Together with our partners, Zadar Cruise Port (ZCP) and Rewilding Velebit, we have been nominated for the 2025 World Sustainable Travel & Hospitality Awards (WSTHA) in the World’s Leading Marine & Biodiversity Conservation Programme category, for our launch of sustainability and public awareness action in two touristic destinations, powered by SeaCras App.
For this action, the SeaCras App was made free and publicly accessible to everyone, including guests on cruise ships, swimmers, tourists, and the local population, to check up-to-date sea quality for specific locations — a unique project setting new standards for the future of regenerative tourism.
From four nominees worldwide, your votes will decide the winner which will be revealed at the Awards Gala Ceremony on 29 October 2025 at Terra, Expo City Dubai.
The WSTHA showcase people, companies, and destinations making tourism better for the planet and local communities.
The World Sustainable Travel & Hospitality Awards were first launched at COP28 (the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference) in Dubai in 2023 as a branch of the World Travel Awards.
While the World Travel Awards honour excellence in tourism overall, the WSTHA focuses specifically on sustainability and highlights initiatives that advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In short, they’re the Oscars of green travel.
SeaCras App: Transparency at Your Fingertips
SeaCras App is an AI-powered platform that analyses high-resolution satellite imaging to monitor and visualise sea quality.
Zavratnica, considered one of Croatia’s most breathtaking beaches, and Zadar Cruise Port, one of Mediterranean’s top cruise destinations.
And through this trilateral partnership, the service is available at locations within Zadar Cruise Port — one of the Mediterranean’s most prestigious and renowned cruise destinations — as well as in Zavratnica and the nearby Jablanac coves, located within Velebit Nature Park and among the most recognisable and photographed beaches along Croatia’s stunning coastline.
This user-friendly app offers an interactive real-time sea quality map accessible via QR codes, placed throughout these locations, reminding guests, locals, and cruise ship passengers to check current sea quality and potential pollution information.
Partnerships That Shine in the Public Eye
Although the app was piloted two years ago, it was first made publicly available last summer in Zadar, followed by this year’s launch in Zavratnica.
Both destination launches have gained significant media attention, with national newspapers, social media platforms, and tourist offices actively amplifying their reach.
Easily scan the QR code or click this link for real-time sea quality data
This collaboration also involves local governments, tourism boards, hotels, shops, and community organisations that display QR codes, information boards, and flyers to promote access.
The partnership is truly cross-sector, bringing together a nature park and preservation, AI technology, and the cruising industry, along with destination management and the strategic branding of entire destinations — making it a uniquely powerful collaboration.
Rebeka V. Pevec, MBA, General Manager of Zadar Cruise Port, and Mario Špadina, PhD, CEO of SeaCras
Shaping the Future of Tourism and Marine Protection
The results speak for themselves: Zadar’s cruise visitors have reported greater trust in the destination, leading to increased revenues across the hospitality value chain, all while helping preserve the environment.
As a pioneering anti-greenwashing tool, the app enables all stakeholders — from ports and hotels to local communities — to transparently share environmental impact and take proactive action.
While already a first-of-its-kind large-scale sustainability initiative, SeaCras App is fully scalable. Any port, hotel, or protected area can integrate it with minimal infrastructure, enabling destinations worldwide to adopt transparent, data-driven marine sustainability.
The app is part of our larger campaign ‘We make the blue economy sustainable and transparent’, through which we have joined the family of the ‘Mission Restore Our Ocean and Waters’ Charter. Using our AI-satellite technology, we deliver data and insights on sea health and report pollution incidents across Europe, with results to be published on the UN OceanPrediction Atlas. The campaign rests on four pillars: raising public awareness, increasing ocean and sea literacy, fostering community engagement, and strengthening public–private partnerships.
The World Sustainable Travel & Hospitality Awards nomination comes on top of an already major recognition. Highlighting our ongoing commitment to this field, SeaCras was showcased in WAVE’s report for exemplifying best practices in implementing regenerative tourism.
We were also honoured with an invitation from the Fondation Prince Albert II de Monaco, FII Institute, and Red Sea Global to take part in a curated session at the Blue Economy and Finance Forum in Monaco, held as part of the 2025 UN Ocean Conference 3 — UNOC3.
With a specialisation in maritime AI and a proven record of innovation, global recognition, and awards, SeaCras continues to lead in safeguarding our seas, setting new standards for sustainable travel and hospitality industries.