Croatia continues to strengthen its position as one of the most dynamic tourist destinations in Europe, showing growth across all segments and sustained interest from both European and international visitors. According to data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, in the first nine months of 2025 the country recorded 18.7 million arrivals (+2.3%) and 89 million overnight stays (+1.2%), of which 11.9 million were in September alone, when arrivals totaled 2.4 million. The monthly figure represents a growth of about 6% compared to the previous year, confirming the stability and continuity of Croatia’s positive tourism trend.
Growth was seen among both foreign tourists (+5.1% in arrivals, +6.2% in overnight stays) and domestic tourists (+11.8% and +7.6% respectively). Germany remains the leading source market, with 3.8 million overnight stays – accounting for one-third of the total and an increase of 14.1% compared to 2024, followed by Austria, Poland, Slovenia, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, the United States, Italy, and Hungary, which together represent over 75% of all foreign overnight stays. Strong growth was recorded in the USA, Slovenia, and Poland markets, while declines were noted from the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Italy.
The success of campsites
The report from the Bureau of Statistics highlights that, among all types of accommodation, campsites stand out for the strongest performance. Although the “Campgrounds and camping sites” category ranked third in September 2025 in terms of tourist overnight share (after “Resorts and short-stay facilities” and hotels) with 26%, it recorded the largest increase in arrivals and overnight stays compared to other accommodation groups.
In this category, there were 468,000 arrivals and 3.1 million overnight stays, representing an increase of 15.5% in arrivals and 16.5% in overnight stays compared to September 2024, underscoring the segment’s dynamism. More than half of all overnight stays in campgrounds were made by German tourists (1.7 million nights), followed by Austrians (363,000 nights) and Slovenians (259,000 nights).
In terms of destinations, data from the Bureau of Statistics show a preference for Istria, with 1.6 million overnight stays, followed by the Primorje-Gorski Kotar region with 560,000 overnight stays and Zadar County with 388,000 overnight stays.
The three Associations representing Italian campings join together to question the Government