November 14, 2019 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for new flights to Croatia with updates from Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik, and Zadar. 

Ex Yu Aviation reports that low-cost carrier Eurowings will discontinue services from Berlin and Dusseldorf to Zagreb at the end of March next year, namely on March 28, 2020. In the past, Eurowings has complained about Zagreb Airport's significantly high airport fees, which is tough for low-cost carriers. With no competition on these two routes, Zagreb will no longer be linked to the German capital.

However, operations from Cologne and Stuttgart and their seasonal summer service to Hamburg will continue as usual. Next summer, Eurowings will operate six weekly flights from Cologne to Zagreb, five weekly flights from Stuttgart to Zagreb, and eight from Hamburg, with flights running once a week between July 8 and August 26. 

Eurowings is currently the only low-cost carrier operating year-round flights to Zagreb. 

Avio Radar reports that Greek national carrier Aegean Airlines, a Star Alliance member, announced larger planes for all flights to Croatia in their 2020 flight schedule. Flights will no longer run on the Bombardier Q400 aircraft of the Greek regional carrier Olympic Air, but instead be operated by the Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft. 

The Athens-Dubrovnik route remains in operation with five flights per week using an Airbus A320 on all flights. The Athens-Split route will operate four times a week on the Airbus A319 instead of this year’s five flights per week on the smaller Bombardier Q400. Flights will no longer run on Sundays and remain on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. The Athens-Zagreb route will operate three times a week on Wednesdays and Sundays with the Airbus A319 aircraft, while it will use the larger Airbus A320 on Mondays. This year, Aegean operated four flights per week to Zagreb with the smaller Bombardier Q400. This route will no longer work on Thursdays. 

Avio Radar also reports that Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair will introduce a new flight from Poland to Zadar in the summer. It will connect Zadar with the town of Gdansk in northern Poland three times a week, on Tuesdays,  Thursdays, and Saturdays from March 31, 2020. 

Ryanair started operating flights between Poland and Zadar only this year when the Krakow-Zadar and Poznan-Zadar routes were introduced twice a week, which will continue in 2020. The new Gdansk-Zadar line will be the third from Poland to Zadar. The Boeing 737-800 aircraft of the Polish company Buzz will fly on all three lines. 

Buzz started operating in 2017. Ryanair founded this company in Poland under the name Ryanair Sun and initially flew only charter flights from Poland. It has now taken over most of Ryanair’s regular lines from Poland and Hungary. It already has 24 Boeing 737-800 aircraft in its fleet. 

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

November 13, 2019 - A stormy, hurricane-like jugo wind whirled along the coast from Tuesday morning, especially in Dalmatia, where 134 km per hour winds were recorded at the Marjan weather station.

By early Tuesday afternoon, the Split Public Fire Department (JVP) had a dozen interventions, mainly removing broken trees from roads or property. Their colleagues from the Volunteer Fire Company (DVD) Split and DVD Zrnovnica were on the ground answering calls. 

The Civil Protection Directorate announced late Tuesday afternoon that about 15 vehicles were damaged by falling trees and branches and other objects. Given that, according to the forecast, even stronger winds were expected at the end of the day, citizens were advised to park their cars in protected areas, if possible, to avoid damage, to be cautious when driving, and monitor the weather. In the case of strong winds, citizens were advised not to leave their homes if they did not have to. 

In addition to the storm in Split, the sea in Omis rose and flooded much of the coast and the town square. The same happened in Trogir, Ciovo, and Kastela, where the sea level had risen by several centimeters.

On Tuesday, 134 km per hour winds were measured at the Marjan weather station, which is one of the strongest impacts since official meteorological measurements were recorded. Namely, it is the third-highest officially recorded in Split in the last 60 years.

The strongest wind so far was measured on February 1, 1986, when it was 149 miles per hour.

"On Tuesday, the strongest southern wind in Croatia was measured in Dubrovnik at 142 km/h. This storm is linked to a deep cyclone centered over southern Italy and moving in an unusual northward direction and we can expect it to enter the Adriatic on Wednesday," said Rade Popadic, adding that this storm was one of the most pronounced in recent years.

On Wednesday morning, Split was were greeted by fierce thunderstorms and heavy rain. The streets of Split are flooded with traffic beginning to build. 

Some say that the worst situation is at the entrance to Split, at Domovinskog Rata street, though traffic has also formed at Ulice Slobode and Poljicka. There are no traffic lights on Vukovarska Street, which has caused great difficulties for drivers. 

