ZAGREB, 20 May 2021 - The UHPA association of travel agencies has called on the government to urgently decide to extend its job-retention scheme and to compensate travel agencies for fixed costs, considering that so far this year they have seen a drop in turnover of more than 90%.

"For six months now we have been negotiating intensively with government officials about a compensation model to help salvage travel agencies. We have the support of Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac and believe it is high time to start with financial assistance for preparation for the season and for the normalisation of activities, as announced by PM Plenković," UHPA president Tomislav Fain said.

He noted that yet another crisis tourist season was about to begin and the only thing travel agencies could count on was the uncertainty of whether the pandemic would continue spreading, whether the epidemiological situation would be kept under control and what tourist movement would be like.

"Apart from job-keeping support, which as a measure of horizontal assistance has been introduced also by other EU countries, Croatia has not secured for private businesses in tourism any grant scheme, which is what other member countries, notably those whose GDP, like Croatia's, relies heavily on tourism, have done," said Fain.

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ZAGREB, August 28, 2020 - The good results of this year's summer tourist season have not contributed to tour operators' business and their revenue has dropped by more than 80%, which is why they expect the state to continue with its job-keeping scheme, the UHPA tour operators association said on Friday.

"The drop in revenue in the past two months exceeds 80%... The current epidemiological situation is also working against us and we estimate that most tour operators cannot realise a turnover that will enable them to keep jobs and maintain liquidity," UHPA president Tomislav Fain said.

In a comment on good tourism figures, which stand at 50% of last year's results, Fain said that it should not be forgotten that tourism is not only about arrivals and overnight stays and that it is a complex sector involving various stakeholders many of whom, including tour operators, do not depend exclusively on the tourist season.

Fain said that UHPA supports the continuation of the government's job-keeping aid as well as dealing with many outstanding issues tour operators are faced with, and that the existing safety protocols should be implemented as soon as possible and Croatia should be promoted as a destination where all epidemiological measures are complied with.

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March 20, 2020 - The Association of Croatian Travel Agencies has promised vouchers for travelers during the coronavirus crisis.

Domestic travelers and tourists who have paid for travel through travel agencies that cannot be realized because of the coronavirus pandemic can expect agency vouchers to pay for trips when it passes, UHPA President Tomislav Fain said Thursday for Jutarnji List.

"The money paid for travel is not lost. We plan to start issuing vouchers to travelers for paid arrangements that they will be able to use in the amount of money paid for another trip when all this passes," Fain explains.

He says that this is already done in many European countries, and that travelers need to know that their money has not been left in the account of the travel agency, but has been forwarded to the hotel, airline, carrier and others in the 'linked chain' of the travel offer.

"The working capital of an agency, which is mostly small or medium-sized enterprises, is limited, and the refund to the customer due to stagnating bookings and bans imposed would be fatal for many agencies. Therefore, we offer a solution that should satisfy both parties - enabling travelers to make trips, and to provide agencies with business continuity,” says Fain.

He estimates that the spread of the coronavirus has caused unprecedented disturbances in daily life, in many industries and the economy, including in the travel industry.

“The coronavirus has dealt a heavy blow to the recommendations of the competent institutions to temporarily delay travel until the suspension of regular routes, the closure of borders and the complete ban on travel of any kind," warned Fain.

The consequences are also felt by travelers - individual guests and groups, business people on trips and organized congresses, schoolchildren and their parents, and all others who duly paid for trips that will not be realized now due to force majeure and in extraordinary circumstances, and, understandably, they expect compensation.

"We believe that the time of travel will come again and that we will quickly overcome this crisis and keep our heads up, and until then, it remains for passengers and everyone to abide by the instructions recommended by the Civil Protection Staff," Fain concludes.

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ZAGREB, September 23, 2019 - The bankruptcy of the British leisure company Thomas Cook Group is bad for global tourism and it is a big loss for the British economy, however, some other British travel agencies are likely to take over Thomas Cook's share on the Croatian market next year, Tomislav Fain, the president the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies (UHPA), told Hina on Monday.

The Thomas Cook Group and its associated UK companies filed for compulsory liquidation after failed negotiations on recapitalisation. The collapse of the 178-year-old group has left thousands of guests stuck worldwide. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has also stepped in to conduct return flights between 23 September and 6 October, either with CAA-operated flights or existing flights with other carriers depending on location, foreign media outlets have reported.

