Press Release - AmCham's Event ''Congress Tourism as a Driver of Year-round Tourism''

Congress and business tourism are considered to be one of the most lucrative and fastest growing areas of tourism.

According to a report by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), business and congress tourism, including meeting tourism (MICE), today make up almost a quarter of total international tourism in arrivals and foreign exchange inflow.

Due to the specific advantages it has over classic holiday tourism, more and more Croatian destinations are turning in this direction. Although we see that the tourist season is extending through improvements in the product, our tourism is still marked by high seasonality. Some of the topics discussed were how to extend the tourist season to avoid relying only on the summer months, and what destinations need to offer in order to be attractive to visitors throughout the year.

Ranko Filipović, President of the Croatian Meeting Professionals Association, pointed out that business tourism is an excellent example of year-round tourism. “Business tourism takes place throughout the year, with the exception of July and August, and can be organized anywhere in Croatia. The average guest consumption is between EUR 300 and 500 per day, with numerous other multiplier effects. Unfortunately, Croatia still lives off short, summer vacation tourism with all the advantages and disadvantages such a concept brings.”

The Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac agreed with him. She too believes that congress tourism is a tourist product that contributes to year-round tourism and its development across the whole of Croatia and is also a higher added-value product that makes up a large part of total international tourism. As such, it represents a big piece of the market cake that we can by no means ignore, especially if we take into account that congress tourism has a beneficial effect on the chronic diseases from which Croatia suffers. The Minister concluded that the congress industry is extremely important for the overall development of not only Croatian tourism, but also of the economy as a whole.

Minister Brnjac's speech was followed by a panel discussion attended by Sandra Herman, State Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism and Sports; Anđela Lovrić, Business Development Manager SEE MICE, Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences; Siniša Topalović, partner, Horwath HTL Croatia and Ranko Filipović, President of the Croatian Meeting Professionals Association. They all agreed that extensive investments in infrastructure are needed, particularly public infrastructure, which is an important prerequisite for attracting investment. They also concluded that without several major congress centers, there can be no market positioning of the relevant congress destinations in Croatia.

“So far, Croatia has done very little for the development of congress tourism, especially in the sense of providing the necessary infrastructure for product development. Without significant investments in congress tourism infrastructure, Croatia will continue to miss its opportunity for a more assertive positioning on an international level, particularly when it comes to organizing major events”, said Siniša Topalović, partner at Horwath HTL Croatia, adding that destinations must first have the necessary infrastructure for a product that will be able to generate satisfactory economies of scale.

Anđela Lovrić, Business Development Manager SEE MICE, Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences, presented the new sports and congress center that will soon open as part of the Falkensteiner Punta Scala resort, and emphasized the importance of adapting to the times ahead and listening to the needs of the market, as well as offering guests unique experience in the destination, but outside of the hotel. She also said: “The meaning of the brand is more important than ever; it is vital that the guest trusts the brand will respond quickly to the needs of the market and its customers. In these challenging times, it is the adaptable ones who succeed – the ones who can generate new ideas and trends and are able to provide a safe customer experience and a guarantee of a safe stay, which Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences does successfully.”

Sandra Herman, State Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, concluded that it is necessary to recognize the significance of reducing seasonality and turn to the development of continental tourism and tourism in rural areas, as well as to locals as potential guests. She said that, in addition to investments in business tourism, we must also invest in nautical, sports and health tourism, raise service quality, and develop sustainable tourism throughout Croatia, with which other participants agreed.