Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

CROATIA | TATJANA JOSIPOVIĆ 707 became a Member State of the EU 13 . Before the entry into force of the TSA, package travel contracts had been provided for within the framework of general contract law as special nominate contracts 14 . Under the name of “organized travel contracts”, they were governed by the Obligations Act (hereinafter: OA) 15,16 that is the main legal source of contract law in the Republic of Croatia. Package travel contracts were thus a component part of an Act dealing with general contract law. The provisions of the OA on package travel contracts 17 were harmonised with the old PTD of 1990 18,19 which was repealed on 1 July 2018 by the new Package Travel Directive 20 . Indeed, package travel contracts aligned with the old Package Travel Directive of 1990 started to be applied as early as on 1 January 2006 when the Obligations Act entered into force regardless of the fact that Croatia was not yet a Member State of the EU 21 . The provisions of the OA on package travel contracts ceased to be effective on 1 July 2018 when the provisions of the TSA on package travel contracts were harmonised with the new PTD 22,23 . In the Obligations Act, a package travel contract was defined as an organized travel contract by which the organiser of the package undertook to provide to travellers a combination of at least two services, consisting of transport, 13 The Republic of Croatia became a Member State of the EU on 1 July 2013. 14 See Vlahov, A., Vuletić,D.: Revision of the Package Travel Directive and its influence on the Croatian tourism law, Zbornik radova Ekonomskog fakulteta Sveučilišta u Mostaru, No. Special Issue 2018., Mostar 2018m p. 86. 15 The Obligations Act/OA ( Zakon o obveznim odnosima ), Official Gazette, nos 35/03, 41/08, 125/11, 78/15, 29/18. 16 The tradition of the legal regulation of the travel package contract as a nominate contract has existed in Croatia ever since the former Obligations Act of 1978 came into force. In that Act, the travel package contract entitled “Organized Travel Contract” was laid down on the model of the UNDROIT International Convention on Travel Contracts (CCV) of 1970. See Trezner,Ž.: Primjena Direktive (EU) 2015/2302 o putovanjima u paket- -aranžmanima i povezanim putnim aranžmanima (Application of Directive (EU) 2015/2302 on package travel and linked travel arrangements), Zbornik Sveučilišta Libertas 1-2/2017, p. 310. 17 See Arts 881-903 OA. 18 Council Directive 90/314/EEC of 13 June 1990 on package travel, package holidays and package tours OJ L 158, 23.6.1990, pp. 59–64. 19 Art. 1a OA, subparagraph 3 (removed by the Act on Amendments of the OA, Official Gazette, no. 29/18). 20 Art 29 PTD. 21 The obligation of harmonisation with the EU law had existed even prior to the formal accession of Croatia to EU and it ensued from the Stabilisation and Association Agreement between the European Communities and its Member States and the Republic of Croatia (Official Gazette – International Agreements ( Narodne novine – Međunarodni ugovori ), no. 14/01). The agreement was made on 29 October 2001 and entered into force on 1 February 2005. 22 Arts 2, 10 of the Act on Amendments to the OA, Official Gazette, no. 29/18. 23 The Obligations Act expressly provides for agency travel contracts (Arts 904-908) and the contract of the supply of accommodation/allotment contracts (Arts 908-911 OA). These provisions remained effective after the provisions of the OA on package travel contract had ceased to be in force.