For me, the Local Host label means much more than accommodation.
It stands for authentic hospitality, local stories, a responsible relationship with the place, and support for the community I belong to. I believe that today, guests can increasingly feel the difference between accommodation that simply uses a destination and accommodation that truly belongs to it. When we choose local, we are not just choosing a place to stay, but an experience, people, identity, and the values that make a place truly special.
Choosing local accommodation in Istria also matters because it helps support the development of sustainable tourism. It brings value back to small local service providers, family-run farms, restaurateurs, farmers, olive growers, winemakers, artisans, and all those whose work helps preserve the spirit of the destination.
Istria is beautiful. Everyone who lives here knows that, and so do those who return to it again and again.
But unfortunately, our destination is increasingly facing a serious challenge: the rapid overdevelopment and construction-driven degradation of the landscape. More and more often, we see the territory being treated purely as an opportunity for profit, rather than as a place that deserves respect, care, and thoughtful enhancement.
Istria does not need more soulless concrete.
It does not need more buildings that have no dialogue with the landscape, tradition, or the local community. It does not need a kind of tourism that takes more than it gives back.
What it needs are conscious hosts, responsible guests, and a kind of development that understands that the beauty of a place is not only in the view. It lives in old houses, vineyards, small towns, a slower rhythm of life, and in the people who still live and create here.
That is why we are grateful for the Local Host label, not only because it represents us, but because it reminds us of what we believe matters most: tourism should enrich the place it enters, not exploit it.
Choose local. Stay with a story. Experience Istria differently.