Several maritime lines have been interrupted because of the wind, including:

Ferries: Brestova-Porozina, Lopar-Valbiska, Ubli-Vela Luka-Split, Stari Grad-Split, Vis-Split, Drvenik Veli-Drvenik Mali -Trogir, Rogač-Split, Zadar – Brbinj, Supetar-Split, Sumartin-Makarska, Sućuraj-Drvenik, Ploče-Trpanj, Orebić-Dominče, Prapratno-Sobra, Dubrovnik-Lopud-Suđurađ;

Boats: Zadar-Rivanj-Sestrunj-Zverinac-Božava-Brbinj, Korčula-Orebić, Šibenik-Zlarin-Prvić Luka-Šepurine-Vodice, Milna-Rogač-Split, Komiža-Biševo, Mali Lošinj-Unije-Susak, 415 Vrgada-Pakoštane-Biograd, Dubrovnik-Koločep-Lopud-Suđurađ, Zadar-Sali-Zaglav-Zadar,Zadar-Mali Iž-Veli Iž-Mala Rava-Rava;

Catamarans: Mali Lošinj-Cres-Rijeka, Lun-Tovarnele (Novalja )-Rab-Rijeka, Ubli-Vela Luka-Hvar-Split, Vis-Milna-Split, Jelsa-Bol-Split, Ist – Zapuntel – Brgulje – Molat – Zadar, Zadar-Sali-Zaglav-Bršanj-Zadar, Korčula-Hvar-Split, Vis-Split, Zadar-Premuda-Silba-Olib, Dubrovnik-Mljet-Lastovo, Žirje-Kaprije-Šibenik, Milna-Rogač-Split.

If you can, stay indoors today! 

Sources: Slobodna Dalmacija, Dalmacija Danas 

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

November 12, 2019 - More than 600 participants, including more than 300 students from tourism and hospitality schools in 29 European countries, are in Split for the AEHT Annual Conference. Across five days at the Le Meridien Lav hotel, they will compete in 10 professional categories, seven in the field of gastronomy, service, and bars, and three in the hotel and tourism industry.

Dalmatinski Portal reports that for the 32nd year in a row, the European Association of Hotel and Tourism Schools affirm its fundamental European values, in addition to education and teamwork, multiculturalism, and embracing diversity. The reason is that every competition among students is team-based, there are no individual categories, and team members are never from the same school, so there are no winners across the states or schools, but only multicultural teams win.

The gastronomy competitions take place where contestants are given a basket of groceries to use to prepare a three-course menu, the so-called culinary art. There is also a competitive discipline decathlon where three people on the team make the same meal through different stages of preparation. As teams are assembled just before the start of the conference, it is immediately apparent how individually competent and ready they are for the real sector, where such situations occur daily. 

Furthermore, there will be a confectionery contest and a restaurant service, which includes opening champagne in front of guests, followed by knowledge about wine and serving wine, cocktail preparation and a barista competition of hot drinks. The three hotel and tourist categories are reception, presentation of a tourist destination that includes a city tour for jury members, and hospitality management. Students are required to compete in either English or French.

Hosting so many participants is a huge organizational undertaking that this year's host, the Split Tourism and Hospitality School, has waited to do for seven years since the official application.

“Hosting the AEHT conference is a great honor but also a challenge, so even though we already have experience in organizing major competitions, this is our first with such logistics and attendance. More than 20 people from our school staff are carrying out numerous tasks related to the organization of the conference in addition to their daily work, and I thank my colleagues for their efforts in making the organization as good as possible,” explained Ivo Bilic, director of the Split Tourism and Hospitality School, pointing out the great support of Split-Dalmatia County and the City of Split, as well as the county and city tourist boards.

"By raising human resources to a higher level, we will make our tourism product more attractive and of higher quality, and ultimately more expensive. The goal of education is to make the transition from school to the world of work as easy as possible, and for each student to learn in school what they will be expected to do in the workplace, to receive a task from their superiors and understand the processes and tools. Human resource development, that is, humans are really the key to tourism development, so I would like the people of Split to come to support our students. I believe that the most interesting culinary and pastry competitions will be held to the general public throughout the day, on Wednesday and Thursday, on the terrace in front of the conference rooms of the Le Meridien Lav Hotel,” he added.

Across five days, future tourism workers will achieve 3000 overnights in Split-Dalmatia County during the offseason, which is a substantial contribution to the start of their activities within the Croatian tourism sector.

