It is difficult to single out „Where to go in Croatia“ because it is a country with an extremely rich cultural heritage, a long tradition of customs with lots of destinations, places, and attractions that interpret our story and represent us at the same time reflecting our history. I’ll put myself in the position of a tourist who began his adventure traveling across Croatia and I will start from the center, capital city Zagreb. I kindly recommend you to write a list of “must-see” places to help you answer frequently asked a question. Croatian identity was mainly influenced by Mediterranean, Central Europe, and Turkey and it can be recognized in architecture and customs.
Many tourists have the same goal during their holiday. The goal is to see as possible, experience the beauty of what destination provides, and to soak up interesting parts of places to make an experience you will always remember.
Let’s begin our journey in the capital city. Zagreb is the largest city in Croatia with almost one million inhabitants, located in the continental central Croatia, an important transport hub thanks to its favorable geographical location. Humid continental climate attracts a large number of visitors throughout the year. The city is rich in culture with an extremely large selection of cultural and entertainment facilities, a wide array of accommodation for reasonable prices as well as luxury hotels. The city has a strong tourist offer throughout the whole year so if you are planning to visit Zagreb, keep in mind that even in wintertime you will find this city breathtaking.
Nearby the Croatian capital is the city of Krapina, which is extremely important due it is one of the richest paleoanthropological sites in the world because of the remains of Krapina Neanderthal. „Krapina Neanderthal Museum“ gave visitors the opportunity to become well acquainted with the research and findings in the area.
If you are wandering across central Croatia here is a favorite must-see list chosen by tourists. List of destinations that are located not far from the capital consists of picturesque baroque city Varaždin, Charming Castle Trakošćan, located in Varaždin county, one of the most beautiful castles in Croatia attracting many visitors and protected as cultural heritage, small-town Ilok perfect destination for wine lovers.
If we are traveling from Zagreb to Rijeka we will pass through Gorski Kotar. It is a beautiful part of continental Croatia and the perfect place for nature lovers. The continuation of our journey leads us to the beautiful Kvarner region that consists of a large number of islands and famous tourist spots. We are now located in Rijeka, the biggest river port in Croatia. In the 19th century, it was one of Europe’s largest port and a trading center with a powerful industry. In the coastal region of Kvarner, you will see a beautiful Opatija, or as we like to call it, the „Adriatic Pearl“, the city with the longest tradition of tourism in Croatia. Beautiful islands also located on Kvarner are the island of Krk that is the largest Croatian island, Rab, Cres, Lošinj and a number of smaller islands.
These islands are perfect summer oasis, the ideal place to escape from the crowded beaches and the city noise. Real natural beauties! We continue our tour through beautiful Istria where we definitely need to visit Rovinj, Pula with its fascinating Amphitheater and Poreč. Istria is known for its wine roads, elite tourism, famous gastronomy... Here you will find peace and relax away from a crowd of tourists. There is also a village of Motovun, the best-preserved medieval fortress of Istria peninsula which is world-famous for the eponymous film festival and each year attracts more and more visitors. Istrian wines, delicacies such as truffles and olive oil will leave you breathless!
This is just a part of Croatia, and the story looks different if we start our trip from Zagreb and head to Dalmatia. On our way to Dalmatia, we will pass through Lika where you will have the opportunity to visit the most famous national park Plitvice Lakes, one of Croatia’s most popular tourist attractions.
We continue our journey through the central Dalmatia and come to the four regional centers. „Donat’s town“ Zadar known for the Church of St. Donat, which is the most valuable monument of pre-Romanesque architecture, „Krešimir’s town“ Šibenik because the city was mentioned for the first time in the deed of King Petar Krešimir IV., „city of Diocletian“ Split, the largest city in Dalmatia and in the extreme south of Croatia you will see a wonderful Dubrovnik, one of the most important historical and tourist destinations whose number of visitors is growing steadily. Croatia is a country of a thousand islands, rich cultural heritage with a large number of protected values and intangibles, beautifully preserved nature and clear sea so no matter which side you start your journey you will remain satisfied.
Croatian Attractions – The highlights of your Holiday!