"A certain number of guests, who have arrived here via Thomas Cook, are still staying in Croatia, mostly in central and southern Dalmatia. Although insurance companies are also expected to step in, it is still uncertain how the hotels that have provided accommodation for those guests will cover their costs," Fain said adding that in any case, hotels in Croatia will not follow the example of those in Tunisia that have kept those guests detained over unpaid bills.

Fain explained that many other British tour operators do business in Croatia and they are likely to take over Thomas Cook's share on the Croatian market soon.

Fain also called on the tourism ministry and the HTZ board to contact those operators and conduct negotiations in a bid to deter a reduction of the number of tourists arriving here from the U.K.

He commented that the developments surrounding Brexit probably contributed to the collapse of Thomas Cook, however, bankruptcies were not big news on the world market where the competition was tougher and tougher and changes on the market were constantly occurring.

Atlas is Thomas Cook's main strategic partner as the destination management company for Croatia and currently Atlas executives are conducting meetings to discuss the latest developments.

There are currently 190 guests in Dubrovnik, who arrived in that Adriatic resort from Manchester via Thomas Cook on Sunday. They are now waiting for CAA personnel to come to Dubrovnik and assist them with their return flight.

UHPA is a voluntary national trade association of Croatian travel agencies, registered also as an employer's association.

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This year's Days of Association of Croatian Travel Agencies (UHPA) are being held from 21 to 23 March, for the first time in Slavonia, more precisely in Vinkovci, which is an excellent opportunity to introduce the representatives of travel agencies to the tourist offer of eastern Croatia.

The UHPA is a voluntary national professional association of travel agencies from Croatia and is also registered as an employers' association. It brings together 228 travel agencies, as well as some 100 affiliated members, including leading hotel companies, restaurants, camps, Croatia Airlines, tourism organisations, educational institutions, rent-a-car companies, etc. The UHPA members realise more than four-fifths of organised travels in Croatia. It is a professional organisation established 27 years ago.

The UHPA Days is an event bringing together more than 200 participants, primarily representatives of travel agencies, representatives of the Ministry of Tourism, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, tourist boards, professional associations, media and others.

The association president Tomislav Fain opened the event. Speaking about the significance of UHPA, he emphasised that 228 regular members of the association employ 3,400 people and last year reported 3.3 billion kuna in turnover. He issued a call to travel agency representatives: “Personally, I think Slavonia can offer a lot, and I hope in the future, once you get to know this part of Slavonia, you will include this region in your offer to help the development of tourism in this part of Croatia.”

Fain stressed that last year was unofficially called “the year of challenges” as it was marked by the implementation of the new Tourism Services Act, the adoption of which was in line with the EU guidelines on travel package arrangements and related travel arrangements. Also, the new law stipulates a reduction in administrative barriers to doing business, specifies which services are considered as health tourism services, further regulates services in conference tourism, regulates who can provide rent-a-car services, additionally regulates the provision of tourist services for active and adventure tourism, etc.

The director of the Croatian National Tourist Board's (HTZ) head office, Kristijan Staničić, also gave a speech. He stressed that the current state of booking for this year is satisfactory, but added that this year would be intense, challenging and unpredictable. Talking about the relationship between organised and individual tourist travel, he pointed out that organised travel represents one-third of the total tourist turnover and two-thirds of hotel turnover. Organised travel is most prevalent in the pre-season and post-season, while the main season is dominated by individual travel.

Speaking about regions, Staničić stressed that Istria, Dubrovnik and Zagreb have above-average shares of organised tourist travel, which is partly due to the structure of accommodation capacities. Most organised trips come from the markets of Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Great Britain, the Netherlands, France, Sweden and the United States. He also commented on HTZ activities such as joined advertising, support to destination management companies, fair participation, the Discover Croatia portal development, etc.

He said that the next year would be the key. Given the global trends, efforts will have to be made to change the fundamental model of Croatian tourism. The new strategy and the new strategic marketing plan will also provide new guidelines for the future development of tourism in Croatia.

The director of the Vinkovci Town Tourist Board, Martina Matković, then held an interesting presentation that focused on the historical continuity of 8,000 years of organised human living in the Vinkovci area and all that Vinkovci can offer to tourists of today.

More news on Vinkovci can be found in the Lifestyle section.

The tourism industry focus will be on Slavonia next year.

This week, the Bluesun Kaj in Marija Bistrica held a three-day annual meeting of Croatian businesses in the sector of travel agencies, hotels and tourist resorts. At this year's meeting, nearly 130 participants from 8 countries participated, with annual awards granted for the best tourist events and tourist stories. The awards were organized by the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies and the magazine Way to Croatia.