Demolition has begun at the former Kupari hotel complex, located just south of Dubrovnik. This morning, movable waste from one of the hotels was gathered and placed outside for collection. The heavy demolition work, which involves tearing down the large concrete structures of the four hotels, is expected to start soon.

Grand Hotel - Photo - Mark Thomas 

Singapore’s Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) is leading the redevelopment, which will preserve the historic Grand Hotel while introducing two luxury hotels and four villas, offering a total of 380 beds. The €200 million project must be completed within 48 months of receiving a construction permit.

Waste collection - Photo - Mark Thomas 

Dubrovnik was declared the Champion of Croatian Tourism at last night's ceremonial annual tourism awards as part of the Croatian Tourism Days event in Rovinj.

The doyen of the Neretva tourism offering, Pavo Jerković, received an award for the tourism programs of tangerine picking and photo safaris. The award for 'Man, the Key to Success in Tourism' in the category of best bartender was given to Mario Ljiljanić from the Dubrovnik Hotel Bellevue.

The recognition was received by the Mayor of Dubrovnik, Mato Franković. The most significant tourism award in Croatia went to Dubrovnik, once again affirming its excellence, attractiveness, and efforts in managing the destination and achieving sustainable tourism. The award was presented by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, Andrej Plenković.

"I am very proud that this award is coming to our city. This is recognition for all our fellow citizens who work hard to maintain and enhance the quality of Dubrovnik's tourist offerings, as well as for all the efforts we have made to guide Dubrovnik towards sustainability, for the benefit of our citizens and the satisfaction of our visitors. An extremely important role was played by the 'Respect the City' project, whose implementation positioned us as leaders in sustainable tourism in the international professional community," said Mato Franković, the Mayor of Dubrovnik.

This year, the City of Dubrovnik has already earned the title of the best big city to live in the country overall, as well as the best in the Smart City category. It has received four international tourism awards: 'Meeting Star' in the category of medium destinations for holding congresses, 'Best Leisure Destination for Groups', 'Europe's Leading Cruise Destination 2023', and 'Europe's Leading Seaside Metropolitan Destination'.

"This is our fifth tourism award this year, but also the dearest, speaking to Dubrovnik's return to where it belongs, on the path of sustainability. This encourages us to continue in the same direction. I believe that tonight, all Dubrovnik citizens are very proud," also stated Mayor Franković.

The Croatian Tourism Days 2023 are organized by the Croatian Tourist Board, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the Croatian Chamber of Economy, and the Croatian Radiotelevision.

Yesterday, March 19, at 10:35 p.m., a passenger vehicle with Split license plates landed in the sea at the ferry pier in Prapratno.

At the time the vehicle landed in the sea, there were four people in it, three of whom managed to get out of the sea, while the fourth person unfortunately died.

There was a driver and three passengers in the vehicle. After landing, the driver and two passengers managed to get out of the vehicle, while one of the passengers, a 45-year-old woman, remained in the vehicle, from where divers from the Intervention Unit of the Police Department of Dubrovnik-Neretva recovered her body around 2.25 am.

The investigation of this traffic accident started last night and is still ongoing, and after its completion, more details about this event will be known.

This is the second unfortunate event at the same location in just seven months. Namely, on August 19 last year, a 27-year-old Indian man lost his life in that bay, also after landing his car in the sea. It was a rent-a-car vehicle, and the victim was accompanied by his girlfriend, who, fortunately, was not in the vehicle at the time.

Today, Pelješac became a gastronomic destination as the Mali Ston Oyster Day event was held in Brijesta in the Mali Ston Bay. Oysters, local wine and song brought large crowds to this always popular event. Indeed, the oysters from this region are some of the best in the world. And lovers of this seafood delicacy came in large numbers.

Soaking up the atmosphere - Photo Božo Radić/Cropix

Brijesta proved too small for all those who came to enjoy the seafood specialty. Many left their cars parked two kilometres away. And who can blame them, the oysters at this time of the year are at their very best. In addition to the residents of the county, there were also a lot of people from Split and Šibenik, as well as visitors from neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina. People took advantage of the beautiful weather, which was perfect for this special day in Pelješac, so before tasting oysters just taken out of the sea for a euro per piece, they tried their hand at some wild asparagus in the countryside.

Oysters, wine and song - Photo Božo Radić/Cropix

Lovely day in the Spring sunshine - Photo Božo Radić/Cropix

On Tuesday, the sailing ship Shabab Oman II sailed into the port of Gruž in Dubrovnik. This rather impressive ship is in fact not a cruise ship but a school ship of the Royal Navy from Oman, and is 87 metres in length and has 29 sails in total, yes it is quite a sight.

Shabab Oman II is open to all visitors, and you have the opportunity to see this attractive and interesting sailing ship today from 10:00am to 6:00pm.

