Many wonder how Rogotin, a small town in the Neretva Valley’s northwest, a few kilometers away from the city center, is leading tourism in the Ploče area. And this is with more famous tourist destinations around and despite the limited number of accommodation facilities and classic tourist facilities, including a beach.
In addition, Rogotin locals have only recently been involved in tourism, so they also lack experience, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.
Despite everything, according to the data of the Ploče Tourist Board, in the first six months of this year, compared to the same period of the extremely successful 2019, it was in Rogotin that the largest number and increase in overnight stays were achieved. In the first half of the year, 2349 overnight stays were realized, increasing almost 37 percent compared to the first six months of 2019 (1716)! Baćina recorded an increase of about ten percent (1455 vs. 1324), and Staševica 36 percent (129 compared to 95). In other settlements in the city area, there was a decrease in overnight stays compared to the year before last. Among the guests, most are locals, followed by Germans, Czechs, Hungarians, Poles, citizens of BiH, Ukraine, Slovakia, and Austria.
Guests find Rogotin to have a peaceful, relaxing atmosphere, beautiful landscape and is close to famous tourist destinations.
Spouses Larry and Jamie from San Diego, California, traveled to Denmark and Portugal, and before their final destination in Greece, they stayed in Rogotin for three days. They were thrilled by the world attraction of wind turbines on the Trovro hill and the view of the Neretva Valley, and enjoyed a four-kilometer-long boat ride on the canal that connects Lake Vlaška, one of the symbols of Rogotin, with the Adriatic Sea.
The Pranjić family, Sandra, Mario, and daughter Ida, are from Zagreb, but their life circumstances took them to Oslo, Norway. First, however, they set aside three days for Rogotin. It is a quiet base from which they get to know everything they are interested in in the lower Neretva, from the mouth of the river to Opuzen, and special attention is drawn to the Pelješac bridge.
For the first time, a young family of four, Valentina, Marian, Patrik, and Liliana Kuchtova arrived in Rogotin from Poprad, Slovakia. They said they don’t like crowds and noise and looked for a quiet and peaceful place to rest. When it comes to Croatia, so far, they have been to Dubrovnik, Split, Makarska, and Podgora, and they got to know Biokovo. They pointed out that they had found everything they needed for a holiday in Rogotin, and they had already arranged next summer’s trip with their kind hosts, who surprised them with gifts.
Marin Glamuzina, the mayor of Rogotin, is not satisfied with the attitude of the current city government, and his opinion is shared by the majority of Rogotin residents. Despite the promises and the fact that a beach is planned in the Ploče budget, this project has not been realized. When the number of tourist visits to Rogotin is growing significantly, this issue is becoming key to the further development of tourism.
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