After the record tourist results in 2018, Zagreb County continues with positive trends in the tourist sector, as the number of tourists continues to increase. Thus, in the first four months of this year, Zagreb County recorded as much as 15 per cent more overnight stays and 14 per cent more arrivals than in the same period last year, reports Lokalni.hr on May 25, 2019.
Out of a total of 43,115 overnights, foreign guests realized almost 27,000. Zagreb County seems to have become a hit destination for tourists from Asian countries. There is a noticeable increase in the number of tourists from all parts of Asia, especially from China. Data for Italy, Bulgaria and Germany follows a similar trend.
The number of tourist arrivals increased to more than 24,000, with foreign guests realising more than 15,000 of them. The most visited towns in the first four months were Velika Gorica, Samobor, Ivanić-Grad, Sveta Nedelja and Zaprešić.
“The reasons for the positive results are the new programmes for tourists that have been developed in the Zagreb County tourism sector. The main projects are city breaks, cultural tourism, wine and dine, health tourism, cyclo-tourism and adventure tourism,” said Ivana Alilović, director of the Zagreb County Tourist Board.
“More and more guests want to live in a healthier and more dynamic style. They want to have new authentic and traditional experiences, try local wines and food, spend a lot more time in nature, and this can be very much done in the green ring surrounding Zagreb,” added Alilović.
Zagreb County continues to invest in the development of tourism in its area. The authorities financially support different tourism projects. Currently underway is a competition to award a million kuna grant for events that are significant for the tourism industry, as well as a 1.5 million kuna public call for co-financing of the development of public tourist infrastructure, such as congress centres, playgrounds, ice rinks, amusement parks, promenades, and cycling trails.
Another tender for entrepreneurs in tourism is expected soon. It will award a million kuna of non-refundable funds to increase the quality standards of hotels, camps and other establishments offering accommodation services.
In 2018, Zagreb County recorded nearly 129,000 tourist arrivals, which was 41 per cent more than in the same period of 2017, when the number was slightly higher than 87,000. The number of overnight stays increased by 33 per cent, from 154,000 to nearly 205,000.
Translated from Lokalni.hr (reported by Jelena Pišonić Babić).
More Zagreb County news can be found in the Lifestyle section.
