May 30, 2023 - June is days away, and the main part of the tourist season in Croatia has almost started. The Croatian Tourist Board expects excellent results. The announcements from the most important markets are very good, which was certainly helped by the declaration of the end of the pandemic.

This year, tourism in Europe will reach or exceed the record results from 2019, especially in the Mediterranean, while Croatia has already exceeded these results by June, pointed out the director of the Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ) and vice-president of ETC Kristjan Staničić, as writes Poslovni.

According to the first data from the eVisitor system, from the beginning of this year until May 27, Croatia was visited by 3.5 million tourists, with 10.7 million overnight stays, which is 27 percent more than in the same period last year and 3 percent more than in 2019.

Almost half of all arrivals, or 1.4 million and 4.8 million overnight stays, were achieved until May 27, which is also an increase of 3 percent compared to the same period in 2019, while this is a 24 percent increase compared to last May, said Staničić for Hina after he was re-elected as the vice president of ETC (European Travel Commission, an association of national tourism organizations based in Brussels).

He does believe that the time has come to make a move away from the tourist figures themselves and emphasizes the development of new experiences and motivation for arrivals in the pre- and post-season.

"The focus of everyone in the tourism sector must be on the sustainability of tourism and the positioning of Croatia as a year-round destination, which is what most of the activities are aimed at. There is an opportunity in distant markets, and it is also in the trend that more and more tourists see the ideal time for vacation before and after summer, without the high temperatures, crowds, and with lower prices," says Staničić.

"Croatia was highlighted at ETC meetings even during the pandemic as the most successful tourist destination, so expectations for this tourist season are high, but other ETC member countries also expect a good tourist year", says Staničić, adding that according to ETC research the intention of Europeans to travel is strong and that more than half of them have already booked their next trip, while 59 percent of them are planning two or more trips by the end of September.

When asked how the rise in prices in tourism affects demand, Staničić states that according to ETC research, more Europeans are worried about prices this year than last year, 24 percent versus 18 percent. The same is true of the attitude of concern about the general economic situation and personal finances, but they want to travel and think that they will spend more on travel in the next six months than before, but also try to save when planning, for example, travel more outside the main summer months when prices are more favourable.

The trend is that more arrivals of tourists from the USA are expected in Europe this year, where the number of airline seats for this season has increased by 15 percent compared to 2022, i.e. by 3 percent compared to 2019. Investments in tourism marketing and promotion in almost all countries have also increased.

"Most Croatian competitors are investing more in promotion this year than in previous years, they are very active in the market, some have withdrawn funds from EU funds, and some national tourism organizations have joined forces with the private sector, so everyone expects better results," says Staničić.

HTZ's budget this year of about 34.8 million euros is about 4 percent higher than last year, which, he emphasizes, are amounts that certain competitors exceed many times over, so he considers Croatia's success even greater.

Currently, HTZ implements the so-called main invitation campaign in 14 markets, whose messages have been seen by more than 150 million users through social networks and display advertising so far, so Staničić expects great effects through the achieved results of tourist traffic because, for example, HTZ's TV campaign in Austria, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Slovakia and Great Britain encouraged their media to do additional filming in Croatia.

'Testing' of the new umbrella communication concept in the markets until the end of June

By the way, HTZ is in the process of selecting a new umbrella communication concept for Croatian tourism with a new visual identity and slogan, which should replace the current "Croatia, Full of Life". According to Staničić, the solutions of the selected bidders who entered the second phase of the tender have been received, and now the phase of testing the received proposals on foreign markets is coming up, which should be completed by the end of June.

"In the end, the final decision on the selection must be adopted by the Tourist Council of HTZ, and as this is a very important process for us that will determine the communication and promotion of Croatian tourism in the future, we want to be as thorough as possible and choose those solutions that will be best accepted, that is, which will best communicate the brand of Croatian tourism", concludes Staničić.

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October 5, 2022 - For the first time, Croatia participated at the International Tourism and Travel Fair SITEV in Algeria. The Croatian stand was extremely popular and additional tourist brochures were requested. Many questions were asked about Croatia, which showed that there is great interest for our coast, as well as continental destinations. It's no secret that Algerians consider Croatia a friendly country, they admire its coast and warm sea, they know a lot about Dubrovnik, Luka Modrić and Croatian football.

