September the 27th, 2022 - For the first time, the Zagreb Tourist Board will mark World Tourism Day outside of the capital city, looking to Eastern Croatia and choosing Vukovar.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the Tourist Board of the City of Zagreb (TZGZ) traditionally celebrates World Tourism Day every single year, and this year will be the first time it will do so outside of the City of Zagreb, presenting the long-standing educational high school project "Culture of Tourism" in Vukovar. As such, in cooperation with the Croatian Association of Tourist Journalists and Writers in Tourism - FIJET Croatia, the projects of the students of Zagreb will be presented within the a programme called "Culture and tourism in the revival of the continental tourist offer".

The Director of the Zagreb Tourist Board, Martina Bienenfeld, said on this occasion: "World Tourism Day is celebrated on September the 27th under the auspices of the UNWTO (World Tourism Organisation), so I'd hereby like to send my sincere congratulations to the entire tourism industry of Zagreb and Croatia. In accordance with this year's slogan, Rethinking tourism, we focused on our "Culture of tourism" project, which we're implementing in cooperation with the City Office for Education, Sport and Youth.

With this project, we're involving young people in participating in environmental protection programmes, raising their quality of life, preserving ethnological, historical and cultural heritage, raising the level of hospitality and creating a welcoming climate, and with their great work, they're showing how well tourism can truly be thought through. With an emphasis placed on year-round tourism, Zagreb has a developed, sustainable, equal and responsible tourist offer and has achieved great tourist results in the previous part of the year. Cooperation with Zagreb's high school students provides the foundations for shaping the future of tourism in a way that makes it sustainable, stronger, more inclusive and empowering both for our city and for the country as a whole."

Through the systematic education of Zagreb high school students for whom tourism and catering are not primary, the Zagreb Tourist Board hopes the "Culture of Tourism" project will succeed in its aim to raise the students' awareness of their own city and introduce young people to its touristic, cultural and natural potential. Over the years, all schools in the City of Zagreb have participated in the project, and this year there were six of them. They will present their projects in Vukovar this year.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

February the 8th, 2022 - Fancy trying out your skills on the up and coming Vukovar rock climbing wall? The biggest rock climbing wall in all of the Republic of Croatia and in this part of the region is set to find its home in this often overlooked Eastern Croatian city which is still synonymous with the Homeland War.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, ongoing inflation and rising costs across all fields have contributed to slowing down and throwing spanners into the works of the Adica forest park project in Vukovar, which is currently without any accommodation units, but in the middle of next year, Vukovar will get a brand new fun tourist attraction, an adrenaline park with the largest rock for climbing in this part of the region.

The "Magic Forest" project, which encompasses the Vukovar rock climbing wall is worth 30 million kuna in total and is part of the Intervention Plan of the City of Vukovar. It is all being co-financed by EU funds, and in addition to enriching the lives of local people, it will give tourists a new reason to visit this Eastern Croatian city. In addition to being aimed at families, tourists eager for an adrenaline rush or two are also expected. Professional competitions will also be able to be held there.

"Vukovar has a lot to offer tourists, and now we're starting to incorporate what we lacked, entertainment that is an important motive for tourists and added value in the valorisation of the city's tourism offer," said Marina Sekulic, the director of the Vukovar Tourist Board.

In addition to these facilities, Adica should have had accommodation facilities, bungalows and a campsite, but this was abandoned at this stage due to unpredictable construction costs as a result of the current situation with inflation. Sekulic noted that it is a pity that these segments haven't yet been implemented, but the projects are ready and implementation is possible in the future through some other funding models.

Last week, the mayor of Vukovar, Ivan Penava, signed a contract with the contractor for the Magic Forest with the Presoflex gradnja (construction) company from Pozega.

"With this project worth 30 million kuna, we'll get two new facilities, one is a wooden promenade along the river Vuka spanning the length of almost one kilometre, while the other is a new sport and entertainment adrenaline park which will consist of high and low static polygons, climbing rocks which will be 20 metres high and a 470-metre-long zip line that will cross the Vuka River,'' Penava explained.

