Simply the Best is an annual award for innovation and creativity in tourism, jointly presented for 17 years by the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies (UHPA) and the Tourism Exchange PUT. The aim of the award is to highlight projects, events, destinations and individuals whose work contributes to the development and enhancement of Croatia’s tourism offer.
The awards ceremony for Simply the Best 2026 will take place as part of the 26th Tourism Exchange PUT, from 15 to 17 April 2026 in Cres, hosted by the Tourist Board of the City of Cres and the Kvarner Tourist Board.
The exact time of the ceremony will be announced later.
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Award categories for 2026
In each category (i.e., group), plaques are awarded to the top five, and a category champion is also announced.
When completing the application form, please enter the category code.
| Category | Code | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitality | 1.1 | Venues offering traditional local cuisine |
| 1.2 | Tasting rooms for local food products and beverages | |
| Travel agencies | 2 | New tourism product / cooperation with the local community |
| Events | 3.1 | Based on food and beverage offer |
| 3.2 | Designed for outdoor stay, recreation and leisure | |
| 3.3 | Entertainment events with an emphasis on tradition | |
| Associations | 4 | Contribution to the development of the local community’s tourism offer and tourism |
| New tourism projects (implemented in 2025) | 5.1 | Tourist board system |
| 5.2 | Entrepreneurs | |
| Souvenir | 6.1 | Consumable (up to 250 g / 0.35 l) |
| 6.2 | Practical (decorative, clothing, fashion accessories, etc.) | |
| 6.3 | Promotional items of Tourist Boards (items given as gifts) | |
| Note: Along with the application, it is mandatory to submit two samples of the souvenir. The deadline for receiving the souvenirs is 20 February 2026. In this category, in addition to awards for the top five, gold, silver and bronze “Pozdrav iz Hrvatske” labels are also granted. | ||
| Destination | 7 | For content and creative design and the quality of the tourism offer (coastal, continental, island, city and rural) |
Application deadline and procedure
Submission deadline: 13 February 2026.
The application form can be downloaded on this page in PDF format.
How do we collect nominations?
The call for nominations was published in January 2026, and applications are open until 13 February 2026.
The call was sent to tourist boards, travel agencies, hospitality providers, hoteliers, media and other stakeholders in tourism. Nominations can also be submitted by third parties.
All winners will be contacted by a separate e-mail. If the nomination was submitted by a third party, they will receive a notification with a request to forward it to the winner.
If you would like to be informed in a timely manner about the call for participation in the Simply the Best award, please e-mail us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
List of winners from previous years
| Year | City / host | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 2025. | Toplice Sveti Martin | view |
| 2024. | Biograd na Moru | view |
| 2023. | Biograd na Moru | view |
| 2022. | Velika Gorica | view |
| 2020.–2021. | Crikvenica | 2020 / 2021 |
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