The Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) has earmarked funds for the promotion of the now somewhat (in)famous Cro card, and as soon as it receives the green light from the ministry, it will start promoting it, Stanicic said, adding that he hopes that will take place in the coming weeks.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 3rd of July, 2020, according to eVisitor, about 330,000 tourists were on holiday in Croatia on the 3rd of this month, which is about 60 percent of the amount which was recorded the same day last year, and most of them are staying in Istria and Kvarner, said Kristjan Stanicic on Friday after a coordination meeting with representatives of tourist boards from Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.
According to him, in June, there were about 800,000 tourist arrivals and about 5 million overnight stays realised, which is 32 to 33 percent of last year's traffic, so, he says, the CNTB's forecast was quite accurate. He added that he expects that percentage to grow in July and August.
At the meeting, Stanicic presented the promotional activities of the CNTB for 2020, and they also discussed joint promotional activities that will be carried out in cooperation with tourist boards from the county and the procedures related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
He pointed out that during the pandemic, the CNTB created three campaigns and maintained the visibility of Croatia through the media and social networks, which enabled Croatia to be one of the few tourist destinations in the Mediterranean where tourist traffic is now taking place. The greater visibility of Rijeka and Kvarner, for example on the extremely important British market, will be contributed by the new two-month issue for July and August of Wanderlust travel magazine, which suggests to readers what to see and visit in 72 hours in Rijeka and Kvarner.
When asked about Slovenian guests, Stanicic said that there are now about 70,000 of them in Croatia, and so far they have realised about 1.1 million overnight stays.
"We're monitoring the development of the situation regarding Slovenia's recommendations to its citizens and I believe that in the coming days, with the number of infected, Croatia will return to the green list and that Slovenians will continue to come and stay in Croatia," he said.
According to Stanicic, most tourists come from Croatia's neighbouring and surrounding countries - Germany, Austria, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, along with domestic guests.
"So far, we've had about 1.7 million guests, who have realised over 8 million overnight stays," he said, emphasising that so far, there have been no tourists infected with coronavirus in Croatia, and that the entire health system in Croatia is functioning well.
Asked if they could be infected with coronavirus, he said they were aware of a certain risk, but that everyone is well prepared, that there were protocols and procedures in place and that all providers of services were aware of them, he added that he believed the risk would be reduced to a minimum measure.
When asked about the frequently discussed Cro card, onto which employers will be able to pay workers up to 2,500 kuna to spend at Croatian tourism facilities, Stanicic said that there are technical details that need to be resolved with the banks and that he believes the Cro card will come to life as soon as those matters are ironed out and eventually resolved.
The CNTB has earmarked funds for the promotion of the Cro card, and as soon as it receives the green light from the ministry, it will start promoting it, Stanicic concluded.
For more on the Cro card and travel to, from and around Croatia in the coronavirus era, follow our dedicated section.
