The conference on “The Investments in Marinas as The Key Factor in Nautical Tourism Development and Growth”, run by Novi List and Adriatic Croatia International Club – ACI, gathered the leaders of Croatian nautical sector in Cres, at one of the most awarded ACI Marinas.
The speakers, Josip Bilaver, State Secretary for the Sea and EU Funds at the Croatian Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Development, Kristijan Pavić, CEO at ACI, Kristijan Staničić, Director of the Croatian National Tourist Board, Renata Marević, Marina Punat Director and captain Andrija Šimić, owner of the yacht agency Simmor Marine, discussed the current and future investments in domestic marinas, as well as the challenges associated with the development of nautical tourism. One of the main subjects of the conference was ACI Marina Rijeka, representing the largest investment in Croatian nautical tourism so far, and creating 132 new jobs at the marina alone.
During these particularly challenging times due to the global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, nautical tourism stood out as one of the strongest, the safest and the most promising among other tourism sectors. According to the recent results, it has reached the pre-crisis level of 2019. The panel discussion put an emphasis on the future of nautical and marine tourism, including some issues related to the extension of the concession periods that are limiting a significant investment cycle. Although excellent results have been achieved by Croatian marinas during the pandemic, reinforcing Croatia’s position as an elite destination on nautical charts, it was specified that Croatia still has huge potentials for further development and the growth of nautical tourism.
Kristijan Pavić, ACI Chairman of the Board, pointed out that there are still some open issues to be solved in order to make serious investments in almost all ACI Marinas, given that the profitability of investments depends on the duration of the concession contracts and, as far as ACI Marinas are concerned, most of them are about to expire. “The extension of the concession contracts is a prerequisite for further investments aimed at supporting the diversity and quality improvement of the services”, concluded ACI Chairman of the Board.
Photos: Vedran Karuza, Novi list
