Star of "Lost" on jury

For the sixth year in a row the Libertas Film Festival will be held in Dubrovnik from the 2^nd to the 6^th of July. The film festival will once again combine world and European premieres as well as introducing Croatian films and showcasing the culture and history of the region and the city.  Around 90 films will be shown over the five days of the festival. This year’s jury has an international feel to it. Mira Furlan, born in Croatia but now living in America, is the star of TV series Lost and Babylon 5. Dante Spinotti, Italian born director of photography of films such as The Last of the Mohicans, The Chronicles of Narnia and LA Confidential. Robert Lantos, born in Budapest but now living in Canada, producer of over 30 films including Oscar nominated  Being Julia and Eastern Promises. 

Wimbledon champions to play in Old City

Two former Wimbledon champions will play a humanitarian game of tennis on the streets of the Old City of Dubrovnik on the 8^th of July. John McEnroe and Goran Ivanišević will play each other in front of the Rector’s Palace in Dubrovnik to raise money for the children’s department of the Dubrovnik hospital. The match between these tennis greats is part of the promotion “Let’s DU it” which is designed as a week long promotion of Dubrovnik and Croatia. During the week the sixth Libertas Film Festival will also be held at which more than 90 films from around the world will be shown. The day before the “big match” in the Old City the two tennis legends will hold a Kid’s Day at the Lapad tennis courts at which Goran and John will share their knowledge with future tennis aces.

10,000 guests arrive in Dubrovnik

Today the five cruise ships docked in Dubrovnik and brought with them around 10,000 passengers. On the 19^th of March the mega cruiser MSC Magnifica, with more than three thousand visitors, officially opened the cruising season in Dubrovnik. After a long winter break once again the Old City was alive with tourists and the souvenir shops, cafés and restaurants were full. MSC Musica, Costa Serena, Oriana, Gemini and Arion all dropped anchor in the Dubrovnik Port or in front of the Old City. 

Forbes magazine awards Dubrovnik third place

Varaždin is the best Croatian city for life and business and one of the main drivers of the economy of cities in the country, according to the Croatian Forbes magazine's list. The city of Varazdin took the top spot in Croatia from Rovinj from last year’s list, in fact Rovinj has somewhat stagnated and is now in 13^th position. Second place goes to the city of Samobor and the follows Dubrovnik, while the capital Zagreb is only in fifth place. The big losers were Split, Zadar and Sibenik, which they were completely eliminated from the Forbes list. Dubrovnik is the biggest winner of this year's Forbes list. Last year was not even among the top 20, and this year it is third.

At the meeting held yesterday, the Governing Council of Lokrum Reserve passed a series of decisions to enrich the tourist offer in one of the most beautiful islands in the Adriatic. For this season all guests will have to have a ticket regardless whether they arrived on the island with their own boat or boats that transport passengers to Lokrum. Ticket officers will patrol the island checking that all visitors have tickets. Also the Lokrum Reserve has purchased a boat from Atlas travel agency at a cost of 100,000 euros. With this new boat the Lokrum Reserve will be able to organise excursions around the island and transfer tourists from the Old City to Lokrum. Other new facilities for this year include rent-a-kayak, beach massage and the possibility to rent four-poster sun beds.

British Airways has launched trusted tips on worldwide destinations with the help of TripAdvisor to all its holiday and destination guides on ba.com. Customers can now tap into the wisdom of the crowds by reading TripAdvisor travellers' opinions throughout British Airways' own travel guides on ba.com. TripAdvisor is the world's most popular and largest travel community, featuring more than 30 million reviews and opinions from real travellers, as well as sets of 'Best of' guides. The launch is intended to help customers find the best deals to British Airways amazing array of destinations. TripAdvisor is seen as an impartial source for seeking advice on the top places to stay in the Maldives, great sightseeing tips in Barcelona or delicious spots to dine in New York, with candid photos and recent reviews offering further help in planning the perfect trip. Once customers have found their ideal destination with the help of Trip Advisor, they can book their holiday on ba.com, which offers over 4,000 carefully selected hotels across the world together with flights, car rental and experiences. British Airways and TripAdvisor have come up with a 2010 travel wish list to inspire customers searching for their dream destination. Categories include culture breaks like the UNESCO-listed Old Town of Dubrovnik and Istanbul; European Capital of Culture for 2010.

Dubrovnik - one of the most romantic cities in the world

On the list of the twenty best world cities to spend Valentine's Day, which is published by the prestigious British daily newspaper The Guardian, Dubrovnik came in at second place. The list was topped by Prague. The article went on to explain their choice “Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor used to escape to this beautiful Croatian city for a bit of holiday loving, and it still has the right atmosphere for a glamorous romantic break. The centre of the compact walled town is full of gorgeous boutiques and unusual jewellery stores (in case gifts are in order), pretty cafes with flower-filled gardens (should the Mediterranean sun make an appearance) and tiny bars with plenty of private nooks and crannies.” After Dubrovnik on the list of top destinations for Valentine’s Day were Istanbul, followed by Marrakech, Vienna, Ludlow, Bruges, Turin, San Sebastian, The Isle of Wight, Tuscany, Dorset, Austria, Yorkshire, Pembrokeshire, Suffolk, Ile de Re and Liguria and in the last place was Gran Canaria.

The commercial director of Dubrovnik Airport, Mr. Frano Luetić has announced that EasyJet, the largest UK airline, will launch 70 new routes in 2010. Dubrovnik is going to be connected with 8 European destinations: London-Gatwick, London-Stansted, Liverpool, Geneva, Rome, Milan, Berlin and Paris. The new routes from Dubrovnik for the 2010 are London-Stansted and Rome. The London-Stansted route will start on the 15^th of May and will operate three times a week, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, to Dubrovnik.  The Rome connection will start on the 11^th of July and will be available four times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. In addition to these EasyJet flights the Czech company CSA will launch two flights a week from Prague to Dubrovnik on Wednesdays and Fridays from the 7^th of July to the 25^th of August. Also the largest airline in Europe, Lufthansa, will start a regular service from Munich to Dubrovnik from the 27^th of March five times a week.