DUBROVNIK, June 13 — With Croatia joining the Schengen Area at the beginning of the year having boosted tourism to the “Pearl of the Adriatic”, the city has now decided to stamp out nuisance noise created by tourists’ wheeled suitcases. In fact, Dubrovnik has been trying to limit the adverse effects of overcrowding for many years.
Ah, Dubrovnik!! The ramparts of its fortified city, its cable car for a bird’s-eye view of the Adriatic, its long pedestrian thoroughfare and its guided tours for fans of Games of Thrones... all set to a soundtrack of constant clatter from wheeled suitcase being dragged over the cobblestones of the Old Town.
These suitcases make noise, lots of noise, especially at night. So much so that the inhabitants of the city have complained to the local authorities.
As a result, the city’s Mayor, Mato Frankovic, has taken some surprising action, as he explained to the Croatian daily newspaper, Jutarnji List.
From this summer, visitors will be required to carry their suitcases through the city’s Old Town — even if they’ve got wheels. While the measure may raise a few eyebrows — especially as no fines are currently planned to dissuade tourists from continuing to haul their luggage over the cobblestones — this is the first step in the development of a more elaborate system, starting in November.
A collection point will be set up to collect travellers’ belongings, while a delivery service will take care of transporting them to the appropriate hotels and accommodation — for a fee, of course. Eventually, the aim is to operate this rather special delivery service directly from Dubrovnik airport, some 20km away.
This decision comes just a few days after the controversy caused by the closure of a bar terrace in the Old Town, deemed too noisy. Opposition was fierce, as it concerned the Stradun, a well-known bar on Dubrovnik’s main thoroughfare, which French tourism guidebook publisher Routard guidebook as the Croatian Champs-Élysées.
The measure has been integrated into a communications campaign calling on tourists to respect the beautiful Croatian city, which served as a filming location for the hit series Game of Thrones.
In a campaign video, the tourist office explains all the dos and don’ts of visiting Dubrovnik, such as refraining from going shirtless, keeping dogs on a leash, not climbing on monuments, not littering, etc. The 3D animation is being shown by Croatia Airlines and cruise ships, many of which include the “Pearl of the Adriatic” in their summer itineraries.
Even before the pandemic, Dubrovnik residents were complaining about the effects of mass tourism, as the city was invaded by Game of Thrones fans eager to visit the show’s filming locations.
Back in 2018, the Croatian city launched a campaign calling for more respect from tourists and banned music in bars from 11.30pm. At the time, record visitor numbers — reaching 1.27 million compared to just 44,000 locals — were fuelling friction between travellers and residents.
The success of Game of Thrones only accentuated the phenomenon.
Back in 2015, Unesco urged the municipality to take measures to better control overtourism. In 2017, agreements were reached with cruise lines to limit the number of passengers disembarking at the same time in the city’s Old Town. A counting system supported by cameras was set up. — ETX Studio
