Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik is the city located at the south end of Croatia. It has it’s own airport as well as ferry terminal so it can be reached by air from vast range of European cities as well as by various ferries from Croatian cities, towns and islands as well as from Italy. Dubrovnik is city rich with culture and history so it is listed in UNESCO World Heritage List. Dubrovnik old town was built in the 13th century and remains almost untouched to the present day. Tall walls surround Dubrovnik Old Town. There are two main portals to the old town, Pile and Ploce, both leading to the Stradun, the Dubrovnik’s main boulevard. Dubrovnik has a rich cultural life that includes Dubrovnik theatre, several cinemas as well as Dubrovnik Film Festival and Dubrovnik Summer Festival, held every year in July and August.

Brac

BRAC is one of the largest islands in Croatia. It is separated from the mainland by the Brac Channel, from the island of Solta by the so-called Splitska Vrata and from the island of Hvar by the Hvar Channel. The highest peak of the island is Vidova Gora (780 m) is the highest peak of all Croatian islands.
Brac has a good ferry and boat connections with Croatian mainland and it also has its own airport. The most popular tourist place is Bol with its popular sandy beach Zlatni Rat. The favourite tourist destinations are Supetar, Pucisca and Milna . An especially pleasant climate, abundant vegetation and beautiful beaches are a great bonus for people who visit Brac

Split

Split is the main city in Dalmatia. Split is the one of the largest cites in Croatia, and is the largest city on the Croatia Adriatic coast. The city was first settled when, at the end of the third century AD, the Roman Emperor Diocletian built his palace on the site of today’s Split. Diocletian's Palace is well preserved Roman palace located now in the very heart of Split. Many of Split's historical and cultural monuments are located within the walls of Diocletian's Palace. One of them is Peristile, the main open space in the palace with it's colonnade of six columns and the cathedral on eastern side of the squre is site not to be missed in Split..

Split has it's own airport that connects ti with Zagreb, as well as other international cities. Various ferry lines connect Split with the nearby Adriatic islands (Korcula, Vis, Lastovo...) and there is a coastal ferry service between the city and Rijeka to the north and Dubrovnik to the south. There are also daily ferries during the summer that connects Split and Ancona in Italy.

Rovinj

Rovinj is another Croatian walled town built on small peninsula. Architecturally it looks very similar as Korcula , Dubrovnik or Porec - located on small peninsula, surrounded by sea with its historic centre modelled on Venice). Rovinj is very popular among visitors and travellers to Croatia and is one of the top Croatian tourist destination. ( Check Top Ten Croatian Places).

Shadow of Rovinj
Rovinj used to be Istrian fishing port , and once was also the principal town of the Istrian peninsula. Nowadays, it's maze of narrow streets leads to a harbour full of fishing boats as well as sailing boats and yachts. As a town, Rovinj was first mentioned in the 7th century, as Ruvignio-Ruigno. It changes rulers throughout the history . IMportant part of it's history was period when it was under Venetian rule. From 1283 until fall of the Venetian Republic in 1797, Rovinj got the majority of it's architectural marks. After fall of VEnetian Republic, it came under Austria-Hungarian Empire rule, and from 1918 under Italian rule. After Second World War, Rovinj joined Yugoslavia (Croatia) .

Pula

Pula (“Pola” in Italian) is the largest city in Istria, western Croatia, located on southern tip of the Istrian peninsula. Pula was once an Austro-Hungarian Empire major naval base. Nowadays, it is an important Croatian port and an industrial centre being something in between a busy working port and active Istrian Riviera town.
The Romans captured Pula in 178 B.C. where they built the most amazing and well-known Pula amphitheater, which remains are still used as Pula’s summer stage for various opera and pop performances, as well as for well-known Pula Film Festival, that is hosted there since 1953.
The Pula amphitheater (“arena” in Croatian) was built at the end of first century B.C. It is sixth largest amphitheater in the world, with capacity of 22 000 people. Outer shell is almost complete, while inside seats are just partly remaining.
During the history, Pula was destroyed by Augustus, but was rebuilt by him and named Pietas Julia. Pula was taken by the Venice Republic in 1148, and 200 years later overtaken and destroyed by Genovese.The Venetians continued to rule Pula until the Treaty of Campo Formio (1797) when Pula was transferred to Austro-Hungarian Empire. The city was surrender to Italy after World War I. Since the World War II, Pula belongs to Croatia, then one of the Yugoslav republics.

