In the blink of an eye and we are already right around the corner from June 1, the date when the temporary traffic regulation through the Split City Port begins, which will try to solve the problem of crowds on Kralja Zvonimira street and Zagrebačka street during the tourist season, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on May 21, 2019. 

The new one-way traffic along the Split City Port,  and further through Jadranksa street, Bijankinijeva street, and Pojišanska street, which all drivers but also many pedestrians can expect in less than 10 days, will also be reflected on the routes of public bus lines.

How this should look, in practice, was explained by Miroslav Delić, director of “Promet”. 

“According to the new organization, it is agreed that all bus lines that come to Zvonimirova street to the city turn right to Zagrebačka street (near the old "Slobodna" office) and then proceed to the usual route.

However, it is a key change on the routes that return from the city center, because after the start of the new traffic regulation, the buses from Zagrebačka street will turn right to the port, or to the new, bigger junction to be made at the current roundabout at the central bus station.

The buses will continue driving through the bridge at Bačvice to Bijankinijeva and Pojišanska streets, and further to the usual routes and destinations.

There are some 28 city and suburban lines in Split, and this way we can have 509 buses pass per day, instead of the current 160,” said the first man of public transport in Split.

Thus, apart from the bus lines 9, 10 and 15, the Promet lines 2, 3, 5, 5a, 8, 9, 11, 14, 15, 17, 18, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 60 and 68 will pass by the port. 

As for lines 9, 10 and 15, after they cross Bijankinijeva, they will turn left at Pojišanska, at the second Police Station building, which will be enabled from the beginning of June and will connect with Zvonimirova and continue to Zagrebačka by Domovinskog rata street.

Due to the changed routes in public transport, apart from the station at the port, there will be another at Bijankinijeva street, at the Feniks store, at the site of the current street parking lot.

Last year, the biggest problem was traffic on Zagrebačka street, which caused the buses to be delayed more than an hour, disturbing the overall timetable.

“If everything goes according to plan, there will certainly be a better flow of traffic, which means that we can move between 40,000 and 45,000 passengers in the port,” said Delić and added that the Promet timetable should remain the same. 

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

Moment Fest is a cultural, musical, sports and recreational event that will take place once a month at the Turkish Tower in Split, from May to October. The first release was announced for Sunday, May 26 at 3 pm, reports Dalmacija Danas on May 21, 2019. 

In addition to the Xstatic (graffiti) team who will design the tables, in cooperation with Kam Hram (Cultural Alternative Youth), the even boasts an ‘Open stage’ - an open-air evening of performances for kids and adults where creatives will present their skills and knowledge in various performing arts with an emphasis on contemporary circus.

The magic of this festival will be enhanced by the incredible Guy Pardillos, 'The Mystifier', who will surprise, shock and confuse the audience between the two open stages. This magician, hypnotizer, illusionist, mentalist and entertainer has been on Croatia’s radar since Supertalent in 2017 - and this will be an excellent opportunity to spice up your lives with a touch of magic. 

For the music part of the program, the team of Radio Kampus will bring out the fierce underground sounds of DJ Miro, the alpha and omega of the association Underground Control and one of Judino Drvo’s team leaders, whose name is behind the Barbarinac Island of Love and Ego Free Festival.

“The other festivals are held on June 9th, July 28th and August 25th. We have prepared a lot more for our visitors, and we do not want to give away too much information, so this will stay a surprise for now,” said organizer Tonći Visković, a member of the Momentum association, who you might already know through the project “We Kill Boredom" (Ubijmo dosadu). 

Bring your blankets, hammocks and all other amenities for a picnic out in the sun - the entrance to the festival is entirely free!

Momentum is a non-profit and volunteer youth association founded in Split in 1995 with the aim of more actively involving young people in the cultural life of the city and enriching the social offer of Split. Over the past few years, over 150 workshops of music, educational and sports-recreational types, stand-up comedy, film screenings, and all-day outdoor events have been organized through the project 'We Kill Boredom' resulting in many young Split citizens bringing their talents, wishes, and ideas to a wider audience.

