Some things change on Hvar, and some things stay the same.
But when change does happen, it is usually gradually. But change is happening, and some things are very much moving in the right direction.
I live near Varazdin these days, but I keep a close eye on what is happening on Croatia’s premier island, and one thing is for sure – things are getting more organised, and when I heard about this latest initiative, I afforded myself a wry smile and cast my mind back to that snowy day of February 4, 2012, a day which will be long remembered for a Slovakian skiing from the peak of the island at Sv. Nikola to Dubovica bay, and for a snow plough clearing the snow from the new road from Hvar Town to Stari Grad.
It was also the first – and last – meeting of the Hvar Business Breakfast Club, an initiative from a new English language portal called Total Hvar and leading hotel chain, Suncani Hvar. You can read all about that first meeting here.
The concept was simple enough, to get the main tourism providers of the island together to coordinate initiatives and promotion, but after a hearty breakfast at Hotel Riva (thanks Suncani!), the initiative foundered due to lack of interest.
That was then. Since those days, there has been a slow move towards general cooperation, not easy on a Dalmatian island where these things take time. After decades of promoting themselves individually, the five Hvar tourist boards finally came together to produce a unified brochure, promoting the island as one. An obvious move, perhaps, but these things take time in Dalmatia.
And then this very nice initiative, supported by several of the key stakeholders in Hvar Tourism – Suncani Hvar providing the accommodation, Konoba Nikola in Vrboska and Konoba Humac the food, the Hvar Town Tourist Board the funding, Secret Hvar the Jeep safaris, Sego Rent the boats, And Adventure the kayaking and climbing support, and Hvar Life and Hvar Adventure the general logistic and cycling expertise for what is (I think) the first official promotional video for the island of Hvar in a very long time.
The island, with its astonishing natural beauty, endless sunshine and plentiful UNESCO heritage, sells itself of course, but how refreshing that not only have the stakeholders come together for a ten-day shoot of a promo video for Hvar as a cycling and adventure tourism destination, but also that the decision was taken to promote active tourism on Hvar.
For those who have been watching Hvar’s roads, particularly in pre and post season, they will have noticed a steady increase in the number of cyclists on the island’s roads. Hvar has always been a great cycling destination, but the last few years have seen greater emphasis paid to the activity by leading island adventure specialists Hvar Adventure, and with the arrival of Massimo and Hvar Life, whose past association as a member of the Pinarello racing team in Italy has helped raise the profile, know how and equipment now available on the island of Hvar. Hvar’s active tourism players have plans to turn Hvar into a cycling destination as well known as the Canary Islands. And with the emphasis to develop 12-month tourism, Hvar is in a great position to offer the facilities for such a programme, especially with all the stakeholders working together.
I for one am very excited to see the outcome of this new initiative, in the form of this promo video, which is set for release next month. We will of course bring it to you as soon as it is live. In the meantime, some great photos of the actual shooting in this blog, and to learn more about cycling and adventure tourism on Hvar, check out Hvar Life and Hvar Adventure.
