“Istria is the hit destination of the future”, says Arabella Bowen, the publishing manager of Fodor's Travel, the world's largest publisher of tourist guides in English. Alongside other popular tourist destinations they voted the Istrian Peninsula as one of the most interesting destinations in 2012. Bowen actively promotes Istria to the American public on all the television shows in which she has appeared. In most interviews she has emphasized Istria’s similarity to Tuscany, and its price accessibility.

On the WCBS New York network, she presented Istria as the ideal place for a unique winter getaway for the American public, because it is “easy on the pocketbook”, considering that Croatia is not in the EURO zone.

“It's a very beautiful region close to Venice, and it has the best truffles in the world. It reminds you of Tuscany but without all the crowds. It has fantastic, beautiful small medieval towns perched on hilltops”, said Bowen to a reporter on News 12 for Long Island Television. 

She also gave similar recommendations on other television stations. “Try the excellent truffles, olive oil and fresh sea food. Also a plus, the peninsula is almost totally unexplored and cheaper than the top European destinations”, she told Better Connecticut, while the most important acknowledgement was made on Long Island Television.

When asked, “You have been all over the world. What is the favourite place that you always like to come back to?” Bowen said it was one of the places on their list, namely the Istrian Peninsula, a place that astonished her during her 2011 visit. She visited Istria on the advice of Anja Mutić, author of tourist guides and other texts concerning Croatia, who has built a successful career in New York.

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