Slovenia and Croatia boost their visibility in the US market with a business event in New York

The workshop, co-hosted by the STB and the HTZ, targeted partners in the luxury tourism segment from Slovenia, Croatia, and the United States, who focus on smaller, exclusive groups and individual guests. This event coincided with the Elevate 2023 conference organized by the Global Travel Collection, the luxury tourism branch of the global Internova Travel Group, further enhancing Slovenia and Croatia's visibility in the American luxury travel market.

MSc. Maja Pak, the Director of the Slovenian Tourist Board (STB), emphasized:"Data from US luxury tourism associations highlights the immense interest of upscale US guests in boutique, tailor-made, sustainable experiences, with a growing interest in gastronomy. These are precisely the areas where Slovenian tourism truly shines. At the STB, based on the remarkable potential of the US market, we have been engaged in an array of promotional and communication activities and will continue to do so also in the future." She went on to stress the vital importance of cooperation with neighboring countries in promoting activities in distant markets: "Guests from distant markets often want to explore more than one country on their journeys. Following our successful joint appearances with the Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ) in Asia and Australia in the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic, this is the first timewe are joining forces in the USA. We are truly grateful to our Croatian colleagues for cooperation and we look forward to welcoming moreAmerican tourists to our enchanting destinations." 

Kristjan Staničić, the Director of HTZ, added: "We have excellent cooperation with our colleagues from the STB and the European Travel Commission, as evidenced by our many successful joint campaigns, workshops, and presentations promoting our country in distant markets, such as the USA, China, and Australia. When we talk about distant markets and Croatian tourism, the USA represents the market generating the most tourist traffic. This activity presents an excellent opportunity to further connect Croatian, Slovenian, and American partners." He also mentioned that Dubrovnik, Split, Zagreb, Hvar, and Rovinj are the most popular Croatian destinations among American tourists.

The business event in New York marks the final act of a broader campaign, which included joint sub-sites on ETC VisitEurope.com and digital advertising in prominent American media outlets like Conde Nast Traveler and Wanderlust. Conde Nast Traveler, for instance, reported 5.9 million impressions of campaign content and over 12,500 interactions on social networks. Wanderlust recorded more than 2.5 million web impressions and more than 189,000 interactions throughout the campaign.

A separate advertising campaign was conducted on YouTube, with the creation of joint promotional videos that garnered 2.3 million video views. The European Commission supported this campaign through the "Co-branding of Promotional Campaigns" programme of the European Travel Commission (ETC).

STB's ongoing and focused activities in the US market

In the US, STB's targeted and ongoing efforts have brought positive results. The USA is the most crucial distant market for Slovenian tourism. From January to August this year, Slovenia welcomed nearly 101,000 arrivals and 228,000 overnight stays from the USA, marking a 32% increase in arrivals and a 30% increase in overnight stays compared to the same period last year. This has brought tourist arrivals from the USA back to pre-coronavirus 2019 levels, and overnight stays have increased by 2%. It is estimated that by the end of the year, Slovenian tourism will achieve or exceed the record results of 2019, with almost 149,000 arrivals and more than 323,000 overnight stays by American tourists in Slovenia. Despite inflation and global economic challenges, the American Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators, as well as travel industry representatives, report an increase in travel sales to Europe compared to 2019 figures. There is strong demand for boutique, personalized experiences, sustainable tourism, cultural and active experiences, and gastronomy-oriented experiences.

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