Novigrad

Novigrad or Cittanova ( in Italian) is a small, picturesque town located at the north-west shore of Istrian Peninsula, just about 25 km away from Slovenian border and about 15 km from Porec, Umag or Buje - another places in Istria.
Town of Novigrad includes 5 different areas : Antenal, Bužinija, Dajla, Mareda and Novigrad. Novigrad is positioned on a small limestone peninsula on which the old town centre is built, surrounded by partially preserved mediaeval walls and towers with numerous houses built in period between 15th and 18th centuries.


The parish church of St. Pelagus is structured as Romanesque basilica with some Baroque add on's, where Romanesque crypt lies underneath its sanctuary. The church has Baroque altars. A three-nave church of Sveta Agata with three semicircular apses is situated on the Novigrad's cemetery. Further north of Novigrad, there is palace of Carlo Riga - old country mansion from 1760's, built as combination of Venetian and Central European Baroque style. It currently contains a display of ancient tombstones and Byzantine fragments too. Novigrad used to be a small fishing village, before it became tourist place where the beginning of tourist trade started at the end of the 19th century, when most of other Istrian and Kvarner Gulf places got their tourist Renaissance. Rivarella is popular Novigrad's promenade, that stretches along coast.

Motovun

Motovun is one of the best preserved Istrian hill medieval towns. It is located at the south side of Mirna River Valley about twenty kilometers from Buje (another Istrian town) and offers 360 degrees panoramic view of Istrian valleys all the way to Adriatic Sea. The hill at which Motovun is built has height of about 300 meters.

Motovun is walled town too. It's walls were built in 13th and 14th century and are still well preserved. Architecturally, Motovun is very cute place to see - there are several Romanesque and Gothic houses in the very centre of the place as well as system of fortifications with walls, towers and gates, built in the period between the 14th and the 17th centuries. A bell tower in the Gothic and Romanesque style is situated on the top of the hill at the Motovun's main square. Next to it is Renaissance castle with add-ons from the 14th to the 19th centuries. The parish church of Sveti Stipan, built in 17th century has features of the late Renaissance architecture, with it's paintings and sculptures attributed to well known artists.

Motovun Film Festival : Motovun is well known for it's popular. The festival is established in 1999 and since then it become one of the most popular places to be for five days in late July every year. The festival promotes independent films and it is estimated that festival is visited by 50000 people. Films are shown at open with large screen placed at Motovun's main square.

Groznjan

Groznjan is a 14th-century Venetian town , known nowadays as Town of Artists - an arts colony, where, since 1965, painters, sculptors and musicians comes to live and work. Groznjan is one in the row of pretty Istrian hill top medieval towns,architecturally similar to Motovun or Pazin. This small town in the central part of Istria, located 8 km southeast of Buje, 26 kilometers north east of Porec, situated on the plateau above the River Mirna valley at elevation of 260 meters.

Map of Groznjan in Istria
Groznjan location provides breathtaking views over Adriatic Sea as well as over River Mirna Valley too. Some of Groznjan monuments are still preserved until today and Groznjan's medieval urban core has remained untouched for the most part. : the main town gate on the eastern side of the tow, as well as a part of the ramparts.Next to the gate is the Renaissance loggia from the end of 16th century. On the main square is the Baroque parish church Crkva Svete Marije. At the foot of the hill, just under the town itself, on the Mirna river, in the place called Bastia, lays a small Baroque church of Our Lady of Grace.
Groznjan is located 15km away from the seaside and represents an ideal day trip destination for Istrian visitors. The surrounding area offers good opportunities for walking and cycling to other picturesque old towns: Završje, Kostanjica or Šterna. During summers, from July to early September, concerts and music events are held almost every day, like concerts of classical music, a jazz festival etc. Among twenty private art galleries and studios, one can enjoy visual stimulation too :-) Groznjan is the meeting point of young musicians from all over the world through it's International Cultural Centre of Young Musicians that works from Groznjan.

BRIJUNI - Archipelago Brijuni - Istria

Brijuni archipelago are attractive group of islands near Istria Peninsula, with the main islands Veli Brijun that is Croatia National Park and open to visitors. The fact that it was visited by the élite of Austrian, Hungarian and German aristocracy when Istria was part of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy speaks of its beauty and charm. In more recent history almost every major statesman visited the islands as Brijuni were residence of late President Tito of Yougoslavia.
The islands are rich in natural beauties, flora and fauna brought here from various parts of the world. On Brijuni there is an attractive archaeological site the Byzantine castrum and luxurious Roman villa, Ethnographic collection, Collection of frescoes, Archaeological Museum and Natural history exhibit.


