DUE TO THE coronavirus pandemic, this tourist season is more challenging than ever. We hear that from everyone who works in tourism. This time we talked to the owner of a family accommodation unit in Sveta Nedilja on Hvar, who told us about all the challenges she is facing this season, about some special requests from tourists, and how the owners of family accommodation units are dealing with the situation.

"As for our accommodation, we can't complain. We have a lot of guests who have been spending their summers here for years. They all had reservations before the pandemic at the same prices they paid in previous years. Because of the circumstances, we hosts feel a little safer with guests who visited previously, who know the destination so that we can reduce contact to a minimum. Most tourists are working from home, so we devised a special offer involving a 20 to 40 percent discount, depending on the booked period, for each additional night they spend on Hvar. Many accepted the offer, so we had guests who extended their stay for a few days, and there were those who extended their stay for as many as two weeks," Vilma Plazonja told Index.

Her family has been working in tourism and accommodation renting since the 1960s, and their accommodation Vila Perka was the first one on Hvar to be advertised on the Ecobnb platform.

Which accommodation has a better chance of succeeding?

She revealed to us that they pay special attention to thoroughly disinfecting their apartments.

"In these circumstances, when the virus can rapidly spread in a matter of a few days, when the authorities in other countries can include us on their "red list" practically overnight, which would put our guests and us in a difficult position, we need to do whatever we can to stop the spread of the virus. We have, whenever possible, left a minimum of 24 hours between bookings in order to thoroughly disinfect and prepare the accommodation for new guests. Upon their arrival, we do not shake hands with our guests or hug them, which many of our guests were already used to," Vilma says.

She spoke to her colleagues who are also renting out family accommodation and concluded that those offering accommodation where guests have a higher level of privacy are more successful.

Tourists prefer secluded buildings with larger gardens and private terraces, apartments that are not connected to the same lobby, and accommodation in small hidden coves. All of the above have a much better occupancy than the accommodation in the city center.

"Many people are drastically reducing prices in order to achieve better occupancy, but that is not a good solution"

"This year, many guests have asked how many other people would be in their accommodation unit during their stay. I noticed that the eco-certificate of our accommodation also became a big advantage, bigger than it might be in normal circumstances. However, there are a lot of tourists who are trying to use this situation to their advantage and asking for a price reduction, sometimes to a point where I end the conversation immediately. Unfortunately, some people have drastically reduced their accommodation prices in order to achieve better occupancy. Accommodation can be found at such low prices that I wonder if there's any profit left for the owner after paying all the costs and levies. I am against such a practice because it degrades not only that specific accommodation unit, but also the destination as a whole," she says.

She states that her colleagues who took out loans in order to fix their accommodation units for renting purposes are in a particularly difficult situation due to the coronavirus.

Many, she says, now face a situation where they will not even be able to earn enough to pay the loan installments until next season.

"The banks should be more understanding"

"We expected the banks to show more understanding and solidarity for their clients by offering a moratorium for at least a year with no grace fee that would only make the loan more expensive. However, this, unfortunately, did not happen. Although there is still enough time to change the decision and alleviate the situation, the question is whether the banks would be willing and ethical enough to do something like this for their clients," Vilma Plazonja tells us.

Still, she hopes the banks will be more understanding.

"I hope that the banks that have been making a profit in our market for years through illegal and unjustified claims will repay the damage done to Croatian clients. Considering that the state did not ensure collective compensation by adopting new laws, and the citizens are forced to seek compensation through private lawsuits, the banks should adopt the above-mentioned measure to show some understanding for difficult situations their clients are facing this year," says Vilma Plazonja.