If you're interested in taking the stage, all performers, actors, dancers, circus acts, poets, musicians, comedians, random passersby, and all people of good are invited to submit their performances (up to 10 minutes) and a description of the item to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

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

Ex Yu Aviation writes on May 21, 2019, that the highly anticipated rail project connecting Split Airport with the Split ferry port should commence in June. 

"Our goal is to connect the ferry port with the airport. We are aware that traffic has doubled in the past ten years. We are working on the project connecting the city to the airport and we hope to begin the design and realization process in the next few years. It will involve the construction of a seven to nine kilometer railway,” said Nino Vela, Split’s Deputy Mayor. 

Recall, just last week, Vela also announced new traffic regulations for vehicles at Split’s busy city harbor from June 1, which will push all traffic one-way around the port.

Furthermore, Vela, announced that on June 9, the highly anticipated city rail project would begin. 

With this news comes a series of projects that plan to reduce the traffic problems of the city and its surroundings this year and next.

“The new traffic regulations in the city harbor begins with the realization of the public city rail project. We are enhancing public transport, especially in the most heavily loaded parts of the city such as the city harbor and Kopilica. With the new traffic regulations, the current two-way traffic in the city harbor will be reversed to one-way, which will increase the flow of traffic by two and a half times,” said Vela. 

“The many new bus lines that will drive through the harbor will experience wait times 5-6 times shorter. Namely, they will not be waiting at the traffic lights as they have been. The bus station will change the direction of its platforms and the site of the current roundabout in the city harbor will be a bus stop of great capacity where, at the same time, there will be two articulated buses, all for better public transport services. This will increase the current capacity of 15,000 people through the city port on buses to 45,000,” Vela added.

Vela says that there will be four new parking spaces for people with disabilities and a dozen new parking spaces for taxis. However, the biggest news is about the two new trains that will drive from the city harbor to Kopilica every 15 minutes, and will take just 4 minutes getting from point A to B. 

“We work on intermodal traffic so that air, sea, road and rail traffic are viewed as a whole. Soon there will be a train and bus connection. I'm just driving to Zagreb where I will coordinate the tickets at the Ministry and Croatian Railways with representatives of Split Traffic, after which its price will be known. In short, the traveler will be able to use the same ticket with the transport of buses and trains. The popular "metro" will be in the exclusive function of public transport. We are the first in Croatia. The idea of a city train was launched because we want to use the resources we have in Split. The railway in the town is almost dead. First, we will put in place what we have, and in parallel, we are launching projects for the construction of new traffic, i.e., roads and railroad tracks,” announced the Split deputy mayor.

And what’s going on at Kopilica today?

“At Kopilica, works on the main railway station are nearing the end and the station will be ready by the end of May. Works on the new bus parking area, with 48 new parking spaces, are underway and will be completed by the end of May. All this is part of the city rail service within the project that launched last year.”

Vela continued:

“Our goal is to connect the city's ferry port and airport. We know that traffic has doubled in the last ten years. The project connecting the city and the airport is underway. We hope to begin designing and realizing it in the next few years. A new 7 to 10 kilometers of new railways will be built.”

And in other Split traffic news:

“We all know that the getting into Split is always a problem. To our encouragement, Croatian Roads started work on the Dugopolje junction at the entrance to Split and these works should be completed by the end of June. Work is underway at the intersection of Poljička and Ul. Zbora narodne garde where the ramps are working, and works should be completed by the end of the year, which will improve the flow of traffic into Split. It is known that during the season there is congestion on the highway itself, which is very dangerous, but also congestion at the entrance to Poljička and Domovinskog rata. This ramp will use the upper-level detour and facilitate the flow in the lower level, thereby improving the flow of traffic. These things are now visible.”

A new passenger terminal is currently under construction at Split Airport, with plans to open this summer.

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

The 8th edition of the Shift Conference - Powered by ICT County - will make Split the center of the IT industry for two days, May 30 and 31, 2019. In a single place, the conference brings together leading world experts from renowned companies such as Google, eBay, Shopify, Amazon, Xbox, Minecraft, Slack, and many more.

