Driving back and forth to the Adriatic Coast over the summer, I joined the annual migration of cars filled to the brim with suitcases and plastic bags. It's amazing how much food and other consumables foreign tourists bring with them as they head for their holiday rentals on the coast and the islands. It's equally amazing how quickly Croatia's new, modern highways can be packed to capacity.
But it's stunning how little these tourists spend in the country.
Back in Zagreb, I came across a 2013 report from the UN World Tourism Organization that underscores this point, Looking at countries listed among Mediterranean and Southern European destinations, Croatia was ranked No. 5 in terms of arrivals in 2012, but was No. 10 in terms of receipts per arrival. Here's a chart I threw together from the UN agency data:
Portugal is best in class. It attracted about three quarters the number of foreign tourists as Croatia last year, but, since each tourist spent so much more, its total receipts from tourists were about 25 percent more. Imagine taking away about a quarter of the cars from Croatian highways each summer, but still gaining massive tourism revenues.
One can dream. (Unless, of course, you're the highway operator.)
But it's stunning how little these tourists spend in the country.
Back in Zagreb, I came across a 2013 report from the UN World Tourism Organization that underscores this point, Looking at countries listed among Mediterranean and Southern European destinations, Croatia was ranked No. 5 in terms of arrivals in 2012, but was No. 10 in terms of receipts per arrival. Here's a chart I threw together from the UN agency data:
One can dream. (Unless, of course, you're the highway operator.)
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