EN
HR
In the global context, Novalja is an unknown and unexplored pearl of the Croatian tourist offer, according to prof. Ph.D. Božo Skoko, leading communication expert and full professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Zagreb. Professor Skoko deals with the branding of the state, and as for the branding of Novalja and Zrć, he thinks it is important to note that Novalja, together with the beautiful and mystical island of Pag, is far more than Zrć, which is the most famous part of the local tourist offer.
As much as Zrće managed to build the image of an unmissable summer destination for young people from all over the world, some of the other tourist assets of this region have been somewhat unfairly overshadowed. Zrće is an attention grabber, but Novalja also has a lot of other contents - from historical cultural heritage, through natural attractions, to top gastronomy and the island way of life, Prof. concluded. Ph.D. Jump.
He added that when it comes to young people as tourists, they are often viewed with suspicion as those who do not have adequate paying power, as those who leave a mess behind or do not sufficiently respect the local way of life, etc. However, those young people who stayed in Croatia and were delighted with its beauty and offer, and who are present on all digital media and globally networked, today are influential promoters of active tourism, and tomorrow they will be tourists who will consume our other tourist products with their families.
Youth tourism is a market niche with rapid growth, which generates economic, social, cultural and development improvements for destinations, young people are the initiators of changes in the tourism value chain that enables the positive future development of youth tourism.
The latest research shows that the number of youth arrivals in Croatia is increasing, therefore it is necessary to further improve the tourist offer for young people, because youth tourism can bring significant income, but also contribute to the development of tourism, and create new cultural and sociological values.
The conference will discuss the importance and influence of young people on Croatian tourism, goals, strategy, and successful global examples of our destinations for young people. Young people as drivers of modern tourism, on October 28 at Hotel Olea in Novalja. The first conference on Young people - drivers of modern tourism will be held on October 28 at Hotel Olea in Novalja, organized by the City of Novalja, the Tourist Board of the City of Novalja and under the auspices of the Croatian Tourist Board. The co-organizer of the conference is a marketing agency Bella Event.
The conference will include four very interesting panels, and will bring together representatives of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Republic of Croatia, the Croatian Tourist Board, the academic community, as well as marketing experts from one of the most renowned marketing agencies.
The first thematic panel Youth tourism - trends that push the boundaries will gather distinguished interlocutors, and will participate Dubravka Šuica, vice-president of the European Commission, who declared this year the year of youth. From the point of view of the Commissioner for Democracy and Demography of the European Commission, she will talk about how the European Commission addresses young people and what are the priorities in youth policy. The director of the Directorate for Sustainable Development and Competitiveness of Tourist Destinations will present the strategy for the development of sustainable tourism until 2030 of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, its draft and framework, and what the strategy itself contains in terms of sustainability when it comes to young tourists. Slavko Štefičar from the Ministry of Tourism and Sports.
On behalf of the organizers and hosts of the city of Novalja, the mayor Ivan Dabo will present this year's results of an extraordinary tourist season, and will certainly look back on the success of Novalja's positioning as a world-famous destination, i.e. the world's top youth destination.
Photo: City of Novalja
Head of the Department of Tourism at Edward Bernays University College and professor at the European Master in Tourism Management at the University of Ljubljana, Assoc. Ph.D. Katarina Miličević she will tell us more about the profiles of young tourists and their main characteristics, and as a leading expert in tourism management, she will tell us what is key for people when choosing a destination, but also how to increase the attractiveness of Croatia for young people.
On the second panel titled Croatia as a destination for young people: The best examples of success, the panelists will contribute to the topic with their knowledge and experience from the perspective of people who are professionally engaged as the main actors of tourism in their destinations, so they will participate in the panel Marina Šćiran Rizner, director of the Tourist Board of the City of Novalja, and Rujana Bušić Srpak, director of the Tourist Board of Vukovar-Srijem County, will also participate.
Photo: City of Novalja
Special emphasis on the panel will also be on the theme of festival tourism as a specific form of modern tourism. The guest of the second panel will be i Dalibor Oliver Zjacic, the founder of the Sonus festival, which is one of the world's most famous festivals. How it started and what kind of help it had from the relevant institutions in Croatia, how the festival "survived" the pandemic and what the new festival trends are, we will learn from Dalibor Oliver Zjacic.
On the third panel Young tourists - the future of family tourism the chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Policy and a member of the Parliamentary Committee for Tourism and the former Minister of Tourism of the Republic of Croatia, Gari Cappelli, Client Service Director at the agency Bruketa&Žinić, Maša Ivanov and director of Camp Straško Grga Kodrić are participating. How young tourists perceive Croatia and what we should communicate to them about Croatia as a destination, and with which market niches we can extend the season and what we need to do so that our young guests return with their families, we will find out at this panel.
In the last panel Music and its influence on tourism, this important topic will be discussed by Ivan Bušljeta, co-owner of the clubs Papaya, Aquarius and NOMAD, owner of the clubs Kalypso and Tattva, Boris Šuljić, founder of the Austria Goes Zrće and Bavaria Goes Zrće festivals, Martin Reitstätter, while the founder of the Hideout festival, Steven Allison. Today, Zrće is one of the most attractive beaches in the world, and what is its future, what is the vision of the club owners and how important was the support of the local community in the development of that destination, the interviewees of the last panel will reveal to us.
Cover photo: Klub Papaja, source: TZ of the City of Novalja
