Tourism in Croatia is changing, albeit slowly.
The shift to remote work is a small but rapidly growing factor in the lives of people these days. The freedom to travel the world as long as it fits in with the remote office timetable is a trend which is growing quickly. And one which Croatia is perfectly poised to take advantage of.
The global PR generated from the Croatian digital nomad permit may not have been translated into approved permits just yet, but it has done an even more important job (at least in my opinion) of promoting Croatia as an exciting nomad destination. Nomads are by definition nomadic, and while many will in time take advantage of the 1-year permit, a far greater number will come and sample Croatia for 1-3 months. And the more information and feedback they have about the wonders of Croatia, the more likely they are to try.
All this brings a new tourism niche which has never really existed in Croatia before – the workation (or should that be worcation?), an extended period of time in a destination where people can explore living in the destination rather than just visiting it. Rather than the 1-2 week traditonal vacation, how about a 30-day stay, combining work and play over a month? Croatia has never marketed itself this way before, but it seems that there is a growing appetite for this type of stay if questions on nomad forums and social media are anything to go by. From my observations, the most common time period people are interested in nomading in Croatia initially is a month.
And while there are currently lots of information options to discover a destination in 24, 36 and 72 hours, the concept of 30 days is relatively hard to find. As we learned from the Dubrovnik Digital Nomad-in-Residence programme, while many tourists think two days is enough the city, Beyond the Walls: 4 Weeks in Dubrovnik Not Enough, Say DNIR Digital Nomads.
The more the focus moves to longer stays, the more people will discover the charms of not just visiting a destination, but living in it. The Dubrovnik nomads were really surprised at the wealth of options beyond the walls, and the more digital nomads I meet in Zagreb, the more I realise that the Croatian capital is an undiscovered jewel on the nomad trail. Having been involved in the organisation of last October’s first digital nomad conference in Croatia, the DNIR programme, and now Zagreb Digital Nomad Week & Zagreb Digital Nomad Ambassador project, the feedback from our longer-staying guests is all indicating that a huge change is coming. And a change for the better. The visa push might not have generated thousands of permits just yet (and I personally think that the process should be made simpler), but it has definitely contributed greatly to this growing interest of Croatia as a top nomad destination.
The Zagreb Digital Nomad Ambassador project followed on from Zagreb Digital Nomad Week, a chance for us to learn about Zagreb as a 30-day destination through the experiences of international nomads who were guests of the city for a one-month period.
The first ambassador, Veronica Mulhall – together with her partner Julian – not only fell in love with the city and are now considering buying property here, but they will also be back for Advent. Veronica had a very active time here (and we will publish her Google Map of her Zagreb discoveries shortly), and she will be sending us a few pieces on her observations and experiences. But for now, here she is with her exit interview at Art Park Ribnjak, where she painted a mural as a momento of her time here.
Veronica’s partner Julian was also working remotely while here, and he was also kind enough to talk about his experiences, which you can see in the video below. In her short time here, she managed to discover parts of the city and things to do that I had no clue about.
Veronica’s last night included a handover to this month’s ambassador, South African Rudi Witkowsky, who arrived on Sunday with his partner, Victoria.
You can meet Rudi here, and if you are interested in connecting with him during his time in Zagreb, you can contact him via Instagram.
Are you interested in becoming a Zagreb Digital Nomad Ambassador? Find out how here.
For more information and features on digital noamds in Croatia, check out the dedicated TCN section.