"Nothing comes by chance. At the end of last year, our Minister of Foreign Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman visited Algeria. The reception was exceptional and they opened the door for cooperation wide. They decided to develop their tourism, and Croatia can help them in every way, from nautical tourism to hotel industry. We consider our participation in the fair to be the opening of Croatia to their market
which could be a "win-win" situation. I am grateful to the Minister of Tourism who supported the idea of ​​going to the fair, as well as the Croatian Tourist Board", highlighted Ilija Želalić, the ambassador of the Republic of Croatia in Algeria.

Photo: Slobodan Kadić

He is especially pleased that Croatian tourists are also visiting Algeria, specifically, recently about fifteen people visited the Sahara via Croatian agencies, and it is precisely this area that they want to promote as a tourist destination. Two years ago Croatia and Algeria exchanged the text of an agreement in the tourism segment that could be signed quickly, and after that many things will happen faster.  Višnja Letica, the advisor of our ministry and the delegation from the Croatian Tourist Board all travelled to Algeria for the 21^st SITEV. They made sure that our stand looked beautiful and handed out traditional Licitar hearts.

Photo: Slobodan Kadić

"Algeria has opened the doors of cooperation for us, and through Algeria we can also go to the west coast of Africa. They will build a high-speed railway to the border of Niger, Mali and Senegal... Our products could be exported there, and there is always the possibility of a free trade market among African countries, just as we, in addition to the EU, also have agreements with some countries from before. This is an advantage that many do not know about or show no interest in. Regarding obtaining Croatian visas, not every traveller is a potential migrant. Many Algerians travel around the world, have Schengen visas, and we would very much welcome such clientele. This is how they promote our tourism, which encourages others to come and enjoy our sea and its beauty", concluded Želalić, stressing that in the future it will be possible for investors from Algeria to invest money in tourist facilities and marinas.

Photo: Slobodan Kadić

This year's SITEV was the 21^st in a row and lasted from September 29 to October 2, 2022, and is considered the largest international tourism fair in the Maghreb countries. Alongside with several neighboring countries, Turkey participated. We are witnessing excellent growth of tourism after the coronavirus epidemic, and Croatia's participation in fairs of this type is a step forward in the additional promotion of our ever-improving tourist offer.

Croatia is in fashion

"Wherever I went, Algerians would say that Croatia is in fashion. They watch a lot of French television, and there are countless travel series about Croatia. They know a lot about Plitvice, Dubrovnik, Split and our football. A friendly soccer match between Algeria and Croatia had also been arranged, but since they were eliminated by Cameroon and are not at the World Cup, instead of playing against them, we will play against Saudi Arabia. Algeria is a promising country and I am convinced that we can achieve a lot in cooperation", said Ambassador Želalić.

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ZAGREB, 16 March 2022 - The current geopolitical situation regarding the war in Ukraine, the growth of prices of energy products and inflation are affecting demand in the tourism sector to some extent, but bookings have not stopped, the Croatian Tourism and Sports Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

The ministry issued the statement following a regular online meeting held this week between Minister Nikolina Brnjac and heads of Croatian Tourism Board (HTZ) offices abroad.

Bookings for Croatian destinations have not stopped despite the current geopolitical situation, the heads of the HTZ offices said, noting that by 24 February, when the Russian invasion of Ukraine started, the booking dynamic and announcements for the peak tourist season were at the level of the record year 2019 and that in some segments they were around 10% better.

According to data from the HTZ eVisitor system, in the first two months of this year 410,000 tourists visited Croatia, generating slightly more than 1.2 million overnight stays, which are increases of 98% and 83% respectively compared to the same months of 2021.

Almost half the arrivals, 196,100, were foreign visitors, which is an increase of as much as 371.2% compared to the first two months of 2021, and they generated 721,000 overnight stays, an increase of 187%.

The most numerous foreign visitors were Slovenians, visitors from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austrians and Germans.

Politics: For more, check out our politics section.

September 28, 2020 – The tail end of 2020's unparalleled summer offers opportunity for pause, contemplation and appreciation, as it's loyal and not luxury guests that have saved this year's Croatia tourist season.

In this day and age, things always have to get better. There's no room to sit still. Life without improvement is deemed a failure. Nowhere is this more true than the Croatia tourist season.

The numbers of overnight stays in the Croatia tourist season sometimes seem to be the only measure by which its success is judged. Year after year, the numbers must rise. Any decrease is unthinkable. At the same time, hungry eyes still want more. Some want to reposition themselves. A new class of guest is wanted, from faraway nations. They must be of a better quality. They must stay longer, in more expensive dwellings. They must spend more.