Photo - Tonci Plazibat/CROPIX

From ultra-popular to wild shores and everything in between, travel writers from the popular newspaper The Guardian have selected the most beautiful European beaches, and among the top 40 there were three from Croatia. But this time the choice was not so predictable, so among them were not the eternal trump cards of our coast such as the Pasjača beach in Konavle.

Among the three most beautiful Croatian beaches in the Guardian's choice were Krivica on Lošinj, Divna on Pelješac and Mlini on the Pakleni islands near Hvar.

Maybe just the fact that you have to walk 30 minutes on a rocky path to actually reach Krivica beach, makes this pebble beach so special. But the prize is a clear, deep sea of beautiful turquoise. It is located in a protected bay surrounded by pine trees, and its only company is anchored sailboats, writes The Guardian, which describes Lošinj as a long island of unusual shape, located in the Kvarner Bay and one of the most fragrant Croatian places with an incredible abundance of wild plants.

Divna Beach on Pelješac really lives up to its name. This pebble and sandy beach is located on the northern coast of Peljesac, about 10 km from Trpanj. Although there are not many places to enjoy the shade, Divna attracts swimmers with its crystal clear sea, and the sea life between the beach and a small island facing the bay will delight everyone who loves diving. The beach cafe sells drinks and basic food, and behind the beach there is a small camp.

Mlini beach - Photo - Canva

Those who visit Hvar and want to change the landscape should take a taxi boat to the bay of Mlini on the Pakleni island of Marinkovac, advises The Guardian. This pebble beach with an irresistible scent of pine trees, conquers the incredibly clear blue-green sea, and offers a restaurant and deck chairs for all who want a little comfort.

The second concert of the music cycle Dubrovnik Musical Spring will be held on May 6 at 9:00pm in the Rector's Palace. This time, the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra String Chamber Ensemble under the direction of maestro Uroš Lajovic from Slovenia will perform.

The program of this concert is as follows –

J. B. Lully: Le triomphe de l’amour

W.A. Mozart: Little Night Music

A. Dvořák: Serenade for Strings in E major

This music cycle is being held for the fifth time and will last until mid-June. The repertoire will include numerous classical compositions, and the audience will enjoy solo performances by Dubrovnik symphonists.

All information about the programs and future concerts can be found on the DSO website www.dso.hr. To book or buy tickets, you can contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or on the phone number 091 613 7314.

A Covid-19 testing service has been introduced at Dubrovnik Airport from the beginning of June. Antigen or PCR testing is possible on request, and testing is paid on the spot.

The service is available to any citizen, regardless of whether they are passengers, visitors to the airport or from the local population.

In the last 24 hours, three new cases of coronavirus infection have been recorded in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County. These are two males and one female. Two people are from Vela Luka and one from Dubrovnik.

16 people made a full recovery - six from Vela Luka, five from Metković and one from the Dubrovacko Primorje, Dubrovnik, Korčula, Lumbarda and Ston.

In the last 24 hours, 285 samples were processed, and since the beginning of the pandemic, a total of 75,276 samples have been analyzed.

Eight people tested positive for coronavirus are currently hospitalized in the Dubrovnik General Hospital.

There are 148 people in self-isolation, and in the last 24 hours, one violation of the self-isolation measure was recorded.

Last year was an extremely successful one for Croatia’s airports with seven million passengers passing through the countries airports. The top three airports, in terms of passenger numbers, were the capital Zagreb, Split and Dubrovnik. According to information from the specialised website EX-YU Aviation Zagreb Airport had it best year on record with 2.58 million passengers travelling through the capitals airport. This figure is a massive increase of 6.5 percent over last year. This growth was largely due to an increase in the growing number of international airlines operating through Zagreb. When the passenger numbers through Zagreb over the past five years are compared a steady growth can be seen. In 2013 a total of 2.3 million passengers used the airport, in 2014 that figure had risen to 2.4 million and last year the figure of 2.58 million was a record.

And it wasn’t only Zagreb that had a record year; Split also had its best year on record with 1.95 million passengers travelling through in 2015. After Zagreb’s 6.5 percent increase Split had a whooping increase of 11.6 percent. The managing director of Split Airport, Luksa Novak, told EX-YU Aviation that he expected 2 million passengers to travel through this year. He announced that with the arrival new flights from such airlines as Niki, Volotea, Air Berlin and Thomson Airways. The airport is also undergoing an investment project with the construction of a new terminal planned to start this spring.

And the last of the “big three” airports in Croatia, Dubrovnik airport, continued the positive news with another record breaking year welcoming 1.69 million passengers in 2015. The increase in passenger numbers at Dubrovnik Airport grew by 6.9 percent last year compared to 2014. The most popular route to Dubrovnik in 2015 was London and Croatia Airlines was the most frequent airline, mainly thanks to their daily operations to Zagreb. The airport expects that passenger figures will grow by between 5 and 6 percent this year.