Advent in Zagreb 2021 is a little different to previous years, but I am beginning to like it. While we all want to get back to the frivolity of 2019, the pandemic has different ideas. I can’t imagine what it must be like organising huge events at the moment, wondering if another wave will kill all the plans. And while this year’s Advent is much less ostentatious than the glory years of 2016-2019, walking around the city last night was a joy. There was life on the streets, but it was the music and the liveliness in many of the city’s wonderful courtyards which caught my attention as I went for a walk and a break from the laptop.
There are, from memory, 129 concerts in the programme, and lots of smaller events. And one of those events was a real highlight of the last few months – the Zagreb Jolly Wrap Up programme for Digital Nomads, which ran from December 9 to 12.
As with many good things in life, it all began with welcome drinks at Swanky Winter Garden.
A nice gathering of nomads, expats and locals enjoy some festive cheer in one of Zagreb’s most chilled locations.
Zagreb’s two digital nomad ambassadors for December also joined, but not until their media duties were complete – Anna Maria Kochanska and Steve Tsentserensky were in the Index studio reflecting on Zagreb’s digital nomad path so far, as well as its future direction.
Day Two was the main event to wrap up what has been a phenomenally successful year for Zagreb’s digital nomad story. When I first approached Zagreb Tourist Board 18 months ago, suggesting a collaboration between TCN and Saltwater Nomads to help put Zagreb on the digital nomad map, little did I expect what happened next. Outstanding support and collaboration from the outset resulted in the award-winning Zagreb Digital Nomad Week & Ambassador program, a surge in nomads discovering (and falling in love with) the city, and crowned by Zagreb being named at in the top 5 most-liked cities in the world in the Nomad List 2021 survey.
We gathered at Hotel Amadria to celebrate and recap an amazing 12 months.
The press conference and jolly wrap up was expertly handled by the Queen of Facilitation, Iva Perokovic of Swanky Travel. In all my time in Croatia, I don’t think I have been in a room with such positive energy. You can see the whole event (a little over an hour) in the video above.
The extended team who delivered an amazing programme.
But special tribute to this quartet – Nikola, Petra, Jelena and Tomislav from the Zagreb Tourist Board who showed just how effective a public-private partnership can be with the right partners.
And it was fantastic to have all 7 Zagreb Digital Nomad Ambassadors join us – Steve and Anna Maria in-house, Veronica from Bogota, Rudi and Andrae from South Africa, Rax from Singapore, and Dean from – well who knows where Dean is/was/will be?
Day Three was the chance to explore one of the city’s best-kept secrets – magical Zagreb County, as Iva from Swanky Travel led a group of about 40 nomads on a day of culture, food and wine, which has already been well documented on TCN by Nikolina Demark in A Jolly Good Trip: Digital Nomads Discover Zagreb County. A visit to majestic Medvedgrad…
… Samobor kremsnita…
… and a visit to arguably Croatia’s most interesting wine region – Plesivica.
There was no chance of going thirsty at Vinaria Jagunic – nomading in Zagreb County in December.
Or thirsty, and a glass or three of the famous Plesivica bubbly seemed to be a fitting way to end the day.
Not too much though, for Day 4 was the Zagreb Advent Run, with more than 2,100 runners taking to the streets of Zagreb, most of them in their festive outfits.
Including Ambassador Steve, leading from the front with his love of Zagreb as usual.
And where else to finish, but where it all began – at Swanky, as young Iva led the troops in an evening of festivity.
A great Zagreb Jolly Wrap Up to what has been an outstanding year. It has been a pleasure to be part of it, and I can’t wait to get started on Zagreb, the Digital Nomad Destination, edition 2022.
For more news and features about digital nomads in Croatia, follow the dedicated TCN section.
