Yesterday, today and tomorrow of maritime tourism on Croatian's islands

Hrvatska pripada zemljama koje privlače posjetitelje više zbog svoje prirode i bogate kulturno-povijesne baštine nego kvalitetom ili raznovrsnošću novostvorenih turističkih atrakcija. Među prirodnim atrakcijama najvažnije mjesto imaju more, razvedena obala te mnoštvo otoka, zelenilo velikog dijela te brojne očuvane prirodne plaže. U ovom radu istaknuta je potreba sagledavanja turizma kao djelatnosti koja predstavlja značajnu razvojnu šansu za brži gospodarski razvitak hrvatskih otoka. Također se ukazuje na kompleksnost problema razvitka turizma na otocima upravo zbog nemogućnosti primjene jedinstvenog modela kako turističkog tako i gospodarskog razvitka za sve otoke. Svaki otok je sam po sebi specifičan te upravo zbog toga svakome od njih treba tako i pristupati. Cilj ovog rada je pružiti promišljanje da turizam može i mora biti u funkciji razvitka ukupnog gospodarstva Republike Hrvatske, a ne da sam sebi bude svrha.Croatia belongs to countries that attract visitors more because of their nature and rich cultural heritage than the quality or diversity of newly created tourist attractions. Among the natural attractions, the most important place is the sea, the indented coast and many islands, the greenery of a large part and numerous preserved natural beaches. This paper emphasizes the need to consider tourism as an activity that represents a significant development opportunity for faster economic development of Croatian islands. It also points to the complexity of the problem of tourism development on the islands precisely because of the impossibility of applying a unique model of both tourism and economic development for all islands. Each island is specific in itself and that is why each of them should be approached in this way. The aim of this paper is to provide a reflection that tourism can and must be in the function of the development of the overall economy of the Republic of Croatia, and not to be a purpose in itself