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Reuters

Croatia is set to become the latest European country to tackle a tourism-related housing price crunch, although some property owners fear the proposed legislation will affect business.
A package of draft laws was approved in the Croatian parliament last week, but the final nationwide legislation will only be passed after wider discussion and likely amendments.
Cities from Malaga and Barcelona in Spain to Athens, Greece, and Budapest in Hungary have clamped down on short-term rentals to alleviate housing shortages and reduce prices for local people.
Such moves in popular tourist destinations might have an impact on platforms such as Airbnb and Booking.com.

This year Croatian coastal tourist trap Dubrovnik banned new private rental permits in its historic Old Town to keep young people from leaving as a result of high costs.
Croatian Finance Minister Marko Primorac said the laws would raise taxes on houses for rent and the lump sum tax on tourist rental, but would not affect housing units where people live long term or where people live in their own property.
Some Croatians say that will give them a chance to rent at market prices and revive towns where blocks of flats only fill up during the holiday season.
The owners of flats are panicking. Many of them took loans, invested in the flats, logistics which will all be brought into question with this new law
Jurica Lepinc, rental agency owner in Zagreb, Croatia
“What bothers the citizens of Split, as well as Dubrovnik and other coastal towns, is that they are emptied of residents,” said Zaklina Juric of the Tenants Together initiative.
“There are no shops in the centre, the town is dead and someone has to finally acknowledge that,” Juric said of the new laws, which the group supports.
Tourism accounts for 20 per cent of Croatia’s gross domestic product, with about 125,000 people employed in the home rentals business. And some who rent their properties short term are worried about the proposed legislation.
“The owners of flats are panicking. Many of them took loans, invested in the flats, logistics which will all be brought into question with this new law,” said Jurica Lepinc, who owns a rental agency in Croatia’s capital, Zagreb.
Klaudia Kapural, who rents her flat in Zagreb through an agency, said taxes would skyrocket. She criticised a provision that 80 per cent of tenants will have to agree on rent in residential buildings, saying it will be hard to accomplish.
“Many flats will be closed, the prices … will probably rise 20 per cent next year,” said Natasa Luketic, who also rents a flat.

In other tourism news, more than 50 governments have signed a UN declaration to make tourism around the globe more climate friendly, the United Nations said, in what it hailed as a major achievement of the climate summit in Azerbaijan.
“At Cop29 we have achieved today a historic milestone by being included in the UN Climate Change Conference Action Agenda for the first time,” UN executive director for tourism Zoritsa Urosevic said.
The global tourism industry accounts for 3 per cent of global GDP and is the source of 8.8 per cent of greenhouse emissions, said Urosevic.
The countries that signed the declaration on Enhanced Climate Action on Tourism have pledged to recognise the need to address tourism when drafting climate plans, such as their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

The next update of NDCs, in which governments describe policies to reduce emissions that cause global warming, are due in February.
Tourism often accounts for a large share of a government’s hard currency revenues, particularly in emerging countries, and can itself be highly exposed to climate events such as hurricanes, heatwaves and droughts.
“We now understand that the future of our business depends on the sustainability of our actions today,” said Kanan Gasimov, head of administration at Azerbaijan’s state tourism agency.
The declaration was accompanied by a number of other initiatives, such as a framework presented by hotel industry body World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, aimed at measuring and reporting data such as greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, waste and energy usage across the sector.

The collated data would help the tourism industry and travellers understand their impact, said CEO Glenn Mandziuk.
“We are an industry that has a vested interest in the protection of each destination,” Mandziuk said. “We have to have a conversation where we can play a bigger role.”
The group represents 55,000 hotels totalling more than seven million rooms and counts big names such as Accor, Hilton and Marriott among its members.