Incredible initiatives are undertaken to turn this want into a reality. But, at the end of the 2020 Croatia tourist season, perhaps it's time to pause and reflect. For this year, it is undoubtedly loyalty and not luxury that's saved the Croatia tourist season.

In the year the coronavirus pandemic hit, arrivals by charter plane and cruise ship were seriously curtailed. So much for the flying visits of premium guests from far-flung lands. Instead, the tourists who came were from much closer to Croatia.

The English language that most on the coast are so familiar with was this year useless. On the beaches of Istria and northern Dalmatia, it was Slovenian, Polish, Czech, German, Slovakian and Italian that was heard. The packed bars of Makarska echoed with the familiar call of 'Đe si, bolan?' (where are you, bro? - in Bosnian dialect). Many of those who came drove to Croatia. And many do so every year.

© Jeremy Segrott

Sighs and light-hearted jokes about some of these guests persist in some places. “That family come every year, but they only ever order one pizza to share between the four of them.” The choice of footwear of some German-speaking and Czech visitors frequently draws chuckles, in particular, the classic sock and sandal combo. But, just where would the 2020 Croatia tourist season have been without the 60,000 Czech and Slovak visitors who this year arrived by train?

Just two days ago, Jutarnji reported on phenomenal numbers of Polish visitors this year. Would anyone else really have taken the place of the returning family of four sharing a pizza? Just what would the season in Makarska have looked like without bolan?

Croatians are famously very appreciative hosts. On the ground, there's no doubt that such loyal guests are warmly welcomed and thanked each year by accommodation renters, restaurateurs and others. They greet returning visitors with smiles of familiarity and reserve for them their favourite place. In September 2020, gratitude to such guests was echoed by The Croatian National Tourist Board as they launched a new campaign 'Thank you', directed at the tourists who this year chose Croatia.

Perhaps it is time to ensure that this gratitude extends into any grand new initiatives for growth in the Croatia tourist season? Such loyal guests should not be taken for granted, nor forgotten.

Initiative within the Croatia tourist sector is vital. The unlocking of continental Croatia's potential is simply a must. That too of the Dalmatian hinterland and inland Istria. The exploitation of world-class Croatian assets such as nature, agriculture and health and wellness services are also perfectly on-point. The desire to attract a better class of bigger-spending visitor to luxury holidays on the Croatian coast should surely be a lower priority. After all, eyes that covet can all too frequently fail to appreciate that for which they should already be thankful.

© Oddman47

Lead image adapted from an original photograph by © Marco Verch

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June 8, 2020 - A few weeks ago, Index.hr and Dalmatian portal (Dalmatinski portal) published an article which presented some devastating results by analysing the work of tourist boards in Croatia. Pokret Otoka has done something similar. The Solta tourist board stood out in particular...

The person responsible for discovering this "phenomenon" is the British journalist Paul Bradbury, who, with his experiment, once again drew attention to where taxpayers' money actually goes. If you didn't know, Bradbury contacted the Croatian National Tourist Board, which shared the public e-mail addresses of all tourist boards to help them in their business. Namely, they were offered free marketing assistance during these challenging times caused by the COVID-19 crisis, since some budgets were drastically reduced, while some even had their salaries reduced (from 4 to 20%). It is important to point out that the mayor of Sucuraj on Hvar was the only one to react by abolishing the Tourist Board in his municipality until the situation stabilises.

But let’s get back to the published article. Paul sent the offer mentioned above to 319 addresses. Only 26% of them opened the mail, and only 18 of them accepted the offer, not as a percentage but in a total of 18 tourist boards. Surprised by the results, he published his findings in the media and interested the public.

Many questions arise: Why have the employees of tourist boards turned down a great opportunity to have part of their work done for free by an expert, especially since some of them have already had their salaries reduced and their budget for marketing activities has gone down with it? We really wonder, like most of the public, what these individuals are paid for and how tourist boards contribute to their communities, with what results they participate in the overall tourist traffic of the destination, how they promote it and what they will do now when strategic changes are needed such as innovation, digitisation and all sorts of new skills for the general survival of the tourism market?

Here, we want to emphasizse that we do not think that all tourist boards are useless, we don't have accurate and relevant insights into their work, but some individuals were obviously prompted to consider the work of the tourist board on the island of Solta and present their business analysis to the public.

Duje Mihovilović, originally from Solta, made an effort and shared several facts from the publicly announced business plan of the Tourist Board of Šolta for 2019. He is a young, educated person who has been involved in tourism for the last ten years and has the skills of digital marketing, social networking, and the segmentation of new customers. At a time when he sees the market changing and turning to sustainability, quality, natural resources, and local values, customers will be reached with new technologies and digital tools.

