Mark Thomas - The editor and big chief of The Dubrovnik Times. Born in the UK he has been living and working in Dubrovnik since 1998, yes he is one of the rare “old hands.” A unique insight into both British and Croatian life and culture, Mark is often known as just “Englez” or Englishman. He is a traveller, a current affairs freak and a huge AFC Wimbledon fan.
Email: mark.thomas@dubrovnik-times.com
This past weekend, the Dubrovnik area recorded just under five thousand tourist arrivals and thirteen and a half thousand overnight stays, according to the Dubrovnik Tourist Board. Comparing the results with the same weekend last year, there was an increase of 22 and 28 percent, respectively. Most guests came from the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany and France.
Since the beginning of the year, there have been 1,261,256 tourist arrivals and 4,026,871 overnight stays, which is an increase of 9 and 10 percent compared to last year. The majority of visitors this year were from the UK, the USA, France, Germany, and domestic guests.
Deputy Mayor Jelka Tepšić and Head of the Department of Culture, Heritage, and Tourism Julijana Antić Brautović participated in the international forum "Vilnius and Other World Heritage Cities - Living Links," held in the Lithuanian capital to mark the 30th anniversary of Vilnius' inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The international forum was organized in cooperation with the Organization of World Heritage Cities - Regional Secretariat for Central and Eastern Europe, of which Dubrovnik is a member.
Through the forum's topics, participants learned about the challenges shared by World Heritage cities and examples of best practices. Special attention was given to the issues of overtourism, the protection of cultural heritage, and the quality of life of local residents.
As part of the forum, a visit was also organized to several recently restored sites within Vilnius' protected historic center.
As part of the celebration of the UNESCO World Heritage Year, the Dubrovnik Museums and the State Archives in Dubrovnik are organizing a presentation of the "DUBROVNIK AND UNESCO" exhibition catalogue, edited by Ivona Michl and Paula Zglav, on Monday, October 21 at the Rector's Palace.
The bilingual catalogue, spanning 155 pages, covers the material presented at the main annual exhibition "DUBROVNIK AND UNESCO," which is open at the Rector's Palace until October 31. The year 2024 marks significant anniversaries for Dubrovnik's history: the 45th anniversary of Dubrovnik's inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List and the 15th anniversary of the inclusion of the Feast of St. Blaise, the heavenly protector of Dubrovnik, on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The recent inscription of the archival records of the Dubrovnik Republic (1022 – 1808) on UNESCO's Memory of the World Register in November 2023 is a testament to Dubrovnik and its residents' dedication to preserving and sharing their historical documents.
The catalogue showcases highly valuable materials from the time of the Dubrovnik Republic, with 34 selected exhibits representing the "Memory of the World" category, complemented by items from the museum's collection. These items, organized into seven categories and featuring 32 museum objects, establish a connection with archival records and present the protected intangible cultural heritage created and preserved in the region.
The Dubrovnik Republic established a permanent (notarial) service in 1278, which recorded daily all commercial, sale, marriage, and other contracts, various certificates, wills, and all that marked the daily life of the commoners and nobility until its dissolution in 1808. The materials kept in the State Archives in Dubrovnik serve as a rich historical source that allows for a detailed study of Dubrovnik's past and the way of life of its old inhabitants, providing abundant information about the legal and governmental structures.
The "DUBROVNIK AND UNESCO" exhibition catalogue, realized with the support of the City of Dubrovnik and the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, will be available for purchase at the museum shop in the Rector's Palace.
The Mayor of Dubrovnik, Mato Franković, shared a message on social media from the Italian rock star Zucchero ahead of his New Year's Eve performance at the 2025 celebration.
The popular singer posted a video on Facebook inviting Dubrovnik residents and visitors to spend New Year's Eve together on Stradun, where, as a reminder, he will be performing with Toni Cetinski.
Ryanair is set to significantly boost its presence in Croatia, with a 32.5% increase in operations for the upcoming 2024/25 winter season. The low-cost airline will offer a record 632,544 seats across its Croatian network.
The growth is driven by the introduction of new routes from Zagreb launched over the summer, some of which will continue into the winter, along with increased flight frequencies from the capital. Notably, for the first time, Ryanair will also maintain winter operations out of Dubrovnik, with direct flights to Charleroi, London Stansted, and Vienna.
These expansions aim to strengthen Ryanair's position in the Croatian market and offer more travel options during the off-season.
The traditional culinary event with a humanitarian character – Dubrovnik Table – was held for the 15th time on Stradun in the very heart of the Old City of Dubrovnik. Numerous Dubrovnik hotels, restaurants, bakers, pastry chefs, caterers, and winemakers showcased their skills, accompanied by a performance from the klapa Ragussavechia.
The feast, considered the highlight of the Good Food Festival, was officially opened by the Head of the Department for Culture, Heritage, and Tourism, Julijana Antić Brautović, alongside the Director of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board, Miro Drašković.
The price of a voucher was 8 euros for food and 4 euros for wine, and as in previous years, the proceeds from the sale of culinary delicacies will be donated for humanitarian purposes. This time, the funds are intended for the Maslina Community Services Center (Dom Maslina), with a total of 15,838.39 euros raised through voucher sales.
Dubrovnik Table is the peak of the Good Food Festival, but also the first event in the Central Celebration of the UNESCO World Heritage Year in Dubrovnik, which will feature a series of events from October 20 to 27. Along the entire length of Stradun, Dubrovnik hoteliers, caterers, family farms, and winemakers showcased a variety of traditional ingredients and dishes this year.
