than ever before.

The Croatian Tourist Board's stand, with its 24 exhibitors, was the biggest at the fair. Unlike in previous years when Croatia promoted its popular destinations on the coast mostly, this year the often overlooked Croatian continent, more specifically the capital of Zagreb and the Eastern region of Slavonia, which both have a lot to offer to tourists, are taking the limelight. The promotion of Slavonia as a desirable tourist destination is an excellent move for the Days of Croatian Tourism, which is set to be held on 4th to 9th October in the Slavonian region of Osijek.

Croatian Minister of Tourism Gari Cappelli, and Director of the Croatian Tourist Board Kristijan Stančić participated in the presentation of the Croatian tourist offer along with the director of the Zagreb Tourist Board, Martina Bienefeld, Osijek-Baranja County Prefect Ivan Anušić and the domestic manager of the tour operator for Croatia, Selimir Ognjenović.

''Of the three million tourists coming to Croatia from Germany, 1.2 million of them come from Bavaria. So I can say that the Munich Fair is always some sort of indication for us to know what's going to happen this year in regard to tourism. The Germans are the type who appreciate the quality of Croatian tourism, because when those three million tourists return home to Germany, there's a lot to talk about.

Interestingly, we're not presenting the coast but the continent, because I think that's the future through health tourism, special forms of tourism, hunting, fishing, cyclotourism...'' Gari Capelli told Poslovni Dnevnik.

Nera Miličić, head of HTZ in Germany, says that there is a sense of pride in announcing the expansion of the Croatian tourist offer with "The most beautiful Croatian tourist secret" - Slavonia, and the triple winner of the most beautiful European advent - the Croatian capital city of Zagreb.

''We're especially delighted to have organised the largest presentation of the Croatian continent in Bavaria with our partners so far,'' noted Miličić.

''Given that for Croatian tourism, Germany is the emitive market from which we have the largest tourist turnover, we've created a rich and original event program at the Croatian stand that is attracting the attention of numerous visitors.

This is also the confirmation of a well-founded cooperation with FC Bayern Munich which gives us additional promotional value on the Bavarian market, where every other German tourist comes to us from,'' commented HTZ director Kristjan Staničić.

As a tourist destination, Croatia is a serious competitor on the German market. During these times of major changes, an increase in the amount of airline passengers from Germany to Croatia has been recorded, which has positioned Croatia among the most competitive destinations, alongside Spain, Turkey, Greece, Portugal, Egypt and Tunisia, countries which many tourists seeking package deals are usually attracted to.

Although Croatia was otherwise perceived as a destination to drive to from Germany, through the country's camping and private accommodation offer, it has also entered into the package holiday segment (hotel, transfer, flight) which is sold through a tour operator network. All in all, the interest of German tourists for Croatia remains very high indeed.

Numerous tour operators are continuing to expand their programs, smaller operators have begun ''selling'' Croatia, and some airlines are continuing to announce new lines.

The Germans are still in the leading position when it comes to the number of overnight stays realised by foreign tourists in the Republic of Croatia. In addition, the largest number of tourists from Germany come from the regions of Nordrhein-Westfalen, Bavaria, and Baden-Württemberg. However, the Germans typically enjoy more family oriented holidays, often bypassing potentially more ''specialised'' types of tourism on offer.

Therefore, the presence of Croatia's more specialised tourist offers at such fairs is crucial to boost the awareness of German tourists to the country's more numerous tourist offers, and in particular to awaken tour operators to Croatia's more luxurious package of arrangements,'' stated Dragan Kovačević, Vice President of Agriculture and Tourism at the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK), who is also representing Croatia's tourist offer in Munich.

Make sure to stay up to date with more on continental tourism, the Croatian Tourist Board and Croatia's various tourist offers by following our dedicated travel and lifestyle pages.

Recent news from the Papuk Nature Park has pleasantly surprised us. In late February, visitors will be able to experience Papuk with a flying balloon; one week ago, works on the construction of the Geo-Info Centre in Voćin started, where geologic, biological and cultural-historical landmarks of the nature park will be presented to the visitors. Papuk is drawing ever more interest from tourists at specialised international fairs such as Natour Alpe-Adria in Ljubljana and Caravan in the Dutch town of Leeuwarden.

