Preliminary communication
ANALYSIS OF TOURIST INDICATORS AND SECURITY OF THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF STRENGTHENING THE COMPETITIVENESS OF CROATIAN TOURISM UPON ACCESSION INTO THE EU
Kristijan Marić
; Libertas International University, Zagreb, Croatia
Blaženka Samardžić
; Libertas International University, Zagreb, Croatia
Nikola Protrka
orcid.org/0000-0003-0840-3536
; Police College in Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
When we discuss Croatian tourism, it is necessary to emphasise its vast significance for the national economy observable from tourist traffic. Furthermore, the same is evident in the high share of tourism in the gross domestic product (hereinafter GDP) of the Republic of Croatia. Upon admittance into the European Union, there are opportunities to strengthen Croatian tourism, owing to the growth of tourist indicators and the increasing interest of tourists from the EU. According to the aforementioned, the purpose of this paper is to determine the effect of the admittance of Croatia into the EU, and its tourism results by analysis of tourist indicators. The paper also shows research of Croatian tourism, its competitive advantage and possibilities of further development. This also represent the biggest researched problem described in the paper. Furthermore, the authors analysed the sense of security of foreign tourists during their stay in Croatia. They obtained results founded in secondary research and the following databases: books, textbooks, professional literature, scientific and professional papers, and various reports by bodies of government administration, ministries and agencies, as well as online sources. In accordance with the obtained results, we conclude that the accession of the Republic of Croatia into the EU had positive effects on tourist indicators. This was evident in the increase of number of tourist arrivals and overnights, as well as in the tourism-generated revenue. The positive results and their growth in the observed period significantly contributed to the coverage of Croatian balance of payments, to which the paper also pays attention. In addition, we investigated and presented the possibilities of strengthening the competitiveness of Croatian tourism, by using grants and EU funds.
Keywords
European Union; tourist indicators; competitive advantage; support and EU funds; security
Hrčak ID:
183510
URI
Publication date:
26.6.2017.
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