Scope of the programme

• Countries impacted: Croatia, through the development of a tourism asset on the island of Brač.
• Thematic axis: Diversification of a family agricultural and heritage-based activity into rural tourism accommodation, linked to olive-oil production, gastronomy and local heritage interpretation.
• Funding programme lineage (EU, national, regional): EU-funded support implemented in Croatia; the exact formal lineage could not be publicly verified in the reviewed sources.

Description of the project

• Project objective(s): The project aimed to diversify the family business by adding a holiday accommodation offer, generating additional income through rural and heritage tourism while connecting guest stays with the museum, olive-oil production and local gastronomy. The interview explicitly refers to extra profit by hosting guests through rural areas and to the fact that they have a house to host. Public information confirms that the EU-funded investment was used to build a luxury holiday house.
• Duration: Approximately 2018–2022.
• Main activities: Preparation of the funding application and administrative documentation; development and construction of Luxury House Natanel; securing permits and categorisation for operation; and integrating the new accommodation offer with the museum’s existing tourism experience based on olive oil, local products and cultural interpretation.
• Outputs: A new holiday accommodation asset, an expanded tourism offer that links museum visits, olive-oil tasting and accommodation, and a more diversified family business model combining heritage, gastronomy and hospitality.

Type of application

• Single applicant: Yes.
• Consortium members: N/A
• Subcontractor: No subcontractor for project delivery; however, an external consultant or firm was engaged to prepare the application and paperwork.

1. (Size) Micro at the time described in the interview, where the business is characterised as a family-owned business employing two people. Publicly available information from a later stage indicates growth to four employees, suggesting expansion after the funded investment.

Success Factors

• Strategic fit with call priorities: The project matched a diversification logic that connected rural accommodation with agriculture, local production, and tourism development.
• Team design & resources: The business already combined complementary activities, including olive-oil production, museum-based heritage interpretation, and hospitality, which strengthened the coherence of the project.
• Access to information: The company benefited from local information channels and advisory support connected to the island ecosystem.
• Use of support ecosystems: Consultants and local support actors played an important role in understanding the opportunity and managing the administrative process.
• Quality of proposal: The project was supported by specialised external expertise, which helped structure the application and manage procedural requirements.

Barriers & Challenges

• Complexity of the Call: The funding process required navigating complex programme requirements and documentation.
• Administrative burden: The preparation of forms and supporting documents represented a significant challenge.
• Time & resource constraints: Limited internal capacity made it difficult to handle the full process without external support

Lessons learned
• Specialised advisory support can be decisive for very small businesses applying for EU funding.
• Diversification is most effective when it builds on existing local assets, identity, and complementary activities.

This best practice illustrates how a very small, family-run heritage tourism business can use EU-supported investment to move from a single-asset model based on museum visits and olive-oil tasting towards a more diversified and resilient tourism offer that combines heritage, gastronomy, agriculture and accommodation. It represents a useful example for rural and island-based tourism SMEs because it shows that funding can be most effective when it reinforces authentic local identity, creates new revenue streams from existing assets, and is backed by a practical support ecosystem able to compensate for limited internal administrative capacity.