Ljubljana Tourism, one of the City of Ljubljana’s public institutes, is the recipient of this year’s Crystal Triglav, an award for the highest achievements in Slovenian tourism.

As selected by FIJET Slovenija – the Association of Slovenian Travel Journalists – the recipient of this year’s Crystal Triglav, an award for the highest achievements in Slovenian tourism, is the Ljubljana Tourism public institute.

On Monday 15 October 2012, Barbara Vajda, director of Ljubljana Tourism, was presented with the award at an evening ceremony at the Days of Slovenian Tourism event in Radenci by Drago Bulc, President of the Slovenian Travel Journalists’ Association.

The award, which was presented by the Travel Journalists for the first time last year at the Days of Slovenian Tourism in Portorož, and on that occasion presented to the CEO of Postojna Caves Marjan Batagelj, is an important recognition of the work of the whole team at the City of Ljubljana’s Ljubljana Tourism public institute in its more than ten years of operation. Ljubljana Tourism was set up by the City of Ljubljana in April 2001.

FIJET Slovenija justified its selection this year as follows: “In a good decade of its activities, Ljubljana Tourism has played an important role in the integration of tourist providers and through tourism integrated the Slovenian capital’s offer on the basis of many strategic development documents. Via outstandingly-planned and systematically-implemented activities it has enabled the realisation of Ljubljana’s and its green hinterland’s developmental and marketing potential, in recent years also through the acquisition of European funding for diverse projects both for Ljubljana and for the Central Slovenian Region. Ljubljana Tourism is now also responsible for the activities of the Central Slovenia regional destination organisation, which links all 26 local authorities of the Ljubljana Urban Region, activities at home and on foreign markets that are already starting to bear fruit.

Via its well-executed promotional activities at all important tourist fairs, intensive contact with domestic and foreign journalists, as a tourist agency for incoming tourism and an extensive network of contacts with foreign partners around the world, Ljubljana Tourism has carried the image of Ljubljana as an exceptionally friendly and lively central European capital, in which numerous events take place in the beautifully cared-for squares, streets, in the Tivoli area and on the banks of the Ljubljanica. Over the years, the Ljubljanica and its embankments have become a real magnet for residents of and visitors to Ljubljana alike. The institute has invested in tourist infrastructure in the Tivoli area, and has made an important contribution to the remodelling of the banks of the Ljubljanica, as earmarked funds from concession holders from games of chance are annually systematically devoted to investments such as building quays on the Ljubljanica, the renovation of Trnovo quays, setting out footpaths on Krakovo Embankment and on the Gruden Embankment.

The institute’s good organisation and active professional work have helped to establish Ljubljana as a congress city, assured exemplary guides around the city and informed tourists through information centres and via the extensive content of its Visit Ljubljana website, which has recently been adapted for all types of mobile devices.
The Ljubljana Tourist Card has been assessed as the third best in Europe and is just one of the projects that the institute has carried out in response to increased tourist demand. Among others, it is important to mention the projects Sožitje (‘Symbiosis’) between the city and the countryside, the Hospitality of Ljubljana Houses and Ljubljana – city of experiences, which include much investment in tourist infrastructure in and around Ljubljana, and the Ljubljana Mosaic project that unites providers in the Ljubljana tourism field.

Despite the crisis, in the last two years Ljubljana has achieved well above average tourist visits, guest numbers and numbers of overnights which have more than doubled in the last decade. In 2000, Ljubljana was visited by 194,715 guests, with 425,163 last year; in 2001 there was a total of 391,421 overnights, with 794,646 last year, while this year’s planned total of 799,000 overnights will likely be exceeded”.

FIJET Slovenija – the Association of Slovenian Travel Journalists (FIJSLOV) was set up with ten members in May 2005, while today it includes more than 50 journalists, writers and photographers, who write about tourist activities and operate professionally in the central Slovenian media in regional and local publications as well as specialised, professional and internet media. The Association is carrying on the 40-year activities of the Travel Journalists’ Section of the Slovenian Journalists Association, which was founded in 1965. The Association’s main goal is to encourage among its members the professional and in-depth monitoring of Slovenian and global tourism and co-operation with related professional associations in Europe and worldwide.