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

As Morski/Kristina Odzak writes on the 11th of November, 2019, an underwater cleanup which took place in Split has uncovered not only rubbish which needs to be removed and disposed of in the proper manner, but some rather unusual finds, too...

Beach and sea cleanups happen up and down the Croatian coast, typically during the pre and post seasons, with the occasional handful of them taking place at the height of summer, too, with many foreign tourists often offering a helping hand. These actions are environmentally fuelled, and the aim is to keep the glorious Croatian Adriatic sea clean, but from time to time, some unexpected finds pop up among the trash.

On Sunday, November the 10th, 2019, an ecological action was held in front of the Zenta nightclub as part of the project MY SEA (MOJE MORE).

The action was attended by about 100 people, including about forty divers (REK Hvidr, PIK Sailor, Split's public fire department and ERK Periska Ploče) as well as about fifty volunteers from OCEANUS, Rotaract Novi Split, CroMSIC Split and the Split Youth Club.

Despite the rain and wind which battered that part of the central Dalmatian coastline, 800 kilograms of garbage was recovered from the sea, and three hand grenades, often referred to as kinder eggs, were found and the police were notified. The situation was then dealt with professionally by deminers.

Other than explosives, most of the collected items were glass bottles, cans, various car tyres, but also a lot of "interesting" items like walking sticks, turntables, radios, and even water heaters.

The poor weather conditions didn't stop even locals who were passing by, who stopped to look in amazement watching all this waste be dragged from the sea, and some of them even joined the volunteers in sorting.

This particular environmental action was made possible by the Student Union of the University of Split, Split-Dalmatia County, Čistoća Split, and both the county and city tourist boards.

Follow our dedicated lifestyle page for much. If you're interested in both official and unofficial ways that Croatia works to take care of and preserve its environment, give Total Eco Croatia a follow.

The 15th round of the Croatian First League was held from November 8 to 10, 2019. This round featured a crucial win for Hajduk and coach Damir Buric and a shocking blowout between Rijeka and Dinamo. 

Istra 1961  v. Gorica (2:2)

Istra and Gorica opened the 15th round in Pula on Friday, November 8, 2019, in front of 699 fans. 

Istra’s Laukzemis scored a quick goal in the 3rd minute for the lead, though Jovicic equalized before the half for 1:1. 

Mocinic put Istra back in the lad for 2:1 in the 62nd minute, and a late equalizer by Ndiaye in the fourth minute of injury time made it 2:2. 

Istra is currently in 7th place with 12 points, while Gorica is in 6th with 22. 

Lokomotiva v. Inter Zapresic (3:1)

Lokomotiva and Inter met in Zagreb on Saturday, November 9, 2019, in front of 440 fans. 

Tolic’s goal for Lokomotiva made it 1:0 at the half, and his second in the 72nd minute made it 2:0. Tsonev managed to get one in for Inter in the 83rd minute, while a Tolic hat trick in the 11th minute of injury time gave Lokomotiva the 3:1 win. 

Lokomotiva is currently in 3rd place with 25 points, while Inter is in 9th with 11. 

Varazdin v. Slaven Belupo (0:0)

Varazdin and Belupo met at NK Varteks Stadium on Saturday, November 9, 2019, in front of 1,112 spectators. 

Neither team was able to score, and the match ended 0:0. 

Varazdin is currently in the last place with 11 points, while Belupo is in 8th with 12. 

Hajduk v. Osijek (3:2) 

Hajduk and Osijek met at Poljud on Sunday, November 10, 2019, in front of 7,805 fans. 

Hajduk’s Caktas scored first with a goal in the 22nd, while Eduok increased Hajduk’s lead to 2:0 in the 41st. 

Zaper came back with a goal for Osijek to make it 2:1 at the half. A quick goal by Maric into the second half made the game equal in the 52nd minute for 2:2. 

Jairo put Hajduk pack in the lead in the 72nd minute for 3:2, though his second yellow in the 73rd mad saw Hajduk play with a man down for the remainder of the game. Osijek was unable to capitalize with an extra man,  and the game ended at 3:2. 

Hajduk is currently in 2nd place with 30 points, while Osijek is in 4th with 23. 

Rijeka v. Dinamo (0:5)

Rijeka and Dinamo closed out the 15th round at Rujevica Stadium on Sunday, November 10, 2019, in front of 5,517 spectators. 

