More than 3,600 properties in Croatia now carry the „Your Host / Local Host“ label. The project launched last year by the Croatian Tourist Board and the Ministry of Tourism and Sport is entering a new phase: following the gathering of hosts, there is an increasing emphasis on ensuring the label is also recognised by the guests themselves. And behind it lies a simple idea – accommodation can be much more than just a place to sleep.
When a guest is choosing an apartment or holiday home, interior photographs, location and price are usually among the first decision-making criteria. However, what often remains in the memory after a trip is difficult to capture in a few photographs on a booking platform.
That might be a conversation with the host, a recommendation for a small local winery, a restaurant that is not among the top internet search results, a hidden beach, a local product left as a welcome gift, or a story about the area where the guest is staying.
It is precisely on this relationship between the host, the guest, and the destination that the project is based. „Your Host / Local Host“, which was launched to more clearly distinguish hosts in the wide range of private accommodation who offer guests an authentic experience and a more direct contact with the local environment.
The label was officially introduced in May 2025, and can be requested by accommodation providers who hold the status of host under current regulations and meet criteria that, among other things, include the authenticity of the offer, hospitality, environmental awareness, and the quality of guest access and information.
Photo: HTZ
More than 3,660 properties already carry the Local Host label
In just over a year, the project has brought together a significant number of hosts. According to the latest data from the Croatian Tourist Board, the „Local Host“ label is held by more than 3,829 properties with more than 22,609 beds.
Most labelled properties are located in Istria, on the Kvarner Gulf and in Split-Dalmatia and Zadar counties, while the leading destinations by the number of participating properties include Crikvenica, Pula, Dubrovnik, Rovinj and Poreč.
Numbers are important, but a much more interesting question is what that label means for the day-to-day work of a host.
One of the examples comes from a completely different part of Croatia – from the wine-growing hills of Međimurje. In Železna Gora, there is a holiday home Hygge Nova, whose owners Mia and Saša are among the hosts involved in the Local Host project.
Their reason for involvement very well describes the philosophy of the entire project.
„We got involved in the Local Host project because it has always been important to us to show that a host is not just someone who opens the door to accommodation for a guest. For us, being a host means opening the door for the guest to Međimurje as well – to its people, tradition, flavours, scents and stories that you often cannot find in a standard tourist guide, point out Mia and Saša, the owners of Hygge Nova.
Photo: Mia and Saša Novak, owners of Hygge Nova
From accommodation towards destination experience
It is precisely at this point that the traditional role of the private accommodation provider is also changing.
A host who knows the destination well can offer a guest something that a large number of standardised tourism products can hardly replicate – a personal recommendation and local knowledge.
That does not necessarily imply organising complex additional amenities. Sometimes it is enough to know where the guest can buy a good local product, at which winemaker's to taste wine, which route to take for a walk, or what to visit outside the busiest part of the day.
At Hygge Novi, this approach goes a step further.
The house has been renovated while retaining numerous original features, and its hosts aim to connect the story of Međimurje with local products, people and experiences. They are thus able to introduce guests to the life of the wine-growing region also through activities such as participating in the grape harvest. Hygge Nova is located in Železna Gora in the area of Štrigova, surrounded by the landscape of Međimurje vineyards.
Mia and Saša emphasise how precisely such details make the difference between providing accommodation and hosting.
„We strive to make Hygge Nova a place with a story, from its history and preserved details to local products, recommendations and experiences that we provide to guests, such as participating in the grape harvest and getting to know the life of our region. We love it most when guests leave with the feeling that they haven't just slept somewhere, but that for a few days they have become part of this place.“
Such an approach also opens up the broader question of the position of private accommodation in Croatian tourism.
While a smart apartment with a modern kitchen, swimming pool, terrace and lovely view can be found in almost every Mediterranean destination today, the local story, relationship with the host and sense of belonging to a particular place are much harder to copy.
That could well be the greatest long-term value of the Local Host project.
Photo: Mia and Saša Novak, owners of Hygge Nova
The brand must also become recognizable to the guest
However, for Local Host to grow from a label recognised by the tourism sector and property owners into a true market brand, it also needs to be recognised by the guest.
HTZ therefore significantly intensified the promotion of the project during 2026.
Particularly interesting was the first joint campaign by the CNTB and Booking.com entirely focused on Croatian private accommodation holding the Local Host label. The campaign „Experience real Croatia“ it was carried out during June and July on the markets of Germany, Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary.
According to the CNTB results, the campaign achieved more than eight million impressions and almost 500 bookings.
That is an important shift because the label thus steps outside the institutional framework and appears precisely where a large number of guests make their booking decisions.
In late August, the CNTB also launched a new wave of project promotion on the domestic market, featuring activities through digital advertising, social media, television, print media and digital outdoor surfaces. The campaign is also aimed at encouraging travel during the post-season.
Award holders also receive a digital version of the label, which they can use in their own communications, while the physical plaque is displayed on the property. The label is valid for three years, after which the host goes through the self-assessment process again.
Photo: Mia and Saša Novak, owners of Hygge Nova
More than just another sign at the apartment entrance
The true long-term success of the project will therefore not be measured solely by the number of plaques awarded.
Much more important will be whether „Local Host“ becomes a clear signal to guests that they can expect a certain type of experience – a more personal relationship, a host who knows their destination and accommodation that is in some way connected to the local identity.
For the hosts themselves, this can at the same time be an opportunity for differentiation in a market where supply is constantly growing and the fight for visibility is increasingly demanding.
Croatian private accommodation did not originate as an industry of anonymous apartments. Its foundations were people who welcomed guests into their own homes, chatted with them, offered them something homemade and showed them the place where they lived.
Tourism has changed significantly since then. Sales channels, technology, guest expectations and the very structure of private accommodation have all changed.
However, the guest's need to get to know the place through the people who live in it has not disappeared.
If the „Your Host / Local Host“ label succeeds in making that very value visible and recognisable right at the moment a guest is choosing their next accommodation, it could become much more than just a plaque at the entrance of the property.
It could become one of the ways in which Croatia differentiates its own family accommodation from thousands of seemingly similar apartments across the Mediterranean.
About the author
Tragento Editorial Team
Tragent Editorial – News, Analysis, and Trends in Tourism
The Tragent Editorial Team presents the editorial team of a B2B portal focused on the tourism industry. The team comprises authors and experts with experience in various segments of tourism, including airlines, the hotel sector, travel tech companies, travel agencies, and tour operator systems.