At the fair in the Netherlands, I found myself entirely by chance in the role of an information officer at the stand of the Slavonia Cluster, which brings together five Slavonian county tourist boards, and I saw for myself that Papuk is at the top of the visitors' wish-lists. People are thrilled to be able to camp at the Duboka camp and then use the network of cycling trails to visit cultural monuments such as medieval fortresses, geological monuments like Rupnica, protected natural landscapes such as the Sekulinačke Mountains, enjoy the top gastronomy in restaurants bearing the Taste of Slavonia mark, or engage in wine tasting in one of the many boutique wineries located at the outskirts of the park.

After a tour that included Zagreb, Hungary and Slovakia, I decided to use the first available Sunday in February to visit Papuk. A five-kilometre long spiral road that runs from Slatinski Drenovac to Jankovac is almost entirely paved, with just a short section missing at the very end, but construction machines are parked along the road, so I believe this will be solved very soon.

The road itself is attractive enough for the visitors to be able to see (at least some) of the beauties of the Papuk landscapes. On the left, there is a steep ravine, and on the right side, there is the mountain massif. The road is continually twirling and driving on it is never monotonous. Drenovac is located at 172 metres above sea level and Jankovac at 475 metres. Before Jankovac, visitors pass by the majestic waterfall called Skakavac. Given that the summit of Papuk is located 953 metres above sea level, it is easy to see that Jankovac is located "on the halfway of Papuk" and is, therefore, an ideal starting point for exploring the Slavonian mountain.

At Jankovac, there are a lot of cars and visitors. From the entrance, we turn right and look for a parking spot. Hmmm ..., parking problems at Jankovac!? Part of the team complains that this was not as it used to be and all of this has been over-commercialised. But, why should we be jealous? Why not allow other people to enjoy something we have been enjoying for years, not to say for decades? Of course, provided it does not disturb the natural balance.

The natural heritage belongs to all of us, and everyone should enjoy it under the same conditions. We saw a parking spot and just when we wanted to park there, we saw an unusual traffic sign next to the parking spot: below the letter P, a woman and a baby carriage were drawn; this parking is reserved for women with small children! Since we do not fall into that category, we went a bit further and finally found a free parking place. After that, at the reception centre, we bought tickets which cost just ten kuna. I took a photo at the selfie spot and sent a digital postcard from Papuk to my friends and acquaintances.

The temperature was, of course, lower than in the Slavonian lowlands from which we came. We went to a hiking lodge with a cafe, a restaurant and a pension, and had a short drink just enough to get warm inside and prepare for a hike in nature.

Because of the high snow banks that were still present on Papuk (unlike in the Slavonian lowlands where the snow had almost completely melted), and because I led a team that did not have the proper equipment for hiking in winter, we did not do the routine rituals like a visit to Ivačka Glava, the second highest peak of Papuk at 913 metres above sea level and the highest peak of the mountain accessible to ordinary visitors (there is a military facility at the very top; therefore it is closed and inaccessible), or to Nevoljaš, located at 740 metres above sea level, where there is a viewing point offering great views.

We had to settle for hiking on the educational trail. The Count Education Trail is named after Count Josip Janković, who also gave his name to Jankovac. One of the stations of the path is the count's final resting place located in a cave. There is also a cave with bats, viewing points, refreshment points, wooded stairs that make climbing easier...

After a leisurely tour of the educational trail that lasted for an unusually long time, we again found ourselves in front of the hiking lodge and saw a car with Požega registration plates all muddy. It was immediately clear that it came from the southern side of Papuk, from the direction of Velika, which still does not have a paved road. But that was a sign that this road was passable. We got into the car and headed for Velika towards which there is a macadam road three times longer than the one leading from Jankovac to Drenovac.

