Expected increases in the number of people in the coastal areas of Croatia in August 2018 range from 40 percent in Split-Dalmatia County to 129 percent in Istria County, and some towns are seeing their population grow fivefold, a survey by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) shows.

The survey studied how much the populations of coastal towns and counties grow during the peak tourist season. Its estimates are based on the arrivals and overnight stays of Croatian and foreign tourists in commercial accommodation establishments, which implies that the actual numbers are higher.

The findings show that Istria County will have 129 percent more residents in August than it normally does. It is followed by Zadar County, with an estimated increase of 66 percent, Sibenik-Knin County (+60 percent), Primorje-Gorski Kotar County (+55 percent), Dubrovnik-Neretva County (+54 percent) and Split-Dalmatia County (+40 percent).

Population increases were slightly lower in July, ranging from 39 percent in Split-Dalmatia County to 119 percent in Istria County. Zadar County had an estimated population increase of 63 percent, Sibenik-Knin County of 57 percent, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County of 51 percent and Dubrovnik-Neretva County of 39 percent.

Some towns see their population increase fivefold during the peak tourist months.

In August, Nin (Zadar County) will see its population increase by 447 percent, the population of Medulin (Istria County) will swell by as much as 469 percent, that of Mali Losinj (on the northern island of Losinj) by 265 percent, and the population of Rovinj (Istria County) by 261 percent.

The situation was similar in July, when the population increased by 431 percent in Nin, by 421 percent in Medulin, by 246 percent in Mali Losinj, and by 231 in Rovinj.

Annually, most of overnight stays in commercial accommodation are generated in July and August, namely about 29 percent in July and about 33 percent in August.

In 2017, as many as 49.2 million overnight stays, or some 95 percent of all overnight stays, were generated in July and August in the six coastal counties. Istria County recorded 15.2 million overnight stays, Split-Dalmatia 10.6 million, Primorje-Gorski Kotar 9.3 million, Zadar County 6.5 million, Dubrovnik-Neretva County 3.8 million, and Sibenik-Knin County 3.8 million.