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Tourism

Croatia the latest nation to consider restricting short-term tourist rentals

Tourists throng the Old Town of Dubrovnik, in southern Croatia. The nation is facing rising rents driven by holiday lets to visitors that create a housing shortage. Photo: Getty Images

The old town of the southern Croatian city of Dubrovnik. Photo: AFP

Residential buildings in Split, Croatia. Photo: Reuters

A drone view of Split, Croatia. Residents are being driven out of Croatian cities because of rising rent prices caused by tourists. Photo: Reuters

Glenn Mandziuk (above), CEO of the World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, presented a proposal to collect and report environmental data regarding tourism, at a recent Cop29 UN climate change conference. Photo: Reuters

Scorn greets Airbnb deal to bring gladiator ‘fights’ to Rome’s Colosseum after 2,000 years

Paul Mescal in a still from Ridley Scott’s new film Gladiator II. Photo: Paramount Pictures

Rome’s Colosseum will see gladiatorial action for the first time in centuries as Airbnb offers users the chance to partake in faux battles. Photo: dpa

Paul Mescal in a still from Ridley Scott’s film Gladiator II. Photo: Paramount Pictures

The hypogeum area of the Colosseum, where animals and gladiators were housed before entering the main arena for battle, reopened to the public in 2021 after three years of restoration work. Photo: EPA-EFE

How the Israel-Gaza war is destroying Jordan’s tourism industry

Visitors gather at the treasury site in the ancient city of Petra, Jordan. Tourism in the Middle Eastern nation has been decimated by the Israel-Gaza war. Photo: Reuters

A caravan of camels walks in the Wadi Rum desert in Jordan. Tourism in the Middle Eastern nation has been decimated by the Israel-Gaza war. Photo: Shutterstock

Visitors walk near the Treasury site in the ancient city of Petra, Jordan, on October 29, 2024. Photo: Reuters

A destroyed building in the west of Al Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 11, 2024. The ongoing Israeli-Gaza war is affecting tourism across the Middle East. Photo: EPA-EFE

Visitors tour the ancient city of Petra, Jordan, on October 29, 2024. Photo: Reuters

Tourism numbers have dropped in Jordan since the conflict between Israel and Gaza started. Photo: Reuters

How Istanbul’s restored hammams keep Turkey’s ancient bathing tradition alive

Men at a Turkish hammam in Istanbul. Photo: AFP

Inside Istanbul’s restored 16th century Zeyrek Cinili Hamam bathhouse. This and other old bathhouses  in the city are being restored and reopened, helping to preserve Turkey’s bathing culture. Photo: AFP

The 500-year-old Zeyrek Cinili Hamam seen from above. Photo: AFP

Pieces of tiles that once decorated the interior of Zeyrek Cinili Hamam on display in the adjacent museum. Photo: AFP

Men scrub and bathe at a hammam. In Turkey, bathhouses aren’t just for cleaning the body, but for socialising and celebrating important life events. Photo: AFP

For Manolya Gokgoz of Istanbul’s Cemberlitas Hammam, Turkish bathing tradition is something that needs to be kept alive. Photo: AFP

What Norway’s naked mega-spa is like to visit: a prudish Brit strips off for a ‘hugely liberating’ experience

A couple unwinds in the Turkish hammam at The Well in Norway, which has Scandinavia’s largest spa and one where being naked in the saunas and steam rooms is expected. Photo: The Well

Sauna-goers slap each other with birch-branch whisks at The Well. Photo: The Well

The Well is located in the forests of Sofiemyr, outside Oslo. Photo: The Well

While the space is enormous, the areas feel intimate and safe. Photo: The Well

The Well’s sculpture forest features captivating artworks by renowned Norwegian and international artists. Photo: The Well

An Aufgussmeister leads a traditional Aufguss wellness ritual in a 90-degree-Celsius sauna. Photo: The Well

It’s perfectly acceptable to go for lunch or dinner in your bathrobe (and nothing more) to The Well’s brasserie, and most guests do. Photo: The Well

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With rents rising and a housing shortage, Croatia is taking steps to tax short-term holiday lets. Meanwhile, sustainable tourism gets a push


With rents rising and a housing shortage, Croatia is taking steps to tax short-term holiday lets. Meanwhile, sustainable tourism gets a push.
