Thanks to the hotel owner failing to obtain a permit to operate, tour operators are now forced to find accommodation for 100 guests
What’s the worst thing that could happen on your summer vacation? The hotel you booked getting closed down a couple of days before you arrive would probably make the top 5.
We’re not only talking theory here. The customs administrations closed down the hotel Pinija in Gradac town on Makarska riviera earlier today, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on August 5, 2017. Both the tour operators and tourists expressed their dissatisfaction, as the hotel was packed with guests at the time of closure. The customs administration stated the hotel was operating illegally and that they had no other solution but to enforce closure.
According to Customs Administration Ploče, hotel Pinija didn’t obtain the permits required to offer accommodation services. When the hotel opened in late June, owner Marko Kraljević got an enforcement notice instructing him to either obtain the permit or to temporarily close down the object. However, Kraljević opted for a third route, deciding not to do anything at all, getting his business closed down after the period of 30 days he was given to sort out the paperwork. The customs administration also stated they were forced to carry out the official procedure, and that they closed the hotel only after they informed the owner and the tourist agencies about the upcoming closure. They chose this particular date as the change of guests is expected today, so no one will be forced to leave the hotel in the middle of their stay.
The tour operators who collaborated with the hotel stated it was completely booked throughout August, so they had to find alternative accommodation for around a hundred announced guests.
The hotel opened about a month ago, but it was obvious from the start the facilities haven’t been completely finished. While the guests stayed in one part of the hotel, the other still hasn’t been renovated. Sources say the hotel started operating before it was entirely ready; for example, the electric units haven’t been properly installed.
The Tourist Board of Gradac Municipality stated that the newly opened hotel didn’t even have a categorisation certificate, which is why it couldn’t apply for a permit to operate.
Director of the Tourist Board Gradac Davor Andrijašević said this was the first case of a hotel getting closed in Gradac Municipality. “It’s an inconvenient situation, as we’re in the middle of the tourist season. The hotel staff contacted us two weeks ago to ask for forms for guest registration. We couldn’t supply them with forms without a categorisation certificate issued by the competent ministry, so we had to turn them down”, said Andrijašević. Asked if that meant that not a single guest was registered since the hotel opened for business, he said the tourist board isn’t sure whether the hotel owner registered his guests in some other way.