It is expected that the largest IT conference in Southeast Europe this year will welcome as many as 1,500 participants, reports Splitski Dnevnik on May 20, 2019. 

The Shift Conference - Powered by ICT County, has gathered IT specialists and innovators from various parts of the world for the past few years, providing them with an excellent platform for discussing new development technologies, techniques and trends, and quality networking. The organizer of the Shift conference, Ivan Burazin, discovered that “several of the speakers who attended the conference later helped Croatian companies to break through and succeed in foreign markets, at least to reach the next step in their business."

Participants will have the opportunity to listen to 25 top-class lecturers and participate in 6 interesting workshops. One of the most outstanding lecturers is Boyd Multerer, who is known as the creator of the Xbox One console software, and the founder of the enormous online Xbox Live community that brings together millions of players around the world with billions of dollars in profit a year.

This year's conference will also host two Google representatives, Mugdha Lakani and Mete Atamel, who are the leading developers to help users having problems with the Google Cloud. Also, a prominent guest is Yolanda Robla, who comes from the cutting-edge technology and programming company, Red Hat, where she works as a software engineer and has 15 years of experience. Red Hat is a company that has been in the IT public eye thanks to the fact that IBM acquired it last year for an incredible $34 billion.

The great interest of visitors will certainly target Tiffany Tse, who works as a Developer Advocacy Lead for the Canadian king of e-commerce - Shopify. Tiffany specializes in front end and design oriented to user experience and accessibility. Her lecture will give participants insight into the work and manner that e-commerce functions and will reveal the various challenges that developers encounter daily. E-commerce, from a different perspective, will also feature Front End Engineer of the well-known eBay, Willian Martins, who will challenge and motivate participants in experimenting and using various tricks in the development of business.

From the spontaneous idea of organizing the first Shift to date, the conference has grown into an unexpectedly large but vitally needed IT project in Croatia. The continued growth of the conference and the presence of representatives of some of the world's largest companies are just one of the invaluable indicators that the conference brings to all participants. 

"From year to year, we try to be innovative and original. In addition to being an ideal opportunity to reach young talents and delivering solutions to targeted business partners, the established contacts at Shift open a lot of doors and networking stimulates the great interest of visitors,” concluded Ivan Burazin, the Shift organizer.

This year, on May 30 and 31, the Radisson Blu hotel in Split will become the IT center of Southeast Europe. In addition to quality lecturers, interesting lectures, and excellent networking opportunities, there will also be an entertainment program. 

You can find the full program at www.shiftconf.co.

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

May 21, 2019 - The 35th round of the Croatian First League was held from May 18 to 20, 2019. The second to last round of the season saw Hajduk move into third place and Osijek fall to fourth after a loss to Gorica.

Inter Zaprešić v. Dinamo (2:3)

Inter and Dinamo met in Zaprešić in front of 1,688 spectators to open the 35th round on Saturday, May 18, 2019. 

While it was Kadzior to score the first two goals for Dinamo (5’, 17’), Inter’s Ajayi came back with a goal in the 32nd, and Tsonev with another in the 35th to equalize. Dinamo was awarded a penalty in the 61st minute which Andrić scored for 2:3.

Inter is currently in 8th place with 31 points, while Dinamo has already claimed the Croatian championship and sits in first with 89 points. 

Rijeka v. Lokomotiva (1:0)

Rijeka and Lokomotiva met on Saturday, May 18, 2019, at Rujevica stadium in front of 3,068 fans. 

Murić scored the only goal of the game in the 36th minute, which ultimately gave Rijeka the home win. 

Rijeka is currently in second place with 66 points, while Lokomotiva is in 6th with 49. 

Hajduk v. Istra 1961 (4:1)

Hajduk and Istra met at Poljud in front of no fans on Sunday, May 19, 2019. 

While Istra was the first to score thanks to Ivančić in the 6th minute, Hajduk picked it up in the second half and managed four goals. Caktaš scored first in the 48th minute, followed by Gyurcso in the 56th for 2:1. Jairo scored in the 77th minute for 3:1, and Nejašmić in the 93rd for 4:1. 

Hajduk is currently in third place with 62 points, while Istra is in 9th with 22. 

