Contemporaray Issues in the Regional Development of Tourism in Croatia

The aim of this research is an analysis of the tourism development of the smallest administrative units (towns and municipalities) as well as their typology within the Croatian tourism regions. The methodological approach is based on GIS analysis of seven relevant indicators of tourism development ; this is a tool for defining typology. Such an approach helps in determining the conclusion concerning the role that tourism plays in each administrative unit inside the respective five Croatian tourism regions. Research shows pronounced differences in terms of the level of tourism development between the littoral tourism regions in comparison to the three continental regions. The differences are also visible when analyzing the level of tourism development of towns and municipalities inside the regions. Such a situation is a consequence of the concentration of tourism development at both the national and regional levels, which is more exaggerated in the continental parts of the country.