Almost 14,000 companies were active in the Croatian hospitality industry in 2023 and generated a net profit of 331.9 million euros. This is a decrease compared to 2022, when the profit amounted to 511.3 million euros, according to data from the Financial Agency (FINA) published on the occasion of World Tourism Day.

FINA’s data is based on the companies’ annual financial reports and also shows that the companies employed just over 85,700 workers, an increase of around 8,500 (+11%) compared to 2022.

The revenue of companies in the hospitality sector totalled €6.3 billion in 2023, 18.1% more than in 2022, and their expenditure increased by almost 24% to €5.9 billion.

The profit for the period was €685.1 million, while in 2022 it was €511.3 million, and the loss for the period was €353.2 million, an increase of 124.1% compared to 2022.

The average net salary in the hospitality sector in 2023 was €911, or 10% higher than in 2022, but 11.4% lower than the average salary in the corporate sector.

Zagreb with the largest number of companies in the hospitality sector

FINA’s analysis also shows that Zagreb has the largest number of hospitality businesses in 2023, more than 3,200, followed by Split-Dalmatia County with around 2,300 businesses and Istria and Primorje-Gorski Kotar counties with around 1,400 hospitality businesses each.

Hospitality businesses in Zagreb had the highest number of employees with more than 21,000, followed by hospitality businesses in Istria with around 15,000 employees and businesses in Split-Dalmatia County with just over 12,000 employees.

The hospitality industry in Zagreb was also the leader in terms of total revenue, which totalled 1.5 billion euros, or almost 24% of total hospitality industry revenue.

The largest revenue in 2023, totalling 299.5 million euros, was generated by Valamar Riviera, followed by Maistra with 230.2 million euros and Plava Laguna with 214.8 million euros.

The largest profit in this period, totalling 44.4 million euros, was generated by Plava Laguna.