Report from Croatia: by TINA Cubrilo
FIJET Members Cooperation
Croatia initiates new memberships and tourist journalism revival
FIJET has to wake upLet me remind you that FIJET has been founded in Paris 59 years ago and in Croatia 50 years ago. Most of the founders are no longer with us, the enthusiasm has plumped over the years, and the membership is mostly elderly while the trends have changed. Some even say traditional journalism is dying out?
FIJET’s mission is the opposite of that - to encourage and enhance tourist journalism in accord with interest and new market trends.
Bearing the situation in mind we have decided to wake up the members, re-fresh our activities and attract young journalists. We are taking a good path. Together with the Slovenian colleagues, we have initiated mutual visits and cooperation. The colleagues from Serbia, also FIJET members, have joined us as well as some journalists from Bosnia & Herzegovina who are announcing a national association.
Novi Sad – the host to tourist journalists from Central & Eastern Europe
The colleagues from Macedonia and Montenegro have also shown interest to form national organizations during recent tourism fair in Novi Sad where FIJET Serbia gathered 30 journalists from the wider regiThe colleagues from Serbia and Vojvodina (part of Serbia with Novi Sad as a capital) have done a great job. Besides well-organized sessions, at the study tour they have shown us their natural and cultural heritage as well as their ostentatious gastronomy. We have visited their famous manors, a national park and areas with an elegant and stylish period architecture. The new idea has been born that FIJET from two countries organize traditional meetings. We have also visited a Fruska gora park with the renovated monastery in it. As a part of the meeting, we participated at 19th Tourism Prism which awards the most successful factors in the regional tourism. Last year, Croatian caterer Pavo Jerkovic of Villa Neretva was awarded.
Grape harvest in Slovenia – a motive for promotiSerbian tourism organization representative for Slovenia and Croatia in Ljubljana has contacted us to help them organize a study tour for 6 journalists. Our small group has been warmly received in Belgrade and shown the possibilities for promoting travel to Serbia. The program was very interesting including an archeological park from Roman times and many other historical and cultural sites like Oplenac. Belgrade has again proven to be a leader in the region for its nightlife. A Serbian delegation will return the visit during our international tourism film festival in Solin.
FIJET Croatia has also excellent cooperation with Italian tourist organization and German representative office for the region. Some Croatian destinations also contact us to help them in promotion. All these activities show us that “sector journalism” is nor dying out. The sector and the whole industry are changing as well as media and communication channels. If we – FIJET members – embrace these changes, the industry will appreciate us as partners. Croatian FIJET with its 60 members can be proud of many new young members. It is the only guarantee that FIJET will continue its mission which our founding fathers have set 60 years ago.
Tina Eterovic Cubrilo