According to him, the Adica project and the new Vukovar rock climbing wall will contribute to the creation of new jobs in the City of Vukovar, and with all of its new entertainment offers and recreational facilities, it will have a positive impact on the entire tourist and catering and hospitality offer.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

September 19, 2021 - On the last weekend of September, locals and visitors will be able to welcome autumn in the best way at the Vukovar Ethno Fair, enjoying the best products, crafts, and traditions of the city.

From September 24 to 26, the city of Vukovar will hold its 14th Ethno Fair, in which the best of its local products, crafts, gastronomy, music, and folklore will be displayed, reports Turističke Priče. Both city residents and tourists will witness the arrival of autumn feeling the true essence of Vukovar and its people.

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

The focus will again be on the fair of traditional products and arts and crafts, handicrafts and antiques, and food and beverage producers, where products and services are exhibited by producers from the entire Vukovar-Srijem County, but also Croatia.

We believe that in the three days of the fair, everyone will find something for themselves. Children will be able to participate in one of the five announced workshops in which they will make wooden toys, flower wreaths, shape clay…

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

Lovers of tradition will enjoy the richness of folk costumes and performances by cultural and artistic societies, both domestic and guest. Namely, after the performance of KUD Kolo from Vukovar on Friday, the Croatian Cultural and Cultural Music Society Danube will host on Saturday the traditional 13th Meeting of folklore societies "The Danube to its city". On Sunday, the folklore part of the Fair will be rounded off by the "International Folklore Festival Zagreb - City of Vukovar".

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

In Vukovar, you will be able to try gastronomic specialties from all over Croatia, as part of the fifth gastronomic event "Tastes of Croatia", but also to refresh yourself with Vukovarsko and other beers with a cultural and artistic program with beer tasting on the "Vukovar OktoBierFest".

The music part of the program of the Vukovar Ethno Fair will be opened on Friday by tamburitza players, the Tamburitza ensemble Sremci, and on Saturday visitors will be able to enjoy the performance of the popular and favorite Vanna. Tamburitza players will play on the last evenings of the Fair, but this time visitors will be entertained by the band Libero.

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

On Sunday, September 26, as part of the Vukovar Ethno Fair, the Day of National Minorities of Vukovar-Srijem County will be marked. On the occasion of World Tourism Day, the Guides Association organizes a city tour on the same day, accompanied by costumed guides called Tourist in their city.

Therefore, book the last weekend in September for Vukovar, which always offers you more than you expect.

To learn more about the city of Vukovar, visit Total Croatia's complete guide, Vukovar in a page. Now in your language!

For more, check out our dedicated travel section.

April 20, 2021 - With a five-year tradition already in place, VukovART 2021 promises a month of fun and exciting activities for Vukovar with visual eye candy as souvenirs to last.

A unique concept in the culture and art of Vukovar, the VukovART festival will be held from May 15 all the way to June 15, writes HRTurizam.  

With a five-year tradition, the streets and squares of Vukovar will once again host numerous exhibitions and workshops, debates, children's programs, film, and literary programs, panel discussions, colorful lectures, and concerts. This event, organized by the City of Vukovar and Val Kulture association, co-financed by the European Social fund, promotes Vukovar as a Port of Art, changing the visual identity of the city making it a beautiful place to live. In addition to the local community, tourists also enjoy the eye candy of the city's open-air gallery. Artists Boa Mistura (Spain), BustArt (Switzerland), Jana Brike (Latvia), Mr Woodland (Germany), Victor Splash (Russia), Artez (Serbia), Juandres Vera (Mexico), Kerim Musanović (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Marion Ruthardt from (Germany), and Croatia's own Forest are ten artists who will come this year to give their contribution to the growing visual content of the city.

The festival will be opened by a beloved Croatian band Vatra (Fire), with performances of Mia Dimšić, musical composition CLUE, and vocal composition Watercolor in the following days too. During every larger event of the festival, „a superb craft scene and street food“ offers will be offered to visitors too. 

© VukovArt - Art Harbour

Famous Croatian singer from Psihomodo Pop with a neck in painting as well, Davor Gobac will exhibit his paintings and also host Motivational and Art Workshop for children.

„There will also be an active weekend led by the Vukovar Half Marathon, and for a slightly more relaxing activity, a bicycle race will be organized to tour previous works of art“, says HRTurizam article.

Domagoj Jakopović Ribafish, Dusan Bučan, and Robert Knjaz will host travel lectures and the full program and more details can be found on VukovART official website and on social networks.  