Along the way, we stopped near the Papuk summit. A soldier in the uniform behind the fence greeted us and asked, "To the bench, right?" And we answered vaguely: "Of course!" He only smiled and waved us in with his hand, used to the many visitors coming there. When passing along the fence of the military facility, you come to a forest opening on whose right side there is a bench with fantastic views of Papuk. The hike on the educational trail was too little for us, so we had to stop there to get to know Papuk better.

We arrived in Velika (the location of the first of the two camps in Požega-Slavonia County), at the Čiča Mata cafe where we drank a homemade herb brandy and continued towards the Zlatni Lug tavern, located in Donji Emovci, a small suburb of Požega. Zlatni Lug is just one part of a larger tourist complex that has the tavern/restaurant, an excursion site, a lodging house, a souvenir shop and a camp – the second camp in Požega County.

The Zlatni Log restaurant is decorated in a rustic style and has the "Tastes of Golden Slavonia" mark, which means it offers local dishes 365 days a year. We ordered homemade brandy and bread with lard made of a black Slavonian pig as an appetiser. The pig lard is a traditional Slavonian ingredient which has long been neglected, but is now becoming more prominent and appreciated, and it has its well-deserved place in the local restaurant offer. This is supported by the latest research which shows that pig fat is healthier than oil. The fats are transformed into energy and stimulate absorption of vitamins and do not contain synthetic substances, unlike margarine and industrial oils.

Although the Zlatni Lug restaurant is also known for its delicacies made from the autochthonous Pannonian Podolac cattle, since I started with pork, I continued in this vein and ordered a pork chop with bacon and “kajmak,” along with the Šopska salad. It was a perfect combination. Of the other specialities, the restaurant offers a turkey steak in gorgonzola sauce, a green pepper steak, grilled or in mushroom sauce, trout in pumpkin seeds, a perch fillet with cream and garlic, carp grilled on a fork, the winegrower’s kebab, and the fried pork brains in eggs — something for everybody.

During the dinner at the restaurant, we remembered the legendary beer festival called the Požega Beer Mug, which was held until two years ago at the nearby Zlatni Lug excursion site. Wishing to taste the local beers, we went to Požega and visited the Slawoner pub. I tried the Slawoner Kriek – a draught beer with a sour cherry, which impressed me at homebrewing/craft brewing meet in Đakovo last year when I first tasted it. Slawoner is also the name of the first Požega craft brewery founded and managed by Sandi Mance, one of the pioneers of craft brewing in Slavonia. Apart from locally-made beers, the Slawoner pub offers a whole range of other crafts beers, but my rule is always to try local, preferably draught beer.

In addition to the brilliant and long-established winemaking scene, the Golden Valley also has a strong beermaking scene, and all of this completes the flavours of the Golden Slavonia. For tastes to reach their full intensity, it is necessary to be reasonably hungry and thirsty, which Papuk took care of; or, as we said in the headline of this article: after recreation there comes regeneration. All in all, this was a wonderful excursion, and this article is a recommendation and a roadmap for everyone how to spend a weekend combining the enjoyment of untouched nature with the delights of indulging in local delicacies.

More news about the Papuk Nature Park can be found in the Travel section.

Nature Park Papuk is the first (and only) Croatian UNESCO Global Geopark, selected to the prestigious list in 2015, and various activities are taking place, with the aim of promotion and conservation of the UNESCO Geopark Papuk. UNESCO says on their website that "Global Geoparks are single, unified geographical areas where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development." Currently, there are 140 UNESCO Global Geoparks in 38 countries.

One significant activity in the conservation and education of the Papuk Geopark is the GeoStories of the UNESCO Geopark Papuk project, which was awarded as a part of the Operational Programme Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014 - 2020. The large project, worth over 90 million kuna (over 65 million to be funded by the EU) includes creation of the infrastructure for the visitors (Geo-info Centre Voćin, House of the Pannonian Sea, Adrenaline Park Duboka, road reconstruction and improvements on several belvederes), and creation of numerous types of educational and promotional materials and activities. The goal of the project is to improve the tourist infrastructure of the UNESCO Geopark Papuk, through the introduction of the innovative ways to present the historical, cultural, geological and biological wealth of the park, which should result in the increase of the number of visitors to the Park and to this part of continental Croatia.

