The organisations applied in June for ETC funds, intended for the promotion of European countries on the Chinese market, with a joint project, to be carried out between October 2018 and March 2019, worth a total of EUR 204,000.

The ETC will reimburse half of the costs of the project, the STO announced in a press release on Wednesday.

The joint campaign of Slovenia and Croatia, intended for potential tourists from China and other remote markets, thus continues to run under the slogan Experience Croatia, Feel Slovenia.

"With a projected 160 million trips in 2018, China is one of the most prospective global tourist markets," STO director Maja Pak said.

The STO is present on the Chinese market through business-to-business activities, such as tourism workshops, study tours for Chinese tour operators, and through hosting Chinese providers at the Slovenian Incoming Workshop (SIW).

The most recent study by the ETC shows that tourists from overseas markets usually visit Slovenia as part of a tour of the Western Balkans. In 58.5% of the cases they combine visits to Slovenia and Croatia.

Slovenia has been recording a steady growth in the number of Chinese tourists since 2005. Last year, a total of 62,919 Chinese tourists visited Slovenia, an increase of 42% compared to 2016.