Ivanusec (’14), Orsic (’18, ’26), and Stojanovic (’20) made the game 0:4 for Dinamo at the half. An Orsic hattrick in the 70th made it 0:5, which was the final score of the game. 

Rijeka is currently in 5th place with 22 points, while Dinamo is in 1st with 34. 

You can see the full HNL table here. 

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

November 8, 2019 - This year’s Split Advent promises an abundance of music and fun, and will also awaken nostalgia in some of its visitors.

Visitors to Split from November 30, 2019, to January 2, 2020, will hop on a retro time machine and recall some of the forgotten verses, games and flavors of the city. Across five weeks, Advent guests will enjoy a plethora of Christmas delicacies at various Advent locations, and send thousands of unique postcards to the world from photo corners on Vidilica and Matejuska.

Dalmacija Danas reports that a new edition of Split Advent was announced at today's press conference held on a branded bus that will run the free Advent line. The attendees were greeted by the host of the Advent bus, the director of Promet, Miroslav Delić, who emphasized the importance of good cooperation with the Split Tourist Board, on whose initiative two free Advent lines will be introduced this year. The new lines will run on weekends all day. In addition to Promet, HZ Passenger Transport, in cooperation with the Split Tourist Board, will offer free return rides to the citizens of Split, Solin, Kastel and Trogir every Saturday and Sunday to the city center. Free transportation on Saturday and Sunday mornings and afternoons will be provided by the suburban train between Kastel Stari - Split - Kastel Stari. 

Mayor of Split, Andro Krstulovic Opara, greeted all those present. 

“We are proud that Advent is becoming one of the most important manifestations of our city, which is confirmed by the increasing involvement of numerous institutions, associations, local communities. We are sure that it will attract a large number of visitors, especially citizens. We are breaking records during the tourist season, even this time when almost the entire Adriatic was in the minus. Christmas time is the time for us, our children and our citizens. We have designed Advent festivities to bring our citizens Christmas magic and awaken the good old feelings. We want to feel good together with our citizens, let's smile, let's be happy, that's our goal this Christmas!

This year, it was our wish that all visitors awaken the playfulness and emotion of the old times. We have introduced new locations and revived traditional locations with ice skating rinks, photo corners, retro exhibitions, themed programs, dances and many surprises which will we ride together on our retro time machine. Let's add that during Advent last year, tourist numbers increased by 17% in arrivals and 21% in overnights, and judging by this year's interest of foreign media, Split is becoming a genuinely unavoidable Advent destination.”

The director of the Split Tourist Board, Alijana Vukšić, added:

“The CEO of Spalatum DMC, Ante Sunjic, emphasized that this year's program on the Riva is particularly rich and diverse. The entertainment program is full of theme nights and performances of well-known musical names. Advent will open by Gustafi, and visitors to Advent will be entertained by Giuliano and Diktatori, Alen Nizetic, Marko Pecotic & band, the Vatra group and numerous other performers. A special treat will be Tedi Spalato’s Christmas concert and we will have a traditionally good time for New Year's Eve. Klapa Intrade and Tomislav Bralic will create a cheerful Dalmatian atmosphere, while Jelena Rozga is in charge of the party until the morning hours.”

She added that numerous sponsors recognized the event, and also thanked "Coca-Cola as a sponsor of love and warmth, OTP Bank as a sponsor of joy, the Croatian Lottery as a sponsor of memories, Radio Dalmatia as the media partner and sponsor of playfulness, and all others who have recognized the importance of events such as Pik Vrbovec, Ožujski, Procurator and Bio Planet."

The Public Invitation for offers on Advent houses opened just a few days ago. This includes 25 houses in the following locations: Riva (3 shops, 3 for simple catering, 11 for catering); Dardin (4 catering); Rudjer Boskovic RK Prima 3 (4 catering); and at Prokurative (children's entertainment - train). Those interested can apply by November 14 and be part of this year's retro Advent story.

Maja Leksic, director of marketing and sales, said: “Radio Dalmacija lives with its listeners 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, either through the Christmas Gift project, through which we assist our fellow citizens in need, or by sharing our thirteenth salary. We always listen to the needs of our listeners, and we are especially weak when it comes to children's emotions because there is no purer emotion than that. Therefore, this year, we arranged a children's park and two playgrounds in Split, and we are the proud sponsor of the Hajduk pioneers for several years. It was, therefore, logical to respond to the invitation of the Tourist Board and participate in this year's Advent as a sponsor of Marmontova and be the exclusive media sponsor of Advent.”

