November 9 (SeeNews) - Foreign tourist arrivals to Croatia increased 6.1% year-on-year to 15.4 million in the first nine months of 2018, the country's tourism ministry said on Friday.
The number of overnights spent by foreign tourists in Croatia rose 3.3% on the year to 79.7 million in the period under review, the tourism ministry said in a statement.
Tourism is a key industry for Croatia, generating around a fifth of the country's gross domestic product.
Overall, visits by foreign and domestic tourists grew 6.4% to 17.0 million in January-September, while overnights increased 3.6% to 85.3 million.
During the first nine months of 2018, most of the overnight stays were recorded in Istria (25.4 million overnights).
In September alone, tourist visits totalled 2.2 million, up 10.7% on the year, while overnights rose 2.9% on the year at 10.2 million.