January the 6th, 2025 – Very few will be surprised that Croatia’s tourism Mecca has outdone itself again. Dubrovnik has been crowned the 2024 tourism champion in terms of overnight stays realised.
As Morski writes, following official announcements by the Ministry of Tourism, it was confirmed that Dubrovnik is the 2024 tourism champion with the highest number of overnight stays. At the national level, more than 21.3 million arrivals and over 108.7 million overnight stays were recorded in 2024, which represents an increase of 4% in arrivals and 1% in overnight stays compared to 2023.
The most visited destinations by the number of overnight stays are: Dubrovnik, Rovinj, Split, Poreč, Umag, Medulin, Zagreb, Vir, Zadar and Pula. Specifically, Dubrovnik recorded 4,555,636 overnight stays and 1,397,052 arrivals, making Dubrovnik the most visited destination in Croatia by the number of overnight stays. In terms of arrivals, it came in second place, right behind the City of Zagreb. Compared to 2023, Dubrovnik recorded an increase of 9% in arrivals and 9% in overnight stays.
Dubrovnik Mayor Mato Franković emphasised the significance of these results for the country’s wildly popular southernmost city:
“Dubrovnik has confirmed its status as the 2024 Croatian tourism champion in terms of the number of overnight stays. That is the result of the dedicated work of all stakeholders in tourism, as well as of a clearly defined sustainable development strategy. I’m particularly pleased that these figures are proof that our city is becoming a year-round destination, attractive to visitors not only during the summer season, but in the pre-season and post-season as well. These results motivate us to continue investing in the quality, diversity and sustainability of our offer, making Dubrovnik an example of successful tourism in Croatia and beyond,” said Franković.
Dubrovnik also stood out as the city with the highest number of overnight stays in the month of December. According to data from the eVisitor system, during the festive period, the most overnight stays were achieved in Zagreb, Opatija, Poreč, Dubrovnik and Split. The largest number of guests opted for accommodation in both hotels and private accommodation units.
Dubrovnik’s diverse and high-quality offer, which includes sports, gastronomic and business events, has significantly contributed to the growth of tourist traffic. That’s especially the case among guests from other European countries such as the United Kingdom, as well as those from across the pond in the US. The arrivals from both of these countries were among the most numerous.
Dubrovnik’s tourism growth was achieved thanks to an excellent pre-season and post-season, while the main season maintained the results of overnight stays from 2023. These results also confirm the success of the tourism management strategy based on sustainable development, which is achieved in cooperation with key stakeholders, including the Airport, Port Authority, hotels, caterers, the City Administration and the Dubrovnik Tourist Board. Dubrovnik is as such setting the standards in Croatian tourism as a year-round destination with the best results.