More info on Split Advent coming soon...

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

November 8, 2019 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for new flights to Croatia with updates from Zagreb, Split, Pula, and Zadar. 

Ex Yu Aviation announced that Swiss International Air Lines would stop its seasonal summer service to Zagreb. 

“Swiss regularly reviews its route network for possible adjustments and its further development, to ensure that its aircraft fleet is deployed on it as effectively as possible. The prime considerations in these activities include current demand, the development potential offered by individual routes and the competitive landscape. As part of these ongoing endeavors to optimize our route network as a whole, we have decided to cease service to Sarajevo and Zagreb as of the 2020 summer schedule,” the airline said in a statement to Ex Yu Aviation. 

Recall, Swiss flew to Zagreb three times per week over the summer.

This doesn’t mean that Swiss is leaving the Croatian market, however. The airline will resume its weekly flight between Geneva and Pula from June 20 next year. Swiss will also codeshare Croatia Airlines’ services between Zagreb and Zurich, which runs twice a week. 

Avio Radar reports that TUIfly Nordic will run a new trip from Sweden to Split in their 2020 summer flight schedule. Namely, the Norrkoping-Split route will operate on Fridays every other week from May 15 to October 9. 

The Danish airline JetTime has flown on this line for the past year with a smaller Boeing 737-700 aircraft. TUI will service this line with its own Boeing 737-800 aircraft. 

They also announced two other new routes - Gotheburg-Split, which will run once a week on Fridays, and Stockholm (Arlanda)-Pula, which will run once a week on Saturdays. 

Avio Radar also reports that Danish airline JetTime will service TUI Sverige on new routes from Scandinavia to Pula and Split. Namely, it will fly between Gothenburg-Pula and Copenhagen-Pula once a week, on Fridays, with the larger Boeing 737-700 aircraft instead of the smaller British Aerospace Avroliner ARJ-100, operated by Swedish regional carrier Braathens Regional Airlines this year. 

Furthermore, the new line Orebro-Split, will run every other Wednesday from May 27 to October 8, 2020. The line is being introduced instead of the Norrkoping-Split line that TUI has taken over with its new aircraft. The Helsinki-Split, Copenhagen-Split and Vaxjo-Split lines will continue to operate the same as they did this year. 

Avio Radar adds that Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair will boost two flights to Zadar in the 2020 flight schedule. The Prague-Zadar line, which started operating only this year with two flights per week on Mondays and Fridays, will run three times a week in 2020 on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. 

The second reinforced line is the Stockholm (Skavsta)-Zadar route, which also introduced a third-weekly trip. Starting March 31, 2020, this line will run on Tuesdays, Thursdays,  and Saturdays on the Boeing 737-800 aircraft. 

On the other hand, Ryanair announced the closure of its base in Hamburg a month ago. This means that the Hamburg-Zadar route,  which began operations this year with two flights per week, will not be on offer next year. 

To end this week of flight news, Ex Yu Aviation reported that easyJet and Pula Airport concluded a five-year agreement at the World Travel Market in London, which will further strengthen their cooperation and grow operations at the airport, with a focus on the UK market. 

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

November 6, 2019 - Split mayor Andro Krstulovic Opara commented on discontinuing the metro from Kopilica to the ferry port, saying that the line had not been discontinued, but only transformed into an integrated bus and rail link between the Split airport and the ferry port.

Opara explained for Slobodna Dalmacija: “You journalists called it the metro, we never called it that, it is yet to become that. The line between Kopilica and the City port has not been discontinued; it has been transformed into a transportation link connecting our airport with an integrated line. Anyone who buys a ticket at the Split airport for 25 kuna can board the train Kastel Luksic and continue to the ferry port, which has a stop in Kopilica as well.

We changed the timetable because the passenger intensity is lower and is now getting a new shape by merging Kastela, Solin, and Split, which is what we wanted. This is just the beginning of a long story that will have its finale when we connect the airport with the ferry port. We have now combined it by integrating the bus and rail,” the mayor explained.

When asked by a journalist about the difference between the metro and the line that usually departs from Kastela, stops at Kopilica and continues to the ferry port, Opara replied that, in the meantime, an integrated ticket had been released that has been used in recent weeks.

He explained that passengers now have the opportunity to take an exclusive "Promet" bus line from the airport to Kastel Luksic, and then use the same ticket for the train to the ferry port, which stops in Kopilica.

