A Brac Bike Map and 1000km of Trails for London Mayor's Croatian Cycling Island

A morning ferry ride for the regional media on April 22, 2016, as the dynamic Central Dalmatia Tourist Board director Josko Stella accompanied them on the short trip from Split to the island of Brac for the launch of the latest stage of the region's cycling tourism initiative, a trip attended by TCN.

With the potential to be one of the top adventure tourism destinations in Europe, Stella has made cycling a key priority since he took over the post, and with more than 3,000km of trails already in place since he launched the initiative, Central Dalamtia is beginning to rival Istria as Croatia's premier cycling destination.  

The choice of location for the press conference was inspired. Just outside Sutivan, the town which has been the prime mover in putting Brac on the cycling tourism map, there is a delightful luxury villa which is used by London Mayor Boris Johnson as a holiday home. A keen cyclist, Johnson featured in an excellent promotional video for Sutivan and cycling tourism (see below), a gesture which was greatly appreciated locally, and which gave a considerable boost to the island's adventure tourism initiative. 

At the press conference, the Brac cycling map was presented, with more than 1000km of trails for cyclings to enjoy. Just an hour from Split, Brac is one of Dalmatia's top destinations, with a reputation for culture, adventure and family tourism to compliment its more famous claims - the iconic Zlatni Rat beach and the quarries which provided some of the stone for, among others, The White House in Washington.  

As Croatia looks to diversify its tourism beyond the stereotype of sun and summer, tourism sectors such as cycling are starting to play a crucial role, attracting visitors out of the peak months.  

Stella (pictured second from the right, above), who was last week named in the media on a shortlist of three to be the next national tourist board director, has been busy promoting other initiatives to extend the season, and Central Dalmatia now has more than 120 different tours, including an innovative religious trails map late last year, also on Brac. 

The Brac map launch follows a similar event on the neighbouring island of Hvar last month. With inland Dalmatia already covered, Stella announced that the whole of Central Dalmatia would be covered by the end of 2017. All maps include QR codes and a part of a wider cycling initiative still being put together on www.dalmatia-bike.com 

But we finish with Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.

BIKE FRIENDLY SUTIVAN FEATURING MAYOR BORIS JOHNSON from Hani Salama on Vimeo.