The coastal zone is the site of various economic activities of specific interests and spatial needs. Making a decision to establish economic activities in the coastal area is a complex process in which a number of conflicting factors need to be considered. The main goal of the research is to propose a model that would assess the justification of establishing activities in coastal areas. The model developed connects all the factors that affect the resources of coastal and marine areas. The analysis of these connections enables the definition of criteria and sub-criteria for deciding on the location of a given economic activity in space. In order to establish economic activities in the coastal area, the key importance is to establish choice of area use. Therefore, a methodological approach is needed to ensure a reasonable level of objectivity to choose the purpose of economic activities of area before enetering the political process. The method of multicriteria analysis, analytical hierarchical process (AHP), was applied in making decisions on the establishment of activities in the coastal area. Considering the specific interests of economic activities in the coastal area, it is clear that some economic activities can easily coexist in the same coastal area, while some are incompatible with other marine activities, and have more or less a limiting effect on it. In order to stress effective coastal zone management, the focus should be on gathered information about conflicts between economic activities. The assessment of the measure by economic activities conflict in the coastal area is presented by the conflict matrix. In order to verify the model, a survey with a questionnaire was conducted. The criteria and sub-criteria for deciding on the location of an economic activity in area were evaluated by expert assessment. The selected experts have the professional education, knowledge, skills and/or experience that is appropriate for the assessment carried out. Criteria and sub-criteria that assessed the justification for the establishment of activities in coastal areas were mutually compared in pairs, with the aim of determining the weight, namely the importance of each of them. Economic activities are assessed through the determination of priorities, namely, the extent to which they meet each of the defined criteria and sub-criteria. The preference intensities of each study participant were entered into the Expert Choice computer program. Based on the individual assessments of experts, a synthesized judgment was obtained, which resulted in a decision on the location of the most acceptable activity. The area chosen for model testing is the area of Žurkovo Bay. Three scenarios have been developed: Scenario 1 ˗ establishment of a communal port, Scenario 2 ˗ establishment of a nautical tourism port ˗ marina, and Scenario 3 ˗ establishment of a sea entertainment and recreation centre, so the purpose is determined by using the proposed methodology. The most influential factors are presented by Sensitivity Analysis, which identified the extent to which the most influential factors are reflected in the overall priorities of the alternatives. Given the obtained results of the multi-criteria evaluation, planning the establishment of activities is an important prerequisite for long-term and sustainable development of coastal activities in an area. The model represents support to decision makers in planning the allocation of coastal space for use and determines the justification of the location of economic activity.