Of course, the ultimate goal is to connect the airport with the ferry port by rail, for which not all the necessary preconditions have been created, which primarily relate to the construction of part of the railway line in Kastela itself. According to the mayor, this will not happen so fast. However, Opara announced interventions that will occur around Split next year.

“During the winter, we will start the works in Dujmovača; something halted the building permits on Širina and in Sv. Kaji, but as far as I can tell, this has been resolved, so next year, we will have those two stations ready. A process is underway at Trgu hrvatske bratske zajednice to change the DPU, which is necessary to get started on opening that station.

There were two tenders for the HZPP to design the underground station, and the second one succeeded. It will give new meaning to all this work that we insist on doing,”  said the mayor.

How much money would be spent on the entire project could not be said at this time, except for that Promet would participate by contributing one-third of the whole amount.

When asked if the City profited from passengers traveling between Kopilica and the ferry port this summer, Opara explained that this could not be discussed because the project has just begun.

"The project may not be as popular in the beginning as it will be in the future, but we were ready for it," he added.

Thus, connecting the airport and the ferry terminal will not be feasible until next summer.

“I have to say openly that for our part, we did everything we needed, the Ministry also, and doubts existed with our colleagues in Kastela. I am glad to hear that they have introduced a railway line in the changes to the spatial plan, which is also envisaged by the Spatial draft plan of Split-Dalmatia County. However, the tracks they offered were still under evaluation. We expect that this will take a full year and that a quality route will be decided. Until then, we will make amendments like this with integrated traffic,” Opara concluded, saying that the whole process has taken too long.

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

November 5, 2019 - Split Advent this winter will be held from November 30, 2019, to January 2, 2020. 

Split Advent 2019/20 will boast nineeteen holiday houses in three locations - the Riva (11), Đardin (4), and the Split 3 neighborhood (4). On Monday, the competition for catering facilities began, reports Splitski Dnevnik.

Spalatum D.M.C. as an organizer of Split Advent 2019/20, invited all interested individuals and legal entities to submit, under general and special conditions, an offer for the display, presentation and sale of their products and services at the event from November 30, 2019 to January 2, 2020, on the Riva, Đardin, Prokurative (the plateau by FINA), and from December 6, 2019, to December 24, 2019, at Rudjer Boskovic RK Prima 3.

This year, there will be no Advent in front of the Gallery of Fine Arts due to the vibrant program and ice rink at Đardin. In addition, part of the program will be dispersed this year to the Split 3 neighborhood to provide Advent entertainment to residents outside the city center. As the stages and holiday houses will be located in a residential area, the program will last until 9 pm.

"There are no houses in front of the Gallery of Fine Arts, but we have decided to focus on the Riva, Đardin and Split 3 because of the great fluctuation of inhabitants in that part of the city. In this area, we went with a much lower price, and there will be a stage set for the music program. This is an intention to offer events outside each center and to expand zones, and to disperse some Advent events to other parts of the city, and if successful, plan to do so in other quarters in the coming years, where it is organizationally possible. Also, on the plateau in front of FINA, there will be children's content and a traditional train. The number of houses on the Riva remained the same, and the number of houses at Đardin increased,” said Ante Sunjic, director of Spalatum D.M.C., adding that the initial rental prices of houses on the Riva and Đardin remained the same as last year, and they expect the same interest. 

This year, the competition is open for exhibitions, sales and presentations, including the following: Christmas products, books and multimedia, souvenirs and gifts, original products, gastronomy, and presentations by tourist boards, counties, cities, municipalities and chambers of commerce.

Interested bidders are required to send their offer to Spalatum D.M.C. or the Split Tourist Board by November 13, 2019. Bids can be submitted from November 4 to 13, 2019. 

The accepted offers will be published on the websites of Spalatum D.M.C. and the Split Tourist Board on November 14, 2019.

Bids that do not meet the required conditions, which were not submitted in the required form and content or were not submitted within the prescribed deadline, will not be considered or included in the Advent program. 

The main selection criterion will be the highest rent or fee offered, followed by the authenticity of the products and services being offered, as well as the content related to the Christmas holiday, creativity in the interior decoration of the buildings, previous experience in exhibiting at fairs and many years of activities for which they are applying.

If a successful tenderer withdraws their offer, the Commission reserves the right to select the next best offer.

