ZAGREB, January 9, 2019 – During the Christmas and New Year holidays, namely between November 30 and January 6, Zagreb recorded excellent tourist results. It welcomed 140,633 tourists, or 11% more than in 2017, the Zagreb tourism board reported on Wednesday. Tourists in Zagreb generated 271,244 overnights.
Of the total number of tourists, 45,349 were from Croatia, up 10% on the year, and 95,314 were foreigners, up 12%.
Croatian tourists generated 82,402 overnights, or 14% more on the year, while foreigners accounted for 188,842 nights or 16% more than in 2017.
The majority of tourists came from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Germany.
Over 860,000 holiday makers visited the second largest Croatian city of Split in 2018, making more than 2.5 million overnight stays, which was respectively 18% and 16% more than in 2017, the local tourist board said in a press release on Wednesday.
The bed-night statistics show that the most numerous were visitors from the UK, the US, Germany, France and Poland.
Apart from the peak summer months, Split was also an attractive destination during the Advent season in December when 14,195 guests visited the city and made 33,416 overnight stays, up by 17% and 19% respectively in comparison to December 2017.
The statistics about the tourist trade in December show that Split has been recognised as an ideal tourist destination in the winter months. Split continues registering excellent results in the tourism sector owing to continued investments in year-round cultural and entertainment programmes, according to the press release.
Users of the Booking.com platform included Split among the best 20 cities to visit. Zadar and Dubrovnik also made the list, ranking 16th and 20th. The list was topped by Rome and Saint Petersburg.
Booking.com also revealed the Most Welcoming Places on Earth according to customer reviews. Croatia ranks 6th given that 34,027 properties in the country have been seen as places that deserve a Guest Review Award.
“For the seventh annual edition of the awards, 759,845 properties in total across 219 countries and territories are being given an award, with the top countries receiving the most awards being Italy (106,513), Spain (46,646), France (45,286), Germany (36,042), United States (35,626), Croatia (34,027), United Kingdom (31,206), Russian Federation (26,729), Poland (26,572), and Brazil (24,477),” Booking.com said.
The most welcoming countries are: Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, New Zealand, Taiwan, Romania, Hungary, Ireland, Serbia, and Greece, the plaform reports.
“The most welcoming destinations are Goreme (Turkey), Slunj (Croatia), Eluanbi (Taiwan), Niagara on the Lake (Canada), Lake Tekapo (New Zealand), Bendigo (Australia), Newport (United States), Nozawa Onsen (Japan), Fernando de Noronha (Brazil) and El Chalten (Argentina).
“This is especially relevant for the 73% of global travellers that say friendly and interesting locals are one of their top considerations when selecting a destination for their next trip.”
More news on the Croatian tourist industry can be found in our Travel section.