It’s worth noting that the organizers of the Dubrovnik Table are the City of Dubrovnik, the Dubrovnik Tourist Board, the Dubrovnik-Neretva County, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce – County Chamber Dubrovnik, the Chamber of Crafts of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County, the Guild of Caterers, and the Dubrovnik Tourism and Hospitality School.
“So London and Dubrovnik are roughly 2,300 km apart, and you might well think that they have nothing in common, you would be wrong,” I opened my lecture on The Ties That Bond – Connections Between Great Britain and Dubrovnik.
“I promised my wife that I wouldn’t be too boring so let’s get going,” I added.
A few weeks (probably longer) ago the Dubrovnik Libraries asked me if I would be interested in giving this lecture. And whilst I am used to being in front of the camera, or appearing publicly through the media, somehow this event made me nervous.
I recalled the “6P’s” lesson that a former boss in the UK had taught me - Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. I wrote pages and pages, finding comfort in the fact that I was working.
The more I dug the more information I found. I was starting to surprise myself.
And what was even more of an eye-opened was the number of connections Dubrovnik had brought to the UK. In a country with over 60 million people, and one that sailed the world, you would probably expect British influence in the region, but one the flip side a Republic with only a few thousand inhabitants to have left such a mark on my homeland was pleasantly astonishing.
From the first coffee house in London to Getaldić and Bošković (yes, the man that the airport is named after), from the Argosy ships that Shakespeare used in a couple of plays to maritime insurance and even early double-entry bookkeeping. I even found the first ever advert for the coffee house in the centre of London, and a couple of lines had me chuckling.
Site of the first coffee house in London
Two main complaints that Brits have about coffee here is a) it is too small and b) too cold. It would appear that it used to be served rather differently in the Republic, at least according to the advert. “Coffee should be served in at least half a pint…to be taken as hot as possibly can be endured,” wrote the ad. Sounds like Starbucks copied and pasted his ideas a few centuries later.
And flowing from the north to the south ironically the first English “tourist” to arrive came by ship, no not a cruise ship, but allegedly on a wooden galleon as he returned from the Crusades, yes, Richard the Lionheart.
Then there is somewhat of an expected gap before Nelson’s forces helped liberate the city from Napoleon and to the diplomatic relationships. The numerous Royal visits, from Queen Elizabeth in 1972, the Prince (now King) Charles in 1976.
King Edward VIII with Mrs. Wallis Simpson in Dubrovnik
The celebrities that act today as influencers, from David Beckham to Sir Roger Moore, although my own personal favourite was the visit of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, the power couple of that era. In the end there were far too many connections for me to mention them all, so I ended up doing my own personal favourites.
And even St. Blaise got a mention, having a church in a tiny village in Cornwall in southwest England. A village that my wife and I just had to visit when we were walking in that part of the world a couple of years ago. They even celebrate the saint on the same day as Dubrovnik! And yes, they bless the throat as well.
I even asked ChatGPT but the first answer I got only made me laugh. “Mark Thomas plays a key role in promoting Dubrovnik to English-speaking audiences. Through his work, Thomas contributes to maintaining and enhancing the connection between Dubrovnik and Great Britain,” I added this to my presentation. Along with a highlighted and bolded key from the AI website, “ChatGPT can make mistakes. Check important info.”
Of course the strongest connection, and still today, started when tourism started to flourish.
And each generation has its influencers. And when Lord Bryon wrote “the pearl of the Adriatic” it cemented the appeal of the city in British minds.
Was Lord Byron the first travel influencer?
Yes, there were no direct low-budget flights, instead it took weeks to get here, but painters, writers and poets made the journey and their “posts” and “selfies” worked then as they do today. I even asked the tourist board for some up-to-date figures on tourism, and last year almost 173,000 Brits holidayed in the south of Croatia, making them by far the most numerous.
Now you might think that with the added travel burdens of Brexit and the general world economic state that this number would have dropped this season. The opposite is the case with the number of tourists from my island up a massive 13 percent on last year.
The love story between Dubrovnik and British tourists continues, just as the romantic Lord Byron would have adored.
Read more Englishman in Dubrovnik…well, if you really want to.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
About the author
Mark Thomas (aka Englez u Dubrovniku) is the editor of The Dubrovnik Times. He was born and educated in the UK and moved to live in Dubrovnik in 1998. He works across a whole range of media, from a daily radio show to TV and in print. Thomas is fluent in Croatian and this column is available in Croatia on the website – Dubrovnik Vjesnik
Ranking the 50 greatest footballers of all time is no simple task and is bound to ignite debate. Zidane, Ronaldo, another Ronaldo, Messi, Maradona—how does one compare stars from different eras?
Sports Illustrated has put together this list with careful consideration of each player’s "high points." Naturally, Croatian football enthusiasts are curious to know how many Croatians have made the cut. The list starts from the bottom up, with Frenchman Kylian Mbappe at number 50.
Just above him, in 49th place, is the only Croatian to appear on the list. It’s not Davor Šuker, but Luka Modrić.
Does the maestro deserve a higher ranking, given his status as the most decorated player in Real Madrid's history?
Here's what Sports Illustrated had to say about Modrić:
"Key achievements: 2018 Ballon d'Or, 2018 UEFA Men's Player of the Year, 2018 FIFA Best Men's Player, 2018 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, and six UEFA Champions League titles.
We begin with a player who did the unthinkable in 2018: winning the Ballon d'Or in the era of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Luka Modrić broke a decade-long dominance of the game's biggest individual award. At his peak, he led Croatia to the 2018 FIFA World Cup final and claimed a seemingly endless number of Champions League titles with Real Madrid."
The top five are: Lionel Messi in first place, followed by Maradona, Pele, Franz Beckenbauer, and Johan Cruyff.
Check out the full list HERE.