Yesterday, one major step in the project was taken: works have started on the building of the Geo-info Centre Voćin. The Centre itself is worth 38 million kunas and will include a multidimensional movie theatre, where the visitors will be able to travel back in time. And they will no be making a small leap backwards, no, no, they will be able to travel 23 million years in time (!), but also to see what lies beneath Papuk, what's the experience in the caves and pits in the mountain, but also enter the atmospheric niche of the Miocene land and meet the rhinos that lived on Papuk back in the day.

Suzana Lepan Štefaničić writes for the lokalni.vecernji.hr about the opening ceremony, where Alen Jurenac, the manager of the Papuk Nature Park explained that the opening of the Geo-info Centre in Voćin is expected in the spring of 2020, and it be devoted to biological, geological and cultural heritage, through innovative interaction with the visitors. One of the things he mentioned is that the visitors will get the chance to sense an earthquake and meet the Miocene sharks that swam around Papuk!

In 2018, the Park has had a record number of visitors, but even more people are expected to visit as the road to Jankovac has been reconstructed, so access is much easier these days.

Although Croatia's coastal and continental cooperation has been discussed for years, it has not yet reached a level that would satisfy all the participants of that story. Therefore, a working meeting of the leaders of Vukovar-Srijem and Dubrovnik-Neretva County was held in the Dubrovnik Palace of Ranjina, where they discussed establishing stronger economic cooperation between the land and the sea, i.e., the ”green" and "blue" Croatia, reports Lokalni.Večernji.hr on February 6, 2019. 

It was concluded that there is room for cooperation in the marketing of products from Vukovar-Srijem County to the tourist sector in Dubrovnik-Neretva County. It was announced that the presentation of these products would be organized at the traditional meeting of winemakers with restaurants and hoteliers. The visit of representatives from Slavonian tourist agencies will also be organized in order to explore possible ways of cooperation and overcome the problems of distance, but also the cost of transport. It was agreed that subsidies would be required for a flight between Osijek and Dubrovnik. 

“The main goal of the meeting is to find out what is needed for the hoteliers in the south of Croatia. We want to save our OPGs, so we founded the Agro-Cluster, in cooperation with the County with several municipalities and with the Agricultural Faculty in Osijek and Cooperative 'Vinkovačka šparoga'. This is our first year and we are heading in the right direction. In 10 years we lost 3000 households. We now operate around 6000. We as the County are doing the infrastructure, and we want to know how we can cooperate specifically here,” said Vukovar-Srijem County Prefect Bozo Galić. He added that such cooperation would save many Slavonian family farms and that they could personally guarantee the highest quality of products in the county.

Dubrovnik-Neretva County prefect Nikola Dobroslavić recalled that Croatia's "blue" and "green" cooperation has existed for a long time on several levels, but there is always room for progress. 

“Cooperating is not easy, you have to work hard on it. Every year we deliver mandarins to Vukovar-Srijem County, and they gave us apples this year. This is, of course, all symbolic, but it shows what kind of friendly relations we have,” Dobroslavić said. 

The mayor of the County Department for Tourism and Culture, Marija Budimir, emphasized the wish for Slavonian manifestations and sights to become part of the organized visits created by Dubrovnik-Neretva County tourist agencies.

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

More and more Croats are starting to see the benefits of going about their lives in more rural environments, especially young people, according to a report from Glas Slavonije.

"It's certain that today, rural life offers unparalleled benefits compared to those it did ten or more years ago, when people left in their droves for the cities. The advantages of a peaceful and stable life that smaller environments provide, and the quality of life in such place, have equalled the benefits of life in cities and have potentially even exceeded them, and for an organised life we ​​need only a safe car,'' they are unique in their assessment of young Croats, who today in small villages are often managing to become the owners of valuable properties and pieces of land with gardens that a decade ago simply couldn't have even been dreamed of.

