ZAGREB, 12 May (Hina) - Tourism and Sports Minister Tonči Glavina said on Sunday that Croatia can be pleased with tourism results so far this year, noting that "the pre-season is promising", with growth at around four per cent.
"In the first four months, the figures have been quite satisfactory, and we've seen growth of around four per cent. However, given that Easter was later this year, we believe, in line with our projections, that the overall pre-season will be very good and that the post-season will also be very good,” Glavina said in an interview with public broadcaster HTV.
When it comes to the main part of the tourist season, he urged caution.
"We are facing certain circumstances, namely geopolitical instability, which does not work in our favour. (...) The fact is that these geopolitical instabilities and customs tariffs have led the European Central Bank to revise downward economic forecasts for Europe, for the EU and the eurozone," he added.
In this context, the minister said that Croatia would be satisfied with the figures achieved last year, but stressed that the goal is always to show a trend of increasing revenue.
We have chosen sustainability as our path forward
Glavina emphasised that revenue is one of the key indicators, but added that we need to move away from merely measuring arrivals and overnight stays.
"We must take into account and look more specifically at several key parameters - how many new jobs have been created, to what extent tourism has positively impacted the Croatian economy as a whole, and a very important segment is measuring the satisfaction of local residents with tourism," he said.
"We have chosen sustainability as our path forward, and it is crucial that we achieve good synergy and avoid a situation in which our citizens become dissatisfied with tourism," Glavina said.
He pointed out that price competitiveness is undoubtedly one of the key factors influencing the choice of destination.
Glavina also said that preparations for the season had been very thorough.
"We attended seven trade fairs in Germany alone. We have done a great deal to present Croatia as a country offering good value for money. But I call on all tourism workers to help us make this the best year possible across a range of parameters," Glavina said.
On Monday, the National Tourist Board (HTZ) will present a new family accommodation label, the conditions for obtaining it and the benefits for users. It will also present a range of measures through which the HTZ and local tourist boards will brand and position Croatian host accommodation as a unique and distinctive feature of Croatian tourism, he announced.
Glavina concluded by expressing his confidence that, with the same high-quality work as in previous years, Croatia's family accommodation sector would continue to be a significant added value in the country’s tourism offering.