Learn more about Croatia's festivals on our TC page.  

For more about Made in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

Sunday, 6 September 2020 – The Vukovar street art 2020 event VukovArt has just finished. Here are the five fantastic new works its left in the colourful Slavonian town.

The paints have dried, the scaffolding has been removed and all but the last few organisers have set off home. But, though VukovArt, the annual Vukovar street art 2020 has finished, the paintings from this year will remain.

These wonderful new works join a spectacular series of paintings which decorate the town, thanks to previous editions of VukovArt (you can check them ALL out on this link). Residents of the town now live their everyday lives among these incredible pieces of public art.

Here's a look at the Vukovar street art 2020 collection and a little from some of the artists who've made them.

OKO (Croatia)

Because he’s Mister Strength, Courage and Health

Human bodies, dressed in Victorian finery, topped with the heads of animals and, especially, birds; OKO's intricate and sometimes sinister designs have been seen at Zagreb’s Museum of Contemporary Art, Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the European Parliament in Brussels and in more proletarian spaces such as Zagreb’s Medika club and Theatre &TD. Her murals are often similar, only produced on an industrial scale.

"I chose to paint a bear because this animal often symbolises amazing strength and endurance," OKO told TCN. "When they invited me to paint in Vukovar it seemed like best possible symbolism for a city that endured so much and yet which still stands strong.

Boogie (Germany / Switzerland)

Boogie down Vukovar

Some 20 years ago, Boogie aka André Morgner formed the SML Crew in a region of eastern Germany not far from the Czech border. They've been active ever since, although Morgner himself moved to Switzerland. There, he's a now full-time artist, drawing his murals on walls of buildings, parks and offices, on commission for people like Google, Burton Snowboards and BMW. His pieces are vivid and contemporary in colour, but often take inspiration from the bragging tag work of vintage hip hop.

Tea Jurišić (Croatia)

Bora

Having worked in many different modes of visual art, Tea Jurišić is, to many, known more for her drawings, paintings and illustrations than she is her street art. Yet, she has created various murals in Croatia, Slovenia, Italy and Norway. Since 2017 she has had 8 solo exhibitions in Croatia and overseas. She uses comedy and surrealism to add a playful edge to her simple storytelling.

"My challenge was a 300 square metre wall in the Olajnica neighbourhood, which I was painting between the 28th of August and the 3rd of September," said Tea. "The mural's name is Bora. It's the name of a fiercely strong wind that sometimes visits the coast of Croatia. I chose the name as I was trying to connect thematically two Croatian waters - the continental Danube river and the Adriatic sea. I relied on fresh colours that would bring a touch of summer to the gloomy days of winter that lie ahead. I tried to adapt the colours to the building, and the environment around the building. My experience in Vukovar was wonderful - from friendly people, a beautiful city and delicious food. It was an experience to remember for a lifetime."

Eugen Varzić (Croatia)

Future Freedom

A graduate of the Academy of Applied Arts in Rijeka, Eugen Varzić is something of a classicist operating inside wholly modern mediums. His paintings adorn city streets in Madrid, churches and the streets of his native Istria where, in Poreč, you'll also find his two mosaic sculptures, Trosjed and Konfin.

"This piece was a challange for me, because of the size, the positioning and the motif," Eugen said of his piece of Vukovar street art 2020. "The whole place used to be a military camp. After the fighting finished, they turned it into a memorial centre for the war, a kind of museum where you can see the planes, tanks, learn about Vukovar. Kids from all over Croatia come. There is a hostel where they can stay. When they asked me to paint this wall, because of where it is, that put some boundaries on my work. I had to think differently. This wall is not so easy to paint on – it's broken, it has windows, it's surrounded by steel, there are fire stairs."

"I decided on a half portrait of my daughter's smiling face. I wanted to show something happy and which looks forward into the future. Half of the face is pixalated, so it's clearly placed in the 21st century. I used squares within the piece because it's so connected to Croatia – you can see them on the shirts of the national team football players, on the Croatian flag. There are also 87 birds in the paintings. That number was chosen because there were 87 days of fighting before the town of Vukovar fell."

