Why we are leaving Croatia after 14 years and spending over €1 million

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This summer, Croatia has faced a surge in tourist complaints, with many visitors highlighting steep price increases and a growing disparity between cost and service quality.

Some feel that the country has lost its original charm, leading to reconsiderations about future visits.

Among those disheartened is a sailing company that has been coming to Croatia for 14 years but is now looking elsewhere for their events.

Sailing Passion have been organising corporate sailing events in Croatia since first visiting Croatia in early May 2008.

“We were captivated by the stunning coastline and sailing areas, so much so that we returned in 2009, despite our original plan to explore different parts of the Mediterranean and Adriatic each year.

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In 2010, we sailed in Spain, but the group unanimously voted to return to Croatia. Since 2011, until May 2024, we’ve made Croatia our destination every year during the first week of May, chartering around 29 boats for approximately 180 participants,” Ariane Roquebert from Sailing Passion tells us.

Roquebert says that they have contributed to the local economy by paying tourist taxes for their entire group, sourcing provisions, and dining both in marinas and on the islands.

“Each year, we’ve left roughly €100,000 behind in Croatia.”

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In 2013, Sailing Passion expanded by organising a similar sailing event for students aged 12 to 17, bringing roughly the same number of participants and doubling their financial contribution to the country.

However, things have changed drastically since the introduction of the Euro, which, Roquebert says, has prompted a significant and unjustified rise in prices.

“For instance, a dinner that once cost €25 now runs as high as €50 in Zminjak. A simple meal of spaghetti, dessert, and water at Marina Hramina is also €50. The same goes for other restaurants on the islands, with prices now rivalling or even exceeding those in Luxembourg, where we live,” Roquebert says, before adding.

“But beyond the pricing, service has deteriorated significantly. We’ve had provisioning issues over the years, despite spending about €12,000 annually. Deliveries were consistently wrong, missing key items like water or substituting orders with low-quality alternatives.

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On one occasion, they left our food in the sun on the pier before we arrived, compromising our provisions just before we set sail and in May sent us 50 pages of invoices, 1 line per item. Despite numerous attempts to address these problems we received no response or apology, nor even acknowledgment.

In 2023, we faced similar frustrations when ordering bread. We requested proper packaging for storage during our journey, but the bread was delivered in trays, forcing us to handle everything unsanitary on the pier.

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In May, we switched to another supplier, but unfortunately, the same disorganisation and lack of hygiene prevailed. Each crew received around 10 loaves, but with only two to three loaves per box, there was no practical way to store them on the boats. The bread wasn’t even packaged in plastic bags, which would have made it easier to store and keep fresh.

There were no labels, so we had to guess which loaves belonged to which crew, and worse yet, handle everything by hand—completely unhygienic! How are we supposed to complain when everything was paid in advance and the company is closed on Saturdays?

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The charm and hospitality that once defined Croatia seems to have disappeared, replaced by an attitude of indifference and greed.

It feels increasingly like the UK, where money takes precedence and the message is clear: “If you don’t like it, go elsewhere”.”

Amid the rising costs and declining service quality, Sailing Passion is making a significant change after over a decade and a half of loyalty to Croatia.

“For the first time in 14 years, we’ve decided to move our May event to Italy, and we are also reconsidering whether we will continue to hold our student event in Croatia,” Roquebert concludes. 

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