Gorica v. Osijek (1:0)

Gorica and Osijek met on Sunday, May 19, 2019, in Velika Gorica in front of 1,693 fans. 

While the first half went without goals, it was Gorica’s Suk to score in the 57th minute for 1:0, which was the final score of the game. 

Gorica is currently in 5th place with 56 points, while Osijek is in 4th with 59. 

Rudeš v. Slaven Belupo (0:1)

Rudeš and Belupo closed out the 35th round on Monday, May 21, 2019, at Kranjčevićeva street stadium in front of 83 fans. 

The first half went without goals and it wasn't until a penalty for Belupo in the 78th minute that Delić scored for 0:1. 

Rudeš remains in the last place with 14 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 36. 

You can see the full HNL table here. 

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

The fact that we are edging closer to the heart of the tourist season is evident by the number of cruise ships entering Split’s city port. Namely, on Sunday, two cruise ships sailed into Split, both under the Panamanian flag, and both under the cap of MSC Krstarenja. Their Musica and Sinfonia cruisers brought thousands of guests to the city over the weekend, albeit only on a one-day excursion, as they sailed off at 6 pm, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on May 19, 2019. 

The Musica ship can accommodate 2,550 guests, while the Sinfonia carries one hundred more. Apart from the Port Authority of Split, who surely get their share of the profits, Split caterers and sellers of ice cream and souvenirs earned little from the cruise ship guests, though buyers of magnets seemed to make the biggest buzz.

"These are not the guests who spend a lot, they have everything on the ship, and in the city they only create crowds,” commented one Split resident. 

Split will, however, have to get used to these guests. On Sunday, the city welcomed only the 60th cruise ship this year, and by the end of the year, there will be more than 224 arrivals. 

Namely, the Port Authority of Split has announced the arrival of 284 cruise ships on excursions to Split this year alone - and this is still not the final number. Recall, Split welcomed 260 cruise ships last year, and by 2020, some 305 arrivals have been announced.

No stranger to cruise ships, Dubrovnik implemented a new measure that will introduce a daily tax for guests of cruise ship passengers in the amount of one euro per person in 2021, from which the city will be able to turn about 950 thousand euros into cash in just one year. The move will limit the number of cruise ships in Dubrovnik to two daily, so that no more than 5,000 visitors will arrive in the city in any one day. This is the result of intense negotiations between the City of Dubrovnik and the largest cruise companies in the CLIA association, which took place to attempt to solve the problem of up to seven cruisers a day entering Dubrovnik, which would bring up to 10,000 passengers into the city per day.

Should Split look into doing something similar? 

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

As Novac/Drazen Grubisic writes on the 18th of May, 2019, Split's Brodosplit shipyard will build another new ship for its end buyer, Oceanwide Expeditions. The vessel will be designed specifically for polar areas with a delivery obligation set at October 2021. This information was recently confirmed to the Cruise Industry News portal in a short conversation with Wijnand van Gessel, the owner of the aforementioned Dutch company.

"We've had a good experience with the shipyard in Split, working with them as a partner," stressed Van Gessel for Slobodna Dalmacija.

The new ship will be Hondius's sister, which will be taken over next week by the company, and it will have the name Janssonius, named after a famous Dutch cartographer from the seventeeth century, Johannes Janssonius.

"Hondius is of a very good quality and was built at a decent price. The shipyard stuck to its delivery times, which is the most important thing in this industry," Van Gessel stated, announcing that Hondius will leave Split next week and go to the Netherlands until the cruise begins in June.

Hondius has a maximum capacity of 196 guests, or 174 in a double room, which is considered by the Dutch to be an optimal number. Among the special features are larger cabins, some with balconies, and a large observation lounge with large windows.

In Brodosplit, the vessel was known as Newbuild (Novogradnja) 484 and was presented as a symbol of Brodosplit's restructuring and a step up in both organisational and technological aspects. It was built with new software, tools and technology, especially so in regard to part of the equipment, as almost 80-85 percent of the ship had already been equipped during its construction, resulting in better quality, shorter deadlines and lower construction costs.

