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Croatian Tourism Minister Veljko Ostojic on Sunday said that World Cup slaloms on Mount Sljeme were unforgettable sporting events both for spectators on the slope and for the TV audience. After today's sixth edition of the World Cup men's slalom on Sljeme overlooking the Croatian capital, Minister Ostojic, who attended the event, told reporters that this was an interesting event tourist-wise, and he highlighted the fact that the race was live broadcast in over a score of countries.

The next year will be challenging for the Croatian tourist trade because of a series of both favourable and unfavourable circumstances, Tourism Minister Veljko Ostojic has said in an interview with Hina in which he also stated that he would be very pleased if 2013 was at the same level as 2012 regarding the results in the tourism sector and extremely glad if even better statistics were achieved. As for the favourable circumstances in 2013, the minister emphasises the beginning of the enforcement of a lower, 10-percent rate of the Value Added Tax on a majority of tourism services which he sees as a tailwind to the sector in the long run. The national tourist sector will also take advantages from Croatia's admission to the European Union, set for 1 July, and the EU membership will open many possibilities in the financing of and investments into the tourist trade, according to Ostojic. The adoption of a strategy for Croatian tourism through 2020, a document which is nearing completion, is expected in 2013.

One billion tourists have travelled the world in 2012, marking a new record for international tourism – a sector that accounts for one in every 12 jobs and 30% of the world’s services exports. On the symbolic arrival date of the one-billionth tourist (13 December 2012), UNWTO revealed the actions tourists can take to ensure their trips benefit the people and places they visit, as voted by the public. International tourism has continued to grow in 2012, despite global economic uncertainty, to reach over one billion international tourist arrivals. The figure cements tourism’s position as one of the world’s largest economic sectors, accounting for 9% of global GDP (direct, indirect and induced impact), one in every 12 jobs and up to 8% of the total exports of the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs).