Nautical tourism least affected by COVID-19, Milna a hit destination

This year’s hit destination on Brac is Milna, a town on the western part of the island. In the first 10 days of August, there were 2137 guests in Milna, recording over 14.000 overnight stays. When compared to last year, that’s a total of 86% of arrivals and 81% stays. Furthermore, July had 31.250 overnight stays (62%), with most people coming from Germany, Croatia, Poland and Slovenia. 

As stated by management of the Milna Tourist Board, the image of Milna as a tourist destination has been building for years. Even during the pandemic, they’ve used even the smallest opportunities for self promotion. The legend says Milna got its name because of the boats. In the time of Venice ruling, a lot of ships would take cover in Milna, giving the town a name “Port of a thousand ships” or “Valle di mile navi”. Today, Milna attracts boaters from all over the world, and offers over 300 moors divided to three marinas – ACI, Mille Naves and the one in Vlaska bay. The most common flags seen in the marinas are from Germany, Italy, Austria and Poland.

Nautical tourism is the most resistant to Coronavirus. Families and friends rent the boats and hang around together, without communication with other people. They are isolated as long as they want to be. 

Ana Grassi, Tourist Board

Thanks to the boaters, there are over 15 restaurants in town, all working. There are some which only take cash as a payment, which is not acceptable for some guests, due to the lack of ATMs.

However, a great advantage of Milna is its location, situated on a crossroads of several paths, and protected from winds. One of the most popular sights in Milna is “Gava” village, offering guests 189 rooms with 650 beds. Almost 85% of the rooms were booked in July, as the management stated. Guests are generally satisfied, but there’s a constant problem with parking. Most of them come with their cars, so sometimes there’s a lack of parking space.

As for the ferry connections from Milna, the town is connected with 4 other islands: Solta, Vis, Hvar, Korcula plus mainland towns of Split and Dubrovnik. That could be one of the reasons why guests stay longer in Milna than in other island towns.

Source: Slobodna Dalmacija