Arsek & Erase (Bulgaria)

The Golden Snake

Operating as a duo for 20 years, Arsek & Erase create playful, bright and colourful images - and highly memorable characters - using illustration and surrealism. They have painted works all over Europe, their own native Bulgaria, and in Russia, China, Taiwan, El Salvador and the United States.

All photos Vukovar street art 2020 © VukovArt

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Would you switch life as a professor to open a hotel in Vukovar?

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Zvonimir Varga writes on the 1st of December, 2019, there are positive business stories in Croatia, and sometimes attempting to create your own such business story is worth the risk, an excellent example of this is professor Aleksandra Zrinušić, who decided to embark on an ''entrepreneurial adventure'' of her own after pursuing various jobs in her profession.

For a year now, she has been running a wonderful hotel in Vukovar, ''Vila Rosa'', which is located along the Danube river. The owner herself tells the story of just how her long-time dream came true.

Aleksandra is a professor of Croatian language and literature by profession, and she has worked in that profession for several years, she was also the director of an adult education institution as well as an expert pedagogical leader. However, her last job included several diverse positions - for a small business in Osijek she was a proofreader for a business magazine, she's been a journalist, the head of an educational centre, she has maintained a company website, and even worked in marketing and sales.

''Because I love diversity, my job was interesting, but over the years the volume of jobs increased, I commuted daily to work from Vukovar to Osijek, the conditions at that time were no longer suitable for me and I decided to quit. At that moment, I didn't have a back-up plan, but the feeling that it was time for me to leave was overwhelming, and after almost eight years. For the next two years, I was unemployed, with part-time writing and proofreading contract work.

However, I knew I was going to have to try my hand at entrepreneurship, and I was waiting for the opportunity that came last December when I opened a business for accommodation services. It was a great fortune to have been able to use the Croatian Employment Service's self-employment incentives, which are really the right help for the first year of business and a safe start,'' says Aleksandra, who was initially greatly assisted by the State Administration Office, and who provided a great experience for her.

When asked about the current entrepreneurial climate in Vukovar, Aleksandra points out that there has been a shift for the better in recent years.

''The city seems to have come to life, which makes me happy. I moved to Osijek about ten years ago, and a lot of progress can be seen, even by comparison only visually, with a view of the city and the infrastructure,'' says the owner of the hotel in Vukovar, explaining why and how she decided on going into hospitality, and why ''Vila Rosa'' in Vukovar of all places.

''All my life, I've wanted to have a hotel with several rooms, and that came true,'' Aleksandra reveals for Poslovni Dnevnik.

Until December last year, the hotel in Vukovar, Vila Rosa, was run by the Andrejev family, who were in the category of private renters because the property is owned by them. Since they decided to retire, they were looking for someone who would rent the property out and continue to do the same business.

I'm grateful to them for choosing me, because they had many other offers, and so they gave me the opportunity to finally start something of my own, open a business and embark on this wonderful business adventure. Before I officially started working, I was in training with Mrs. Nediljka Andrejev, who spent her entire life in hospitality over in Germany, and so I went through the best possible ''school'' in relation to preparing guest rooms, serving, etc. This is also reflected in the fact that she won an award for the best employee in the Private Renter category from the Croatian National Tourist Board back in 2014.

The hotel in Vukovar's manager was asked about the property itself, but also about the reactions of the guests, which certainly don't seem to be lacking.

''The guests are the most interesting part of this business. I love working with people, so it's a lot of fun to follow their reactions and impressions. Vila Rosa mostly impresses them with its interior, because they don't expect it from the outside, it's such a transformation. The reaction of the guests to the city is almost the same. Mostly, they get the impression that nothing is happening, that people are depressed, and I like to watch that picture they have change in their eyes. During the year, various events take place in the city, and it isn't true that nothing happens in Vukovar except the commemoration of Memorial Day and the Vukovar Film Festival, as most visitors think,'' Aleksandra explains.

According to Aleksandra, Vukovar should have more people in the city in general - both residents and visitors. She says that Vukovar has a bright future, but that such a thing isn't going to happen tomorrow, but with time and persistence, it certainly will. It will take a long time to reach the pre-war situation, if it's at all possible. But there is no need to stop trying. Everything is possible, says the hotel in Vukovar's manager, who is not lacking in optimism, but is aware that she still has a lot of work to do.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle and business pages for much more.