History

The tourist trade in Croatia is more than 150 years old. Although inns and guesthouses were built throughout the country in the first half of the 19th century, the beginnings of tourism are linked with the construction of first hotels designed for tourists, such as those in Opatija (Grand Hotel, built in 1890) and Dubrovnik (Hotel Imperial, built in 1897), as well as with the foundation and activities of tourist societies, especially those on the islands of Krk (in 1866) and Hvar (Hygienic Society in 1868). Porec and Pula had tour guides as early as 1845, while in Zagreb the first guidebook, called "A Guide for Natives and Foreigners", was published in 1892.
Tourism is characterized by leisure and recreation, which require good resources and a favorable climate, along with tourist facilities and their distribution. Particularly important for Croatian tourism are all forms of maritime activities because of specific natural features and the indented Adriatic coast. The poor organization of other tourist services is the main reason why some natural and other attractions are much less used for tourist purposes. This particularly refers to continental Croatia and its cultural landmarks, spas, hunting and fishing grounds and other possibilities.
In 1950, 84,000 overnights of foreign tourists were registered in Croatia while in 1987 this number reached 59,000,000. The largest number of bed nights was recorded in the 1986-1987 period, 68,000,000, of which foreign tourists accounted for 86%. Traditionally, most of them were Germans (40%), while visitors from the United Kingdom, Austria and Italy altogether accounted for 30-35% of all bed nights. Despite a continual, although slight, increase in accommodation, the tourist trade has been on the decrease since 1989. There were a thousand catering firms in the tourist sector in 1991. Domestic and foreign tourists were offered 570,000 beds in 479 hotels, 48 motels, 78 tourist complexes and 175 camps. Although the maelstrom of war virtually brought the development of the tourist industry to a halt, it did not completely deter tourists from coming, particularly to areas unaffected by the war. Besides a steep fall in the volume of trade, many tourist attractions experienced mass-scale destruction, which in turn defined the scope of postwar reconstruction. After a one-year break, tourism revived in 1992 but did not really recover until the next year when 2,300,000 tourists and 13,000,000 bed nights were registered.
In 1996, Croatia was visited by 2,700,000 foreign tourists who generated 16,600,000 bed nights. The overall number of tourists was 3,900,000, with 21,500,000 bed nights, or 67% more than in 1995. Domestic visitor nights increased by 12% and foreign by 94%.
The highest authority on tourism is the Committee on Tourism of the Croatian Parliament and the highest executive body of the Croatian government is the Ministry of Tourism (particularly active in the legislative area). At the national level, tourism is promoted by the Croatian Tourist Association and the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, including hotel and catering associations, travel agencies and organizations promoting nautical tourism.

The tourist trade in Croatia generates an additional market of 60,000,000 consumers who spend an average 140-150 days in tourist facilities, of whom 40% come from foreign countries. In the prewar years, the additional market involved 70% of foreign tourists who spent nearly $ 2,300,000,000.The volume of tourist consumption accounted for 10-12% of gross domestic product, creating direct and indirect employment for 200,000 people and generating 80% of the overall commodity exports and 61.2% of the service exports.

The share of basic accommodation in the overall accommodation potential of Croatia was 23%.
About 20% of basic accommodation was high category and 30% medium (the then Class B) category. The largest number of foreign bed nights was registered in hotels (38%), camps (27%) and rented rooms (21%), while more than 70% of domestic tourists sought cheaper accommodation.

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