There is now more and more support to local families from self-government units when it comes to purchasing houses, offering free textbooks and meals in schools, subsidising kindergartens, subsidising the cost of staying in dorms, bus tickets and offering scholarships to almost all students, constructing new schools, clinics and specialist clinics, and offering harmonious conditions for sport. It isn't all that surprising that many younger Croats are now dreaming of life in the countryside.

One of the areas that really proved to be one of the first to see the need to invest primarily in people, and only then in property, is the Magadenovac Municipality, writes Glas Slavonije. This small municipality could easily be a model for many for the abundance of measures it has introduced in order to support life in the local area.

With 3,000 kuna for the first-born, 5,000 kuna for the second-born and 8,000 kuna being offered for the third-born child, the amount for each subsequent child is determined by the mayor personally in order to help that particular family more in accordance with their material condition. A few years ago, almost alone, with very little help from the state, they financed the kindergarten construction, for which parents pay 354 kuna per child.

The kids who attended got free textbooks while others across the country were only just starting to consider such an initiative. High school students also received financial help from the municipality if they were staying in student dorms. Croats with young families are increasingly turning to a more rural way of life.

There are already plenty of people interested in buying cheap houses in the area, and with the new school, which will soon boast an additional hall, a renovated kindergarten, as well as better communal infrastructure and many other measures, Mayor Darko Dorkić hopes that the negative trends we have been witnessing so far will soon turn around and take a more positive direction.

Apart from the fact that smaller houses in Slavonia and Baranja are sold very cheaply, young people are increasingly attracted to the fact that village life is ready and waiting to offer a life lived in peace and in coexistence with nature, and a garden in which they can grow fruits and vegetables.

The idea of breeding pigs and poultry for their own needs doesn't put them off either, recognising that such a lifestyle is not only healthier, but much cheaper than purchasing such items in the city would be. In such small communities everyone knows everything, so there is never any problem for children to go alone to school and to playgrounds, not to mention the fact that overall living costs are so much lower.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated lifestyle page.

The largest and most-visited camping fair in the Netherlands was held from 17 to 22 January 2019. One of the more than 400 exhibitors was the Slavonian tourism cluster, which brings together five county tourist boards from the eastern Croatia (Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja, Požega-Slavonia, Virovitica-Podravina and Vukovar-Srijem counties), in cooperation with the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ).

Leeuwarden (West Frisian: Ljouwert) is a town in the north of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Friesland. In 2018, it was the European Capital of Culture. It is also known as the birthplace of Mata Hari (Margaretha Geertruida Zelle).

The Netherlands is known as a camping nation, and Caravana was a great venue to represent four Slavonian camps. These were two camps from Požega-Slavonia County (the Zlatni Lug camp located in the Požega suburb of Emovački Lug, and the Duboka camp located in Velika in the Papuk Nature Park), and the Familiy camp in Kopačevo and the Suza Baranje cyclo-tourist camp in Suza.

At the HTZ stand, the Slavonian cluster was represented together with the Camping Association of Croatia, the Rovinj naturist camp Valalta, and the Hadria company, headquartered in Novalja on the island of Pag.

In addition to the camps themselves, the entire tourist offer of Slavonia is presented. The Papuk Nature Park, with the Duboka campsite located at its southern edge, attracted the attention especially thanks to its protected areas, such as the Jankovac Forest Park, the Rupnica geological nature monument, and the Old Oaks special forest preservation area, and with the cultural-historical heritage (the medieval Velički-Grad, the Ružica-Grad and Kamengrad), as well as with tourist facilities (cycling trails, the Orahovica Lake recreational area, the Sokoline sports climbing facility).

The visitors were also introduced to the Kopački Rit Nature Park, as a sizeable inner delta of the Danube river and part of the "European Amazon", with its unique biodiversity, including more than 300 species of birds, making it an ideal destination for birdwatching.

The Virovitica-Podravina County was presented as an area of Slavonia with part of the Mura-Drava Regional Park and the Papuk Nature Park. In-between these two protected natural areas, there is a vast plain ideal for cyclo-tourism. The "Drava Story" information and education centre in Noskovačka Dubrava is the starting point for exploring the Mura-Drava Regional Park, while the Jankovac Forest Park and the near-by mountain shelter serve the same function for the Papuk Nature Park. Thanks to the renovation projects of the Janković palace in Lukač and castles in Virovitica and Suhopolje, the county is becoming an exciting destination for cultural tourism as well.

