July the 24th, 2024 – I don’t know about you, but just before the pandemic hit in early 2020, Croatia was planning to crack down far harder on harmful cruise ships. It seems that is all long forgotten now, as Croatian cruise ships are on an upward trajectory yet again.
as the likes of venice and norway crack down, croatia does the opposite
Just across the Adriatic Sea in the iconic Italian city of Venice is where we’ve perhaps seen the most strict approach to this gigantic floating cities that cause insurmountable damage to the environment and to marine life. Up north in Norway, there are plans in the works to come down harder on cruise ships in the beautiful fjords, but what of Croatia?
Complaints about Croatian cruise ships in many coastal cities, but particularly down in Dubrovnik, were rife. Then the coronavirus pandemic hit, they stopped coming, and it was felt by the coffers and pockets of many working in tourism – even the most vocal of protesters. It was more than understandable, but with Dubrovnik’s Respect the City initiative, as well as placing limits on how many people can be present within the walls of the UNESCO-protected Old City at any one time, you’d think more would be done about this burning issue.
Croatian cruise ships are on the rise yet again, which is following the now traditional pace of tourist traffic during the very height of the summer season. Will the complaints manage to drown out the pollution now, however? It’s questionable.
As Morski writes, as various cities and countries in Europe introduce restrictions against not only huge cruise ships but mass tourism on the whole, Croatia is doing the opposite. We’re by now all more than away that the devastating impact these giant vessels have on the environment is an enormous issue. Looking at this situation even from a selfish touristic standpoint, the day-trippers disembarking the ships to flood into the city for a very limited period of time actually spend far less than one might imagine. All of this is well known at this point, and yet the number of Croatian cruise ships is still growing all over the coast.
croatian cruise ships – constantly rising
The number of cruise ship trips realised over the first five months of 2024 has been higher by 14.3% compared to the same period in 2023. The number of days of their stay in Croatian waters has been higher by 10.7%, and the total number of passengers is higher by a significant 27.9 %. This data all comes from the National Bureau of Statistics.
Rather unsurprisingly, Dubrovnik is still the most popular cruise ship destination, followed by Split, Zadar, Korcula, Sibenik, the island of Hvar, and then the Istrian city of Rovinj.