The Brijuni archipelago is separated from the mainland by the two-miles-wide Fažana Channel to the northwest of Pula. The archipelago stretches over 736 hectares and forms a 30 miles long coast. It is a place where sumptuous wildlife (680 different local and exotic plants, 150 bird species, etc.) couples with a wealth of historical traces ranging from a Neolithic settlement and Illyrian ruins, to monuments dating from the Byzantine period and the Middle Ages, as well as from Austro-Hungarian architecture to a more recent time.
Brijuni Minor fortress, built in the late 19th century is the largest edifice in the defence system of the Austro-Hungarian central naval base of Pula. Stretching over 15.750 square meters, the edifice is 175 meters long and 90 meters large.

National Park Brijuni - The archipelago of Brijuni is an extraordinary blend of natural, historical and cultural heritage. The mild climate and the favourable geographical conditions, deep retracted bays and easily defendable elevated fortifications, have secured a continuum in the human activity on the island from a pre-historic age until the present day.Brijuni - ULYSSES THEATRE - Ulysses Theatre has it's residence on Brijuni Islands. The theatre space where spiritually similar artists intertwine. It welcomes the cooperation of all those broadening aesthetical and spiritual horizons.

Istria

Istria
Istria is largest peninsula in Croatia, located on the very west part of Croatia. It looks like a triangle (see map on the left) and is very popular destination for tourist and travellers due to it's close vicinity to Italy, Slovenia and Austria, as well as it's large coastline, full of small and larger bays with hundred of places and villages offering tourist services.

Interior of Istria peninsula is also very attractive, with numerous small towns built on top of the hills around Istria. Istria became part of Croatia (ex - Yugoslavia) after the Second World War as previously it belonged to Italy, so culturally, Istria is very much influenced by Italian culture.Lot of various companies do holidays to Istria. Istria was called " Terra Magica" in Roman times. Istria is much more westernised than the rest of Croatia due to it's rich and versatile history.

Dugi Otok

Dugi Otok is the island 5km long and about 3km wide. It is quite distant from the coast - one hour and a half by ferry from Zadar (3 or 4 lines daily in the summer) and it remains out of usual tourist routes. That makes Dugi Otok an quiet destination, ideal for tourists that will appreciate the peace and the natural beauties that don't miss on island.The central position in Adriatic Sea (more distant than Ugljan and Pasman islands) make a weather in Dugi Otok even more better and "Mediterranean" than elsewhere in Dalmatia.

The island, with its variety of morphology, difference in height of 300m and more, is an interesting place for trekking lovers, but also for who want to walk around discovering the big differences from one site to another, like the delicious Saharun, in the north part of Dugi Otok - a white sand shore (ideal for little child) - and the lighthouse of Veli Rat on the next promontory.In the south of Dugi Otok there is the deep (8 km) bay of Telascica with the homonyms Natural Park achievable walking through the mainland part of the park up to the bay and the salt lake, or with ships (ideal), directly from the sea.

In the surroundings there are a lot of little islands: near at the south-east coast of Dugi Otok there is the National Park of Kornati - 147 islands with charming shores and luxuriant nature, with few people living there.The principal attractions of the Natural Park of Telascica are the salt lake - a drainage area of 2 km of length full of lukewarm water with a high concentration of salt - and the white rock in the part over the open sea that, after hundred meters, fall down into the deep sea.

Zagreb (Italian Zagabria, Czech Záhřeb) is the capital of Croatia and a charming medieval city with architecture and cobbled streets reminiscent of Vienna, Budapest, Prague and other Central-European capitals. In 2005 it was visited by over half a million tourists, mainly from Austria, Germany and Italy

General Tips

Croatia [1] (Croatian: Hrvatska) is a country in Southern Europe on the east side of the Adriatic Sea, to the east of Italy. It is surrounded by Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the north, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the east, Serbia in the northeast and Montenegro in the south east.

Dalmatia - a strip of mainland and islands between the Mediterranean and Bosnia and Herzegovina
Istria - a peninsula in the northwest, bordering Slovenia
Kvarner - seashore and highlands north of Dalmatia
Slavonia - northeastern area of forests and fields, bordering Hungary, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina
Central Croatia - north central highlands, location of Zagreb

Capital
Zagreb
Government
parliamentary democracy
Currency
kuna (HRK)
Area
56,542 sq km
Population
4,493,312 (July 2007 est.)
Language
Serbo-Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German)
Religion
Roman Catholic 87.8%, Orthodox 4.4%, Muslim 1.3%, other Christian 0.4%, others and unknown 6.1%
Electricity
230V/50Hz (European plug)
Calling Code
+385
Internet TLD
.hr
Time Zone
UTC