Dubrovnik's all-in-one city pass has picked up first prize in the Digitalisation in Smart Tourism category at the 2026 European Cultural Tourism Network Awards, announced at the network's annual conference on the Greek island of Skiathos (23–26 September). The city's Department of Culture, represented by head Julijana Brautović, accepted the honour after the pass beat out a field of 72 European projects — only 19 made the final shortlist.

If you've visited Dubrovnik recently, you've probably used it. The pass bundles entry to the city's major attractions with public transport and integrated ticketing. What earned it the award, though, is the layer behind the scenes: real-time monitoring of visitor numbers and crowd-forecasting tools that help spread people more evenly through a city that can feel very small at midday in August. Revenue from sales also flows back into cultural institutions and restoration work, so buying one does a bit of good beyond your own itinerary.

The numbers show how central the scheme has become. August alone brought €3.49 million in pass sales, up 15% year on year. From January to the end of August, 389,752 passes were sold, generating €16.72 million — a 16.5% revenue jump on the same stretch of 2025.

Why should a traveller care? Dubrovnik has spent years under pressure from its own popularity — cruise crowds, cruise-ship timing rules, resident complaints — and the pass is the city's main tool for managing it. Practically, that means if you're visiting the Old Town, the pass is usually the most sensible way in: it typically covers the City Walls, museums and galleries, and local buses, and buying it in advance via the app lets you skip some queues. The award also hints at where city passes across Europe are heading — less a discount coupon, more a traffic-management system you benefit from by using.

The ECTN Awards, now in their 13th year, are run with Europa Nostra, the European Travel Commission and NECSTouR, so the recognition carries weight in cultural tourism circles. It's the first ECTN award for any Dubrovnik project.

For anyone planning a Croatia trip, the takeaway is simple: factor the pass into your Dubrovnik budget, buy it online before you arrive, and use it to time your wall walk for early morning or late afternoon when the forecast tools say crowds are thinnest.