05/01 2020

Visiting destinations outside of high season means you’re more likely to see a side of the location that many travellers never get to see. Whether it’s experiencing the stunning display of autumn colours in Nature Park Uchka or a white winter morning in Velebit National Park, you are bound to see something most tourists never will.

The climate is changing, and we don’t know where the changes are taking us. Regarding travel, I am convinced that the old dynamic of seasonal travelling is over, and summer has become overwhelmingly hot in the prevailing summer destinations.

Croatian mass tourism is based on seasonality, and large hotel complexes and resorts have been built on seasonality alone. Seasonality is statistics siphoned from three summer months: June, July and August. It’s an assembly line that, by good fortune, is active only for a limited part of the year.

In terms of tourism, travelling was always seasonal. A specific destination for a specific time of year. However, there used to be fewer humans in the world in the ’80s when I was a kid. Opatija was uncrowded even during August. Of course, it was always hot in August, but the summers were still different, and the masses of tourists did not exist.

Today, the same model continues with the fact that there are 3.5 billion more people worldwide than in the 80s. Mass tourism is a kind of dinosaur, a vast system that, in this form, will not survive the new era that is coming and will have to evolve.

I think it evolves in a way that the dynamics of a large group start to dissipate into smaller groups with different spheres of interest.

About 30 years ago, Lido, Opatija’s famous wooden and beautiful beach, burned down. The guests at the time offered the city of Opatija money for the renovation of Lido, but in return, they requested free holidays for the next x years. The city administration rejected this at the time, but today we have a rebuilt Lido based on the old model, with a touch of modern design.

Nowadays, this is unthinkable. Today’s guest arrives, soaks up the destination through their favourite activity, and moves on; to Corsica, Patagonia, Norway.

In a mass tourism system, it’s impossible to emphasize quality over quantity. If the summers barely reach 23 degrees Celsius, none of this would be. Just nature, the coast, and some hotels here and there. And that’s exactly how I want my travel destinations (and hometown) to look. Quiet, simple, and authentic.

To be clear, even the most generic bus trip full of picnickers or retirees on a regular tour of tourist attractions can be a fantastic and fun experience. A lot depends on the guide and the way you travel.

Once my friend and I went on a “wild” trip to Ireland. It turned out that the rent-a-car didn’t accept Diners Club cards, and since it was the only credit card we had, we had to go on trips by bus.

We somehow stumbled upon some minibus for about 30 people, full of older picnickers, probably pensioners. We joined. The driver was also a guide and was funny, he had a headset on his head while driving, and now and then, he said something, and it was fun.

Now that I’m writing this, it’s incredible to me that after all these years since we’ve been in Ireland, I remember it was written Healy Tours on the bus. A lot from that trip remains in my memory.

A trip, a tour of the brewery, a tour of the pubs, hectoliters of beer we drank, laughter, wandering Dublin and its beautiful parks.

We went to the Cliffs of Moher with Healy Tours, and in that sea of ​​people, there was a long line of people walking one after the other, probably hundreds of meters long. A man proposed to his girlfriend and offered her a ring, and a tourist recorded it all with this huge iPad.

That amused my friend and me because it was comical. An ordinary generic trip and one of the most authentic ever, whose details will remain in my memory forever.

In all of this, one thing was the key: besides the spontaneity of our trip and having a great companion, it was pleasantly warm. It was not as hot as it was during the summer months in the Mediterranean. You could move all day everywhere without sweating, without being blinded by sweat, eager to break into an air-conditioned space to come back to your senses.

The heat is naturally part of the summer story, but summers are not what they used to be. Today the heat has become warmer.

The off-season period is, in my opinion, the best time to explore any destination. By merging the benefits of developed transportation technology and the off-season months, we become intelligent travellers ahead of heat and mass tourism congestion.

The accommodation is still here, only with fewer guests. Taverns and restaurants are open, and you will find locals inside and sometimes Italians who know where to eat well. Crowds virtually do not exist, and the temperatures are comfortable and enjoyable.

By travelling in fall, winter, and spring, we avoid the extreme heat and intense chaos of contemporary summer. We enjoy cleaner air, fewer crowds and warm taverns, sleep nicely, and everything is in place.

Finally, the local population pops out when the number of tourists is significantly reduced. You’re more likely to have meaningful interactions with local folk, make friends, and be clued to the endemic scene, culture, and traditions than during the high season. Things lost in the shuffle suddenly reveal themselves, and the true essence of the place you are exploring is easier to grasp.

So, yup, think about travelling in the off-season!

P.S. Corona has further changed the picture of the world, including international travel. Smaller groups are now the default, and large groups are an administrative and health challenge. Small groups are always at an advantage, and those who appreciate and love comfort always prefer small groups regardless of external circumstances.