Four seasons - the backbone of continental tourism in northwestern Croatia

The continental part of Croatia, which has been bypassed by uncontrolled construction and expansion of tourism, abounds in riches that are yet to be discovered, explored and offered to a new generation of tourists, who will acknowledge the value of nature and its processes. The survey, conducted through social networking sites, should cast some light on the current interest in this type of tourist offer among specific age groups. The related field research focuses on exploring the possibilities of local communities and existing rural economies for providing additional services to voluntourists as well as examining the potential for adapting old, unkempt and neglected houses, and turn them into high- quality tourist accommodation. The continental tourism offer presented in this paper is a project aimed at the development of tourism in the northwestern continental part of Croatia. It is based on the idea of four visits to the same destination during different times of the year, each lasting three to seven days. Accommodation units are envisaged as renovated indigenous houses with gardens – old, abandoned and often derelict, but for this purpose adapted in accordance with the architectural heritage. The houses would be turned into holiday homes accommodating 4 to 8 people, at the same time staying true to their typical old architectural style. The selected destination would represent ‘a new temporary home’ for tourists who expect to return to the same place at different times of the year. In addition, the project would lay the foundations for renovating and revitalizing old local homes, at the same time preserving the architectural heritage. This type of tourism specifically relies on the participation of the domicile rural population, by allowing voluntourists to take part in indigenous lifestyle and everyday activities.