New structure for Pula tourism as young visitors dominate the scene

August 16, 2022 – The tourist structure of Pula has changed somewhat, with the scene currently being dominated by much younger tourists than in previous years.

As Morsky writes, on the beautiful peninsula of Istria, the number of tourists this weekend exceeded the very impressive 300,000. Although the peninsula of Istria is mainly geared towards family tourism, the number of younger guests, aged from 18 to 30, is now increasing. Pula’s tourism is based precisely on the “city break” category, that is, it has become a destination for more frequent and shorter stays.

”In Italy housing is way too expensive, here we found a house at a good price. We have just arrived, we have seen beautiful beaches, the city is magnificent,” said visitor Mateo.

”If we compare what we have now with 2019, which was the last pre-pandemic year, we see that we have a few percent more young people who make up the picture of tourism in Pula, which if we look July and August – when the number of people in the city is higher – it is not a negligible percentage,” pointed out Sanja Cinkopan Korotaj, director of the Pula Tourist Board.

Manifestations and events that have never been seen before are also not insignificant. The Music Week, the City of Wine and now a Burger Festival with a series of concerts in the Arena and in the city squares are attracting more and more visitors to this Istrian town, and the bars, restaurants and cafes are full.

There are 25,000 guests currently staying in the city of Pula. Private accommodation is now full and young people have also started to fill the many hotels in the city.

”We decided to stop in Pula during our visit to Croatia as we had heard nothing but the best of the city. We have visited many places there, and the beaches are beautiful,” Camilla said.

This new customer structure that makes up Pula’s tourism image, with a significantly higher proportion of young people, also increases costs for hoteliers, they say.

”Because they stay in one destination for less time, they want to see as much as possible in the shortest possible time, so we’re kind of reduced to a type of station tourism. Because we have to change everything every day, the bedding and everything, it creates additional costs for us,” said Deniz Zembo, a hotelier from Pula.

Recently hostels have also started to appear, there are now about 20 in the city and they are getting better every year.

“We are talking about a lot of young guests who have come of age during the coronavirus pandemic, they have not been able to travel, and we are also talking about guests who are starting families and who will come to Pula with their families,” Boris added. Zgomba, President of the Association of Travel Agencies within the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK).

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