Annual fishing convention in Croatia hosted in Hvar

With the main tourist season all but over, Croatia's premier island turns its attention to an important fishing conference. Better known for its sunshine, parties, heritage and lavender, the island of Hvar continued another successful tourist season by welcoming hundreds of delegates to the Traditional 18th Meeting of Fishermen in Hvar Town, an event attended by Digital Journal on October 17, 2013. Organised once again by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, the meeting is the most important annual congregation of the nation's fishing industry, with this year's gathering especially poignant, as it was the first such meeting since Croatia joined the EU on July 1 this year.

The theme of the EU loomed large on the agenda, and with European fishing policies causing friction with traditional fishing communities, the issue of Croatian fishing and the EU was expected to play a significant part in the two-day gathering. Delegates gathered at four-star Hotel Amfora, where they were welcomed with a cocktail and the fine voices of the famous Faroski Kantaduri, before enjoying a buffet dinner. The real business started the following morning and, after all delegates stood for the national anthem, master of ceremonies Danni Matijaca invited an impressive succession of attendees to make opening welcoming speeches, including president of the guild Vladan Bojić, President of the Split-Dalmatia Chamber of Commerce Marija Crmarić, Deputy President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce Igor Vojinović, Hvar Mayor Rino Budrović, and President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce Dragutin Rangajec. With more than one delegate commenting on the difficulty of doing business in such a stunning setting, the conference once again highlighted the embarrassment of riches which Croatia's premier island of Hvar possesses. Celebrating 145 years of organised tourism since the founding of the Hvar Health Society in 1868 (making the town the oldest organised tourism in Europe), Hvar has had another successful season, as visitors are drawn to one of the hottest destinations in the EU's newest member state, by a combination of sun, sea, celebrity, party and heritage tourism.
And while the fishing conference is taking place relatively late in the season, there is plenty more action to come on the island, with the national wine festival of Sabitini due to be hosted in the same location next week, followed by the third Peskafondo squid-fishing championship.

Text: digitaljournal.com

Oznake: hvar