Požega-Slavonia County, which includes the Golden Valley and the mountain peaks surrounding it, was presented as "Golden Slavonia", and the attention of visitors was especially drawn to the fact that the wine industry in this area exists since at least 1232, when a wine cellar and the Valis Honesta de Gotho abbey in Kutjevo were first mentioned. Special attention was paid to the Flavours of Golden Slavonia brochure, featuring the restaurants Čiča Mata from Velika, Schön Blick from Vetovo, Stari Fenjeri from Turnić, Zlatni Lug from Donji Emovci and Grgin Dol from Požega, as well as traditional dishes such as the vineyard kebab, fish goulash, “čobanac”, carp on a fork...

Brod-Posavina County was presented as a border area that for centuries defended Europe from the Ottoman Empire, as testified by the Brod fortress. This county includes fascinating natural heritage, such as the Pljuskare canyon and Ljeskove Vode, as well as cultural heritage such as the eco-ethno village of Stara Kapela and the above-mentioned fortress in Slavonski Brod.

Vukovar-Srijem County was presented through stories about the Vučedol culture, the oldest European calendar – the Orion – found in Vinkovci, and Ilok – the land of wine and antiquities.

Osijek-Baranja County, given its four wine areas (Baranja, Erdut, Feričanci, Đakovo) and the fact that two EuroVelo corridors meet in the Baranja village of Draž, was presented as an excellent wine-and-dine and cyclo-touristic destination. The town of Osijek is the urban centre of Slavonia, confirmed by events such as the Pannonian Challenge, and it is the centre of the wine rectangular, and at the same time the town with the longest beer-making tradition in Croatia.

The joint representation of all five Slavonian counties under one brand – Slavonia – will undoubtedly result in synergy and contribute to making Slavonia into a recognisable tourist destination in the foreign markets as well.

Read more stories about Slavonia.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 16th of January, 2019, Osijek's "IT park" business zone story is beginning to develop after a lot of back and forth on the issue, much to the satisfaction of interested parties. The City of Osijek and its numerous IT companies whose business results and success have put Osijek firmly on the map, are leading it to become a focus of the Croatian IT scene.

Glas Slavonije reported that its very last session last year, Osijek's City Council adopted a proposal for a decision on the establishment of the "IT Park" business zone with the aim of attracting investment and opening up new jobs in the IT sector. The value of the investment stands at a massive eighteen million kuna. In the IT park itself, which boasts a total area of ​​2.5 hectares, bigger companies will be able to buy plots of land for the construction of their own buildings, and the City of Osijek will deal with and construct all the necessary infrastructure and business buildings for small IT companies.

In addition to this measure, the City of Osijek has also implemented a program of incentives and breaks for the purchase of plots in this zone, which became valid after being published in the Official Gazette. Osijek's city administration has, once again, prepared a set of "different modules which contain certain measures (incentives and facilitations) aimed at attracting both domestic and foreign investors from the IT sector to long-term investments in the ''IT park'' business zone in Osijek.'' The goal of this measure is very clear, the aim is to create new jobs, reduce unemployment and ensure a high quality environment for the development and operation of the IT sector in Osijek.

Basically, companies will have the right to incentives and numerous forms of breaks if, according to the national classification law, they belong to one of the three priority groups. In the first group, there are, for example, computer programming or computer hardware and software management, in the second group lies production (electrical components, computer and peripheral equipment), in the third group comes processing and computer games.

The reduction in the price of plots of land intended for construction is 10 to 30 percent, depending on the group. If Osijek's new economic facility is built within 24 months of the conclusion of a construction contract, the land price will be reduced by as much as 40 percent. If, in the year preceding the year of the conclusion of the sales contract, a minimum of 1 million kuna is realised, the right to a price reduction of 10 percent will come into force.

