Croatia is an ideal vacation destination for British tourists, but the promotion of the destination to this market has not been done in the most effective way.
Advertising in the underground and the mistake of promoting regions and not Croatia as a whole are some of the short but valuable notes that the Minister of Tourism Gari Cappelli spoke about in London during a joint meeting with Patricia Yates, director of strategy and communications of British tourism organization Visit Britain, reports Vecernji List on April 20, 2017.
Such mistakes will no longer be tolerated, and Croatia will now put more emphasis on promotion, said the minister himself, who stressed that they are now well on their way to “reforming” the tourist boards in Croatia.
Tourism in the UK is a major export industry, generating 9 percent of the national GDP. In addition, 9.6 percent of all employees work in the tourism industry, announced Yates.
“Visit Britain is implementing activities related to the promotion of the tourist product of Great Britain on the international and domestic market, with a special focus on digital content, the growth of investment in promotion in foreign markets, and the strengthening of business travel and meetings, which represents a new priority,” added Yates.
According to data from 2015/16, every GBP that the British Government spent in promotion resulted in an increase in consumption of foreign tourists in the amount of 23 GBP.
“The exit of Britain from the European Union does not affect the tourist trade and the interest of British tourists in Croatia, which is lately one of the most popular vacation destinations,” said Damian Collins, who was the minister called for this year’s Days of Croatian Tourism.
“The UK market is one of the most important markets for Croatia, which has recorded a strong and continuous growth in tourist traffic over the last few years. Over the past five years, the UK market has had an average growth rate of 20 percent, and last year, for example, this market generated a 25 percent increase in overnight stays.”
“An even stronger interest in Croatia continues during 2017, and the beginning of the year has already seen a 42 percent increase in overnight stays,” said the Minister, who added that guests from the UK usually arrive by plane, stay in high-class hotels, and visit destinations such as Dubrovnik, Konavle, Split, and Pula.