“The tourist board promotes the island through social networks, through the Visit Solta platform, which includes Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest. The goals of this direct communication with the target groups are an increased number of guests and consumption and an enhanced emotional connection with the destination (brand building). The realisation of the stated goals will be carried out through the activities of managing social network pages in English through the frequent generation of content (photos and videos) and communication with members."

Current status on social networks:

The expected result of the campaign on social networks is an increase in Facebook page followers to 15,000, and 2,500 followers on Instagram and an increase in video views on YT by 15,000. The planned costs for 2019 amount to HRK 60,000.00.

Currently, the Facebook page of TZ Solta has 14,560 followers, out of the planned 15,000 in 2019. Realistically, even then, it was not a challenging number or an ambitious goal, but, unfortunately, it was not achieved half a year after the planned period.

However, looking at communication with target groups makes it clear why the number of visitors is not increasing. Namely, from the beginning of this calendar year until today (June 4), six publications were published, of which the Tourist Board wrote 1 (one!) about Solta. This is a post related to the situation with the COVID-19 pandemic. Other posts are news feeds from other portals. Unlike last year, nothing has changed - in 2019, 14 announcements were published, and the tourist board's employees wrote none of them.

On Instagram, the situation is a little worse than it was last year. They have published four posts since the beginning of the year, but the authors are different people. The number of followers is 2096, and 304 are missing from last year's goal. Considering that half of this year has already passed, on average, their publishing pace is worse than it was last year. In 2019, a total of 21 announcements were published, approximately every seventeen days. This time we will not talk about the quality of posts, the use of #hashtags, or key messages.

Official website:

While doing the analysis, Duje was intrigued by the price of maintaining the website, which costs HRK 10,000 per year. We believe that everyone who runs any company, association, or trade and has a website knows that it is paid once, while maintaining the domain costs several hundred kuna. Of course, some sites need frequent content changes and technical and graphic improvements. Still, this site does not fall into that category, and the only changes it makes are the calendar of events on the island, of which there are many and which appear somewhat confusing. Additionally, even the structure of the page is not an author's original work, but an existing template was used, which cost the creator of the page the equivalent of about twenty dollars.

The Tourist Board of Solta has been employing two people since 2019, who, in addition to their duties, including travel expenses and the presentation of islands at fairs (about which we failed to find an announcement), planned to spend a total of HRK 300,000.

Besides, every year from May to October, four tourist information centres are opened: Maslinica, Rogac, Necujam, and Stomorska. Money amounting to HRK 125,000 is planned for their work, which includes the costs of salaries and offices.

The total planned budget for 2019 amounted to HRK 1,125,000.00, of which HRK 490,000 was planned from the budget of the Municipality of Solta. You can find more details in the document and evaluate the quality and purpose of this island tourist board.

At the end of the presentation, as he sees the whole situation, Duje commented: “Solta doesn't have enough opportunities to develop and it depends largely on tourism, like most other islands do. You, Solta locals, do not exist on that map! The money in this story is being thrown into the wind. In the current situation that has destroyed tourism, your tourist board has done absolutely nothing!”

On the Facebook group "Solta - for each other", the topic resonated loudly. This is a topic that concerns all islands and all islanders. Do we want to discuss it publicly and start to make a change from our city/municipality/village/local board? The crisis that is yet to follow will affect the entire system of the economy and life in general, our future depends on how we're going to act and live in the coming months. And again, the responsibility lies with all of us.

Read here this article in Croatian.

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Kvarner's tourist traffic numbers continue their upward trajectory. The Kvarner region, located in Northwestern Croatia, finished 2019 with 3.1 million arrivals and 19.1 million overnight stays. Compared to 2018, there were 2% more arrivals and 1% more overnights. Overnights also increased by 3% compared to 2017, 13% compared to 2016 and 50% compared to 2010.

During peak season, overnight stays remained at last year's levels, with an average occupancy of 25 days, and 30 days at hotels. That means that there wasn't a lot of room for growth during the the busiest season of the year, according to MorskiHR on January 8, 2020. Therefore, it is important to emphasize that overnight more stays increased by 1% during pre-season, while the post-season overnight stays increased by 4%. The increase in overnights during pre and post-season is more significant when compared with results from 2010, and it shows that overnights during these times of the year increased by 90%, according to the tourist board.