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

November 5, 2019 - The World Travel Market, which takes place in London from November 4 to 6, is one of the world's most important trade fairs. This year, among the hundreds of booths showcasing tourist destinations, you'll find the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board, who is participating for the first time with their own booth. With this appearance at the World Travel Market (WTM), the official fair promotion of the Split-Dalmatia County tourist offer begins.

Dalmatinski Portal and TZ Split-Dalmatia County report that the Split-Dalmatia Tourist Board is presenting its tourist offer with four cluster info-desks, and has provided the county's economic operators with the conditions to interview business partners at the world's largest gathering of businesspeople from the tourism industry. Within the Split-Dalmatia County booth, a series of events and business meetings are planned, with the presence of prefect Blazenko Boban and his associates. Guests are also offered a tasting of Central Dalmatian wines, prosciutto, and cheese from local producers in Split-Dalmatia County.

“I am happy that, as a County with our own booth, we had the opportunity to be at the two largest tourism fairs this year, first in Berlin and here in London now. We aim to develop tourism in two directions. The first is to try to extend the tourist season by diverting tourist arrivals from July and August into April and May, and September and October. The fact that we were the most visited county in Croatia in October this year is confirmation that we are on the right track. We want to gently divert tourists from major coastal destinations to the rural areas of the county, which we can only achieve through attendance at fairs such as this one in London, where we have the chance to show all the beauties that our county truly abounds. And these beauties are not just in the frequently visited tourist destinations of Split, Makarska, Bol, Hvar, or Trogir. We try our best to present all the treasures of our beautiful Dalmatian Zagora and the interior of our islands. This year's results of the Imotski Tourist Board after the Berlin fair are the best indicator that we have something to offer and attract tourists both in the pre-season in the post-season and the rural, peripheral areas of the County,” said Boban, who had the opportunity to speak with the British Minister of Arts, Heritage and Tourism, Helen Whately.

Kristijan Stanicic, director of the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB), said that for the development of tourism, we need the right people and continuous education about the quality of tourism infrastructure, from tourist capacities and the catering offer to the quality of the overall tourist service.

“The main task of the CNTB is to recognize trends in tourism in a timely manner and to keep up with the competition in the innovation and creativity of the offer. I believe that when it comes to the sustainability of tourism development, Croatia has all the resources it needs and that a bright future awaits us.”

Tourism Minister Gari Capelli said we could expect even better results in 2021 'because, in the presence of such fairs and major marketing activities, only HRK 70 million has been invested in additional airlines over the past two years, which was discussed here'.

Josko Stella, director of the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board, expressed his satisfaction with the fact that Split-Dalmatia County presented itself for the first time at the London Fair.

“We want to bring our county to the British market, where we traditionally stand well,” Stella said, adding:

“We have conducted several interviews with three airlines, in cooperation with our airport in Kastela, to introduce additional lines and overcome the possible consequences of Brexit as smoothly as possible.

The results achieved during the peak season in Split-Dalmatia County continue with the new post-season records. According to data from eVisitor and the offices of the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board, in October, Split-Dalmatia County was the most visited and most desired Croatian region in tourism. Thus, in October, there were 188,562 arrivals and 623,895 overnights in commercial accommodation, which is an increase of 14 percent in arrivals and 8 percent in overnight stays. In October, there were 15,255 arrivals from the UK market in Split-Dalmatia County, which is an increase of 17% in arrivals and 81,142 in overnights, and an increase of 10% compared to the previous year. In the first ten months of this year, a total of 3,592,210 arrivals (+5%) and 17,932,166 overnight stays (+2%) were realized in the county. In the first ten months, the Germans ranked as our largest market for the first time, with 318,000 arrivals and 2.21 million overnight stays growing 9% in arrivals and 3% in overnight stays. Growth in arrivals and overnight stays in the first ten months compared to last year was also recorded from the UK market. Namely, with 241,000 arrivals and 1.12 million overnight stays, the UK market is up 5% in arrivals and 3% in overnight stays.

In the first ten months of this year, UK guests visiting Central Dalmatia liked Split the most. Namely, they made up 39 percent of the arrivals and 29 percent of overnight stays in Split. Split is followed by Hvar, where they made up 13 percent of the arrivals and 10 percent of the overnight stays. Split, Makarska, Hvar, Omis, Baska Voda, and Tucepi are the most visited tourist destinations in Split-Dalmatia County this year, registering an increase in the number of nights compared to last year.”

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