The Croatian National Tourist Board once again successfully showcased Croatia’s MICE tourism offer at Conventa, the prestigious regional B2B meetings trade show held in Ljubljana. This year’s Conventa brought together around 150 buyers and 150 exhibitors from across the globe, reaffirming its position as one of the most important gatherings of MICE industry professionals in Central and Southeast Europe.
Croatia stood out in particular at the prestigious “Meeting Star Awards” ceremony, where numerous Croatian stakeholders received top honours, confirming the excellence of the national congress and meetings offer. First-place awards were presented to Grand Park Hotel Rovinj in the Resort Meeting Hotels category, Zonar Zagreb in the Most Creative Venues category, Meneghetti Wine Hotel & Winery in the Boutique Meeting Hotels category, and Brijuni, Pula in the Outdoor and Natural Event Venues category. In addition to four first-place awards, Croatian representatives also secured three second-place and two third-place finishes across various categories, further underscoring the high quality and international competitiveness of Croatia’s MICE offer.
A special recognition this year was awarded to Mirjana Resner, Head of the MICE Product Department at the Croatian National Tourist Board, who was named a Conventa Ambassador. This title is granted to individuals whose long-standing work, strategic vision, and strong commitment have made a significant contribution to the development of the meetings industry in the region, as well as to fostering successful cooperation between Conventa and Croatia’s business tourism sector.
This year’s edition of Conventa also introduced an important new feature. For the first time, the Conventa Experience Crawl was held - an innovative format designed to immerse participants in carefully curated host-destination experiences, highlighting the growing importance of authenticity and experiential value in today’s meetings industry. As part of the programme, selected buyers visited six carefully chosen venues in the heart of Ljubljana over two days, with each destination presenting itself through interactive and artistic content.
Alongside the Croatian National Tourist Board, the event was attended by representatives of the tourist boards of Zagreb, Dubrovnik and Istria County, as well as leading Croatian hoteliers and tourism companies.
It is also worth noting that at this year’s Conventa, Croatia presented several of its latest projects in the congress and hospitality sector, further strengthening the country’s reputation as a premier MICE destination in the region. In 2026, the opening of new hotels and business capacities is expected, including Valamar’s Pical Hotel 5* in Poreč, the Opatija Marriott Resort & Spa in Ičići, and the Mövenpick Hotel Kvarner Bay in Novi Vinodolski.