The ship was built according to a new financing model, for its own fleet and for long-term lease.

This new polar cruise ship is the first ship in the world to be built in the LR PC6 class, which will meet the latest Lloyd Registry requirements for Polar Class 6 vessels. It is 107.6 metres long, 17.6 metres wide and its main engine boasts a total output of 4260 kW. It will be able to accommodate nearly 200 passengers accommodated in 85 cabins, which will be taken care of by 70 crew members.

The ship's guests will soon be offered a high hotel standard, as well as various cabin categories, from two-room to four-bedroom, as well as spacious suites, where they will be provided with multiple secured systems to provide a safe and comfortable stay.

The design and all technical solutions are all the work of Brodosplit's talented designers.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business and Made in Croatia pages for much more.

Click here for the original article by Drazen Grubisic for Novac/Jutarnji

May 18, 2019 - "Buy Croatian" returns to Split from May 21 to 22, 2019.

Although we're aware that it is healthier and fresher to shop from our neighbor’s garden than from a factory in far-away China, many of us will often opt for a foreign, imported product thanks to better-known brand names and cheaper prices. In the end, you might be a couple kuna richer, but you'll also impoverish domestic production.

Domestic production is the foundation of the economy of each country. The money spent on domestic products remains in Croatia, thus strengthening the community. Domestic producers equally assist a grandson buying home-made sweets for his grandmother, hotel owners who serve meals made with local ingredients, or someone who chooses Croatian design as part of their own identity. A smart buyer knows that buying local is investing in the future.

Each of us can be a guardian of domestic production. That is why the Croatian Chamber of Commerce has organized the "Buy Croatian" event for 22 years as a way to make citizens aware of the importance of purchasing domestic products.

The "Buy Croatian" action began with a general view that, in the conditions of crisis and recession, it is imperative to preserve the level of domestic consumption and to maintain the economic activity of the country. 

“If spending decreases, the country will enter a negative spiral that leads into stagnation, backwardness and a series of social problems. In this context, these acknowledgments for quality have a special dimension. The global crisis will pass, but our structural problems will not be solved by anyone outside. To be able to solve problems ourselves, we must have a product. It is the product that expresses how cultural and civilized a nation is, because people are not expressed anywhere in the product.

The product, however, is not just for business, though it naturally has a commitment to being innovative and competitive. Competitive products have efficient education, healthcare, and pension funds, because all that goes into calculating the product.

Competitiveness has to come from all sectors of society. The success of a society is measured through its product, and it contains everything good or bad in that society. There is no awareness of us yet. We want to express our sincere respect to those who create a quality product under these conditions. They are the ones who give the optimism that we can, that there are people in Croatia who can create something relevant in the world. That we can create a product that has the character of Croatian quality or is an original Croatian product that can be competitive in any part of the world, assuming our society is competitive.

In the long term, we expect that Croatian products on foreign markets are recognizable by their authenticity and top quality. We desire to recognize Croatia as a quality homeland through its quality products,” reads the description of the HGK action. 

This year, “Buy Croatian” continues in Split, Varaždin, Karlovac, and Zagreb, while a special project "Buy Croatian-Croatian products for Croatian tourism" will be held at the end of the year in Istria. 

Visit the Split Riva on May 21 and 22 to check out over 100 local producers and their products. The already cheerful atmosphere will include Croatian actors Doris Pinčić Rogoznica and Darko Janeša and a vibrant entertainment program.

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

May 18, 2019 - The 2nd International Conference on Diaspora Tourism opened in Split on Friday, May 17, 2019. 

Tourism and business links between Croatia and its diaspora are improving, with the latest diaspora conference currently taking place in Split. 

The conference opened on Friday morning at the Milesi Palace by host Edita Lučić Jelić. After the welcoming speeches, which featured the organisers and representatives of the Ministry of Tourism, the many themes of the conference were introduced, which include topics like experiences of diaspora tourism, investment foundation in tourism, promotion of diaspora tourism by emigrants in the countries where they live, cultural tourism, sports tourism, art and tourism, and health tourism and the aging population. 