Of course, the biggest reduction in the price is related to creating jobs and offering new employment possibilities. An entrepreneur who, from the moment of signing a contract on the establishment a land sale for construction maintains the existing number of employees, earns the right to a 10 percent reduction, if he or she hires up to ten workers, a 30 percent reduction follows, and if he or she hires more than 20 workers, the price reduction will stand at a massive 60 percent.

Make sure to stay up to date with everything you need to know about investment and doing business in Osijek and in Croatia as a whole by following our dedicated business page.

January 8, 2019 — In the fourth and final article of the Croatian Wine Regions series, TCN unveils Slavonia and the Danube plains, the country's largest winemaking region.

The easternmost Croatian winemaking region is first and foremost characterized by the three rivers that enclose it: the Danube, Drava, and Sava. The closeness of these three rivers creates a special microclimate which is especially favorable for the cultivation of Graševina; the region's no.1 white variety.

Slavonia's darling, Graševina is in Germany known as Welschriesling, and its closest relative is said to be Elbling, though this white variety supposedly originated in northern Italy, where it is known as Riesling Italico. In Croatia, however, Graševina spreads on more than 8,000 hectares of vineyards, from the city of Daruvar, through the famous Zlatna dolina (lit. Golden Valley) around Kutjevo to the far east of Baranja, Ilok, and Srijem. However, it is often said that the finest Graševina comes from the sun-drenched vineyards of Kutjevo which is nestled in the very heart of Slavonia, in a valley surrounded by a low mountain range.

Depending on the terroir, Graševina wines can range from the delicate, refreshing styles found in western Slavonia to quite opulent, dry, fresh and mineral styles from central Slavonia, to mature, robust, full-bodied Graševina wines hailing from the Danube plains.

In addition to Graševina, the area around the eastern border of this region is also championing Chardonnay, Traminac (aka Gewürtztraminer), Rajnski Rizling (aka Rhine Riesling), and Sauvignon. As for the reds, Slavonia is mostly home to Frankovka (aka Blaufränkisch) and Zweigelt, but also Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot.

Slavonia has a cold continental climate, so as a general rule, the vineyards in this region are dominated by white varieties that produce dry, fresh and aromatic wines. Also, the region is becoming recognized for its sweet icewines that can age for decades and are regarded as jewels of this region.

And apart from its wines, Slavonia is also known for the world-famous Slavonian oak which is used for making wine-aging barrels not just in Croatia but also in neighboring Italy.

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As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 23rd of December, 2018, upon presenting the most important plan for the Slavonian town of Valpovo, Mayor Matko Šutalo emphasised the fact that the record increase was the result of the joint work of the employees of Valpovo's new administration.

With just one single vote against it, the Slavonian town's council adopted the budget proposal for 2019 on Thursday, without any major objections. The amount is a welcome 124 million kuna, which is otherwise the largest amount proposed for Valpovo so far.

As previously stated, during the presentation of the most important draft plan for this continental Croatian town to date, Mayor Matko Šutalo emphasized that the record increase was the result of the joint work of the employees of the town of Valpovo's new administration, the Valpovo entrepreneurial centre and local development agencies, which, over the last year and half, had projects worth a massive 64.787.451,64 kuna.

The stated value doesn't include the value of the projects that are still waiting for the results of tenders, which amount to a further 23,401,919.59 kuna. In addition, projects in their preparation phase worth 113.7 million kuna are yet to come, and in the very creation of Valpovo's generous 2019 budget, local citizens took part in putting forward their proposals.

In accordance with the proposals put forward by the Council of HDZ, HSU and NL, two new amendments were adopted in the town's budget concerning the decrease of the price of kindergartens by 200 kuna and an increase in the amount given to parents for newborn children.

Namely, as of next year, 3000 kuna will be paid to the parents for their first born child, the birth of their second child will see a payment of 5000 kuna, and for the third, and every next child, they'll receive 7000 kuna for each. The measure intends to work as an incentive, and will be used as Valpovo's contribution to mitigate Croatia's extremely negative demographic trends, which in Valpovo and Slavonia as a whole, continue to be the most bleak.

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