Adriatic Sea Forum 2015 to be held in Dubrovnik, 23-24 April

The countdown has started for the second edition of the Adriatic Sea Forum, the international event dedicated to the various sectors of marine tourism in the Adriatic sea – cruises, ferries and boating (sail and motor), the brainchild of Risposte Turismo – a research and consulting firm serving the tourist industry, founded and chaired by Francesco di Cesare – to be held on Thursday April 23, 2015 (10:30 am to 5:15 pm) and Friday April 24, 2015 (9.20 am to 12:45 pm) in Dubrovnik at the Importanne Resort.

Organized this year in partnership with Dubronvik Port Authority and with the Municipality of Dubrovnik and with the support of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board and ACI Marina Dubrovnik, Adriatic Sea Forum 2015 will consist of 6 discussion sessions (2 plenary and 4 concurrent) regarding the different solutions for travel and marine tourism on the Adriatic sea, from cruise to ferries, from sail boats to motor yachts, and it will also feature reports and keynote speeches by principal actors in these sectors.

A wealth of appointments on both days of the forum for the two-day of study, discussion and debate that will involve over 40 international speakers – from Albania, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Slovenia and elsewhere – to exchange ideas and reinforce networking, together with all the participants, by connecting with new operators.

After introductory greetings from the local authorities, the first day of the Adriatic Sea Forum will open with a plenary session entitled “The Adriatic: a sea, a destination, a brand”, which will be a moment for meeting and discussing the Adriatic’s potential for being considered and promoted as a single tourist destination.

The speakers attending the session will include Julinda Dhame – Director of the National Tourism Agency of Albania, Ratomir Ivičić – Director of Croatian National Tourism Board, Karmen Novarlic – Head of Tourism Sector of Spirit Slovenia, Cristiano Radaelli – Commissioner, EIT (Italian Agency of Tourism) and Zeljika Radak Kukavičić – Director, National Tourism Organisation of Montenegro.

In the afternoon, when work begins again, Francesco di Cesare will present the new edition of the Adriatic Sea Tourism Report, the first research report to bring together in one publication important data regarding marine tourism in the Adriatic sea, and specifically the analysis of flows, volumes, type and direction of tourism in the area (cruises, ferries and boating) that impact the seven countries with an Adriatic coast.

After a keynote speech given by John Tercek, Vice President Commercial Development about the analysis of cruise facilities in the Adriatic area, the programme of the forum also calls for two parallel sessions regarding, respectively, the creation of new connections by ferry (“Focus ferry: building new routes”) and the future of boating in the area (“Which future for the nautical sector in the Adriatic?”).

The second day of the forum will host a keynote speech by Franz Lamplmair – Senior Adviser of DG Maritime and Fisheries of the European Commission – on the EUSAIR strategy and its next steps. Two parallel sessions will follow regarding, respectively, the leadership of the cruise industry for the development of the Adriatic (“Cruise sector to lead Adriatic development”) and the marinas and tourist ports located in the area (“The marinas on the Eastern and Western coasts of the Adriatic “).

The 2015 edition of the Adriatic Sea Forum will conclude with a plenary session entitled “The sustainable economic growth of the Adriatic”, during which representatives of the European Commission and international associations will discuss how to manage and promote the economic growth of the Adriatic, while ensuring the basis for growth in a perspective of sustainability.

The speakers attending the session will be: Kyriakos Anastassiadis – Executive Board Member of Clia Europe and CEO of Louis Cruise, Olivera Brajović, Deputy Minister of Tourism and Economic Development of Montenegro, Leila Krešić-Jurić – Head of Tourism Department of HGK (Croatian Chamber of Economy), Franz Lamplmair – Senior Adviser of the DG Maritime and Fisheries of European Commission, Robert Marx – President of European Boating Industry Association, Kristijan Pavic – Vice President of MedCruise, Eduardo Santander – Executive Director of European Travel Commission and Francesca Tudini, Head of “Tourism Policy Unit” of the DG Grow of European Commission.

Among the other speakers present who will enrich the content and discussions of the Forum are Raffaele Aiello, CEO of SNAV, Piero Formenti, Vice President of European Boating Industry and CEO of ZAR Formenti, Antonis Maniadakis, Managing Director of Minoan Lines, Franco Mariani, Vice President of Assoporti, Roberto Perocchio, President of Assomarinas, Doris Peručić, General Manager of ACI Croatia, Maro Saulovic, National Manager (Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Slovenia) of Intercruises and Roberto Sponza, President of the network Trieste Yacht Berths.

“The Adriatic deserves much more attention than what it has received so far – stated Francesco di Cesare, President of Risposte Turismo. This area is not only rich in natural beauties and artistic and cultural heritage, but also in extraordinary business and job opportunities.
Adriatic Sea Forum is a project born to help taking better advantage of such opportunities, focusing the attention on two main elements that can provide an interpretation of the project as a whole: the need of contemplating together the several forms of tourism and passenger transport by the sea, from nautical tourism to cruise and ferries, and the challenge of building and maintain the Adriatic as one single, although varied, touristic destination, able to compete on a worldwide level. After the success of the first edition in Trieste, I expect the Forum in Dubrovnik to be full of information, ideas, considerations and professional meetings which will be able to influence the future of this area.”

“Adriatic area is rich with cultural heritage and natural beauties, but at the same time is vulnerable to marine human activities – stated Antun Asić, General Manager of Dubrovnik Port Authority. Adriatic Sea Forum needs to promote, but also to discuss ways to protect the unique value of Adriatic area. The Adriatic region is one of the leading region for further cruise development. A huge increase of cruise calls and cruise passengers, also as other nautical tourism subsystems, puts a serious challenge to all cruise ports alongside the Adriatic coast, regarding their development and improving port facilities, also as gathering together with other subjects involved in whole tourist industry. We all need to find the way to deal with all our future challenges.”

The official languages of the Adriatic Sea Forum will be English, Croatian and Italian.