The conference even saw the support of Croatian president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, and Croatia national team coach and 2018 World Cup finalist Zlatko Dalić, which you can see in the video below. 

One of the positive things happening with the complicated relationship between Croatia and its diaspora, is that the younger, business-minded generation from the diaspora and the Homeland are busy exploring ways they can cooperate, strengthen their bonds and move Croatia forward. 

Those bonds are getting stronger, as Croatia's entrepreneurial class are forging links with like-minded diaspora businesspeople and entrepreneurs. 

Through panels which included Joe Bašić, CEO and founder of MPG which runs Ultra Europe in Split, and Marion Duzich, CEO of Waterman Svpetvrs Resort, day one shared the positive and successful stories of returnees who have invested in tourism. 

Furthermore, day one of the conference delved into the “Croatian Dream”, before another panel of entrepreneurs discussing the past and future of Croatian returnees. The conference also looked into the many opportunities for the future, with experts including lawyers and architects weighing in on the possibilities and perspectives of diaspora tourism and investments. 

The final discussion of the day focused on the massive market of health and wellness tourism, with an impressive panel led by representatives of top health clinics and institutes. 

A packed day full of energy and positivity ended with dinner and music at the restaurant Adriatic Grašo by the ACI marina in Split. 

Day two of the conference continues on Saturday, and you can find the full program in English and Croatian here. 

To read more about the Croatian Diaspora, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

Days of Diocletian officially opened in Split on May 17, 2019, and will last until September 27, 2019. 

The Days of Diocletian pilot project, which proved successful last year, will continue this year through the end of September, reports Splitski Dnevnik on May 17, 2019. 

This year's event started precisely at noon with a festive children’s program at Peristyle. Recall, the goal of the event is to revitalize history and enrich the antique content throughout the summer.

"Under the leadership of HNK Split, Emperor Diocletian will come to Perityle, where the ‘Changing of the Guard’ ceremony will be held, and as part of the program, we can expect the address of Emperor Diocletian, the Roman legion and numerous other surprises,” announced the Split Tourist Board

"As part of this event, we will see the traditional 'Changing of the Guard’, a project under the leadership of HNK, as well as Roman Legions at the live museum. We are taking the good experiences from last year and are using them for the events throughout the summer,” added the director of the Split Tourist Board.

Head of the Roman Guard, Ivan Vatavuk, added that the 'Changing of the Guard' ceremony is expected every Friday at noon, and young actors of the Split Theater will play in the roles of Diocletian and Prisca. Vatavuk continued by saying that the Roman legion has walked through Peristyle for the last 14 years, but while they wore plastic armor in the beginning, they now carry 10-17 kilograms of heavy weight to give the tourists a real look into the past.

“This year, through the entire tourist season, we intend to introduce tourists to the Praetorians and the Legion, and with the help of scenery from HNK, we tried to isolate the 21st century from the Peristyle completely. We have created a total of four projects this year, and the first of them is the greeting and speech of Emperor Diocletian, to be held every Friday in Peristyle, with the formation of the legion and the gladiator fight. Another program called “Dare to Know" will be conducted by two actors Ivan Baranović and Marjan Nejašmić Banić, who will walk around the city and begin an interactive and educational relationship with tourists. The goal is to see how much tourists know about Split. We'll call tourists in the alleyways, let them know about the history of the city. Everything will be recorded and used as promotional material for the Tourist Board,” Vatavuk said. 

The third project is the Roman march, which was also launched as a pilot project last year, during which Diocletian walks Split by night.

"Then you see the Emperor stop in a crowd of 20 people drinking a glass of wine, and everyone stops, and then they want photos and it’s an interactive experience."

The last project is a memorial to the Imperial Split, which will allow tourists to take photos with the Emperor, Empress, and the entire guard on Fridays and post the images on social networks with the hashtags #visitsplit, #croatiafulloflife, to further promote the city. 

Diocletian's legacy will also be displayed through the living museum project at the Cornaro rampart where every first Friday of the month, visitors can see the Roman legion formation, gladiator fights, and be able to shoot bows and arrows and try on the legionary equipment, said Lovre Ćakić, secretary of Association of Diocletian's Legion.

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