Events trends in Croatia

Check how many of these 5 trends we’ve picked up about the events sectors in Croatia you know about!

1. Music events and festivals are on the rise, becoming a real brand for Croatia

Crowds from the UK, Sweden, Germany, USA, Austria, Slovenia, Italy and many other countries are flocking to the Adriatic for all sorts of unique music concerts and festivals, often hosted in venues which just can’t be beaten – from the Pula amphitheatre from the 1st century AD to abandoned factories, open beaches, islands, fortresses and more – all with great acts, sunshine and fun guaranteed, some of the music events and festivals this year bringing even more visitors to Croatia than in recent years included: Hideout Festival , Garden Festival , Fresh Island Festival , Ultra Europe , Terraneo , Sonus Festival , Outlook Festival , Unknown Festival , INmusic Festival and other.

2. Croatia’s traditional events are gaining popularity with both travellers and locals

Did you know that the traditional Rijeka carnival is the third largest carnival in the world? Those who have already visited Croatia once or twice and want to come back again, are discovering more local and traditional events, all year round. Some of these include: FIS Skiing World Cup slalom event – the Snow Queen Trophy , the Night of the Museums, Zagreb Indoors tennis tournament, Rijeka Carnival (along with the traditional Carnival Snowboard Session ), The Vinistra exhibition , Dubrovnik Summer Festival and others, check links at the end of the blog for more ideas if you’re keen to travel Croatia and experience local events, both in the summer and in the off-season!

Carnival Rijeka

Image credit: Ethreon .

3. Dubrovnik is climbing its way up as a prime destination for business travel and congress tourism

A well known trend is that Dubrovnik is becoming a perfect location for business travellers, hosting more and more conferences, congresses and exhibitions each year. Many of Dubrovnik’s 4 and 5 star hotels are booked many months in advance (so make sure you book yours early if you’re planning for it!). This year the UNESCO-protected town hosted numerous seminars, conferences and large congresses, of which many were attended by more than 500 delegates – you might have heard about the Travel Convention – ABTA and Lufthansa City Centre congress, just to mention a couple.

Did you know? The World Travel Awards have picked Hilton Imperial Dubrovnik Hotel as Croatia’s leading business Hotel in 2013!

Dubrovnik Hilton Hotel

Image credit: Mick Baker .

4.  There’s a growing number of business events and conferences in Croatia

From July to September 2013, 1.231 business events were held in Croatia, resulting in an increase of 2.5% from the same time last year. Universities, cultural institutions and convention centres have specifically had a steep increase in of their own conferences this year, with a rise of 43%!

5. There’s been a reported rise in Croatian business events but less international conventions

Interestingly, while the overall numbers of business events in Croatia are increasing  (as per point 4 above), of these, there’s been a 5.7 % increase (860) in national (Croatian) business events and a 4.1% decrease in international conferences or congresses (overall 371 were held between July and September 2013, still not a bad number).

We hope you’ve learnt a bit about the events trends in Croatia here – keep well in winter and stay tuned for our next blog!

All facts, numbers and percentages in the article above were taken from the following sources:

Visit Croatia   World Travel Awards   LiderPress   Kongres Magazin

Cover image credit: Les Haines

Slider-image credit: Jim Larrison