Germany Traditionally Strongest Market

In 2019, 630,000 German guests visited the Kvarner region, resulting in almost 4.7 million overnight stays. This figure has certainly been influenced by the large number of promotions directed toward the German market.  In addition to Germany, three more markets have reached more than one million overnights: Slovenia (3 million), Austria (1.8 million) and Italy (1.3 million). The share of foreign traffic for these four countries is nearly 70%.

Kvarner’s inclusion on group tour routes which take guests from distant markets to Europe has also resulted in a large increase in traffic from these markets. In the last 3 years, guests from China have almost tripled their number of overnight stays while US citizens have increased their overnights by 50%.

Guests from the United Kingdom are also worth mentioning. They spent 137,000 overnights in Kvarner which is 25% increase from 2018, and 44% increase from 2016! Foreign tourists account for 85% of overnight stays and domestic tourists 15% (3 million nights, an increase of 5%). 

Mali Lošinj

Most Guest Overnights on Island of Krk

Among the subregions, the island of Krk is in the lead, with an increase of 1% and 7 million overnights (and has a 36% share of total overnights in Kvarner).

The Crikvenica-Vinodol Riviera ranks second (3.2 million) followed by the island of Losinj (2.4 million). The number of overnight stays continues as follows: the Opatija Riviera and the island of Rab (2.2 million), the island of Cres (1.1 million), the Rijeka area (925,000) and Gorski Kotar (110,000). The highest percentage increase in overnight stays (14%) was recorded in the Rijeka area.

Mali Losinj (2.4 million nights) and Crikvenica (2.2 million nights) are among the "best" destinations.

Guests Prefer Croatia Family Accommodations

Family accommodations accounted for 40% of recorded overnight stays (7.7 million). Campsites and hotels recorded almost the same number of total overnights: 3.7 million each with individual shares of 19%. 

The highest increase in overnights was recorded in upper-category accommodations:

• Hotels generally realized 1% more overnights. However, 4 and 5-star hotels enjoyed a 6% increase.
• All family accommodations experienced a 1% increase in overnight stays, but 5-star family accommodations enjoyed a 38% increase!
• A similar scenario applies to campsites: there was an overall 1% decrease in overnight stays, but overnights at 5-star camps are up 22%.

Regardless of the type, 5-star facilities have seen 15% increase in overnight stays during the past year and 70% increase overnight over the last 3 years!

Cres

Nautical Tourism Overnights Up Thirty-Two Percent

These figures do not include 24,500 arrivals and 156,000 overnight stays due to nautical traffic, which in has increased by as much as 32% the last year alone. There are about 20 nautical tourism ports in Kvarner, and Marina Punat alone accounts for more than half of nautical overnights.

Kvarner Third to Istria and Split-Dalmatia in Accommodation Capacity

As of 2019, there are 190,000 permanent beds available for tourists in Kvarner which represent a 17% share in accommodation capacity within Croatia. The Kvarner region ranks third in terms of total available accommodation, which is behind Istria and Split-Dalmatia counties in Croatia. 

Irena Peršić Živadinov, Director of the Kvarner Tourist Board, emphasizes that the primary goal is to strengthen the pre and post-seasons, because one cannot always count on a record “peak” season.

Kvarner Tourist Board Expects Long-Term Increase

“In recent years, the Kvarner region has definitely succeeded in strengthening the pre and post-seasons. Compared 2010 to 2019, we have seen a huge increase in overnight stays during both seasons - almost 90%! Over the past 10 years, we have invested in the quantity and quality of the regions’ offerings. We have also focused on joint branding and activities and recognized our strengths regarding products and offerings."

“These steps probably won’t yield immediate results but will take a longer time to have an effect. Taking that into consideration, for example, 12.7 million overnight stays were recorded in 2010, it is clear that in a period of 9 years we have realized 6.3 million more overnights, or the total number of overnights in Kvarner ha increased by almost 50%,” Peršić Živadinov points out.

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August 28,2018 — Croatia’s 2018 summer promised new records for its vital tourism industry. Hands were rubbed raw in anticipation. Much was spent, in terms of currency and energy.

Yet an unprecedented explosion of interest coupled with investment didn’t provide the expected boost during the very peak of the tourist season.

Perhaps a look back can offer some persepctive.

If this year does indeed turn out to be the year of tourism stagnation, it might just speed up the processes that can bring about sustainability and a new growth model to Croatian tourism. Every tourist destination has its own limitations, especially if it doesn't work on its own  transformation in terms of infrastructure, content, and mode of promotion.

Mark Cavendish took the overall lead in the Tour of Croatia by sprinting to a comfortable stage two victory in Split.