Split Port Authority and Cruising – Legal Framework and Statistical Analysis

This paper presents and discusses the legal framework within which the Split Port Authority operates, and provides a statistical analysis of the traffic of cruise vessels and their passengers passing through the area under jurisdiction of the Split Port Authority. The legal framework governing the activities of the Split Port Authority is primarily based on the regulations of the 2003 Maritime Domain and Seaports Act and sub-law regulations following the Act. The Split Port Authority was established by the government of the Republic of Croatia for the purpose of managing, constructing and using the port of Split. A significant share of the overall traffic of vessels and passengers in the area within the Split Port Authority jurisdiction refers to the cruise ships and their passengers. A statistical analysis of the share of passengers on cruise in the total transit of passengers emphasises the importance of this form of maritime traffic with regard to the overall traffic of passengers in the port of Split.