The Croatian Sustainable Tourism Observatory (CROSTO)

The Croatian Sustainable Tourism Observatory (CROSTO) was established to support the vision set by Croatia for the future of its tourism sector. Through regular and timely monitoring of sustainable tourism in the Adriatic Croatia, the observatory helps to raise awareness of the possible positive and negative impacts of tourism development in the region.

The main objective of CROSTO is to continuously measure and monitor the development of sustainable tourism in the most tourism developed region of Croatia (Adriatic Croatia). Through the establishment of periodic and systematic monitoring processes, the observatory is key to observe and understand issues related to sustainable tourism, supporting local stakeholders in their decision-making processes with essential evidence. By applying and the European Tourism Indicator System among local communities and at the same time being part of INSTO, the observatory’s main tools in realization of its vision will be promotion, education and knowledge transfer. The long-term objective of CROSTO is to help establishing more observatories within the country and serve as coordinating entity, seeking to support sustainable tourism throughout the entire country in the future.

CROSTO is a integrated unit within the Institute for Tourism in Zagreb, Croatia. It is staffed by an interdisciplinary team of Institute’s researchers.

• Satisfaction of the host communities 
• Visitor satisfaction 
• Local economic benefits and employment 
• Tourism seasonality 
• Energy, water and waste control 
• Spatial development control

Croatia’s commitment to sustainability has been emphasized in its Tourism Development Strategy 2020. The initiative aims at fostering innovation in the framework of sustainable tourism. The efforts of the country in that regard have been recognized by the European Commission through the ETIS Award to the City of Mali Lošinj. The breadth and depth of insights gathered on sustainable tourism practices on